Went to watch this Singapore film without much expectations... but was pleasantly suprised by the quality of acting from both lead and supporting actresses, and the imaginery and drama that could be injected into the theme of shopping in Singapore. Kudos to Kym, who really underwent a transformation to fit into this role, looking bloated, slower, saddened and in her forties (a tai_tai!)... she wasn't looking her usual hyper-active-skinny-talkative-auntie character in the usual food variety shows. And as for Director/Writer for this film - Wee Li Lin... she produced what Asian (and Singapore) directors could only achieve, a story telling marked with documentary realistic style (not overly melancholic) and with such well-timed pacing that lets the mood and color of the scene set in.
As for the dinner at Dome... the lamb rack was great. Salad was fresh (unlike the dead ones in fish&co). But the bbq pork ribs were quite terrible... more like charsiew chinese style pork ribs! So much for "creativity" in a non-Chinese diner.
As for the mash potato... tasted quite like fast-food powdery mash potato... can be improved!!! The mango smoothie was also too milky and tasted wierd. The cheese cake (no-name), has a different quality from the past two times I tried (1st time 5 star, 2nd time 0 star, this time 3 star). I suspect it's because of the number of days that they keep the cheese cake, or the temperature they maintain over their cakes.
That's about it for film and food review for today!
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Gone Shopping Marks Female Director Wee Li Lin's Feature Debut
Singapore, 28th June 2007 – Kismet Films, together with movie distributor Golden Village Pictures Pte Ltd (GVP) and the Singapore Tourism Board (STB), is proud to announce local movie, GONE SHOPPING, scheduled to hit local cinema screens on 26th July 2007.
Starring MediaCorp Artiste Kym Ng, GONE SHOPPING is a satirical drama that sheds new light and purpose to one of Singapore’s oldest cultures – the art of shopping. Centred around three leading characters who seek to satisfy the emptiness of their souls, Gone Shopping will take audiences on a journey of love, loss and liberation in the heart of Singapore’s shopping centres, a place where their dreams can be bought and broken.
At the helm of the film is writer, director and co-producer Wee Li Lin, reputed to be Singapore’s most prolific female short filmmaker, with more than 10 short films that have garnered prestigious local and international awards. In this maiden feature effort, Wee Li Lin partnered with producer Fazila “Fuzzy” Zainol Abideen of Kismet Films.
With Gone Shopping, Li Lin wanted to reflect the rich Singapore culture that she was raised in and its people. “As a writer, I’m mostly interested in character studies. Shopping in itself is a benign activity which doesn’t make for dramatic storytelling, but the psychology behind shopping, the space of the shopping centre and its archetypes that dwell there, are intriguing,” says Li Lin.
Taking on the lead role of Clara, is Kym Ng, whose beauty and acting skills for the big screen will stun and move audiences. Gone Shopping will not only be Kym’s debut in a leading role for a feature film, it will also feature her first on-screen kiss with her love interest in the movie, Valentine, played by veteran actor Adrian Pang (MediaCorp artiste).
Produced over a period of three painstaking years, Gone Shopping was finally realised after a 31 day shoot - almost completely filmed in the shopping centres of Singapore on High Definition.
The end result is a story that goes beyond the essence of Singapore’s society and its subcultures. It exposes the heartbeat of every busy metropolitan city around the world affected by the very magnetic culture of shopping and its spaces.