Singaporean Cinema in the 21St Century: Screening Nostalgia
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
SINGAPOREAN CINEMA IN THE 21ST CENTURY: SCREENING NOSTALGIA LEE WEI YING (B.A.(Hons.), NUS) A THESIS SUBMITTED FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS DEPARTMENT OF CHINESE STUDIES NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SINGAPORE 2013 Declaration i Acknowledgement First and utmost, I owe a huge debt of gratitude to my supervisor, Dr. Nicolai Volland for his guidance, patience and support throughout my period of study. My heartfelt appreciation goes also to Associate Professor Yung Sai Shing who not only inspired and led me to learn more about myself and my own country with his most enlightening advice and guidance but also shared his invaluable resources with me so readily. Thanks also to Dr. Xu Lanjun, Associate Professor Ong Chang Woei, Associate Professor Wong Sin Kiong and many other teachers from the NUS Chinese Studies Department for all the encouragement and suggestions given in relation to the writing of this thesis. To Professor Paul Pickowicz, Professor Wendy Larson, Professor Meaghan Morris and Professor Wang Ban for offering their professional opinions during my course of research. And, of course, Su Zhangkai who shared with me generously his impressive collection of films and magazines. Not forgetting Ms Quek Geok Hong, Mdm Fong Yoke Chan and Mdm Kwong Ai Wah for always being there to lend me a helping hand. I am also much indebted to National University of Singapore, for providing me with a wonderful environment to learn and grow and also awarding me the research scholarship and conference funding during the two years of study. In NUS, I also got to know many great friends whom I like to express my sincere thanks to for making this endeavor of mine less treacherous with their kind help, moral support, care and company. Many thanks also to all the staff of the NUS Central and Chinese Library, especially Ms Chow Kai Khim for helping me familiarize with the library resources with the much appreciated patience and kindness. Last but not least, the completion of this thesis would not have been possible without the unconditional love and support from my dearest family and friends. ii Contents Declaration ..................................................................................................................... i Acknowledgement ........................................................................................................ ii Summary ...................................................................................................................... iv List of Figures ............................................................................................................... vi Introduction-(Per)forming Memories: Constructing a Delayed Nostalgia on Screen- 1 - Chapter 1-The Leap to Nostalgia: From Forever Fever to It’s a Great Great World- 19 - Chapter 2-Kampung Nostalgia: From Homerun to the Getai Films ........................ - 49 - Chapter 3-A Traumatic Nostalgia: Unveiling the Singapore Identity ...................... - 84 - Conclusion-Old Romances for the Future ............................................................. - 105 - Bibliography .......................................................................................................... - 112 - Filmography .......................................................................................................... - 126 - Appendix I ............................................................................................................. - 130 - Appendix II ............................................................................................................ - 132 - iii Summary With Singaporeans’ growing concern about the issues of memory, heritage and culture preservation, there are repeated representations of social memory in Singapore cinema since its revival. In the 21st century, the notion of nostalgia has become more and more prevalent in Singaporean films. However, current studies of Singaporean cinema either adopt an auteurist approach or focus on the resistance against the government and the marginality of citizens from the lower social stratum, denying nostalgia a rightful position in the burgeoning field of Singaporean cinema studies. Yet, the focus on nostalgia helps to better situate Singaporean cinema in the world. In view of this, my aim in this thesis is to explore nostalgia in Singaporean cinema through analyses of selected films. I contend that the growing recognition of the local film industry, the rising concern for Singapore’s heritage and the increasing government backing have led to the formation of a kampung nostalgia on screen. This nostalgia, in turn, enables the realization and hence the continuity of a Singapore identity which had been long neglected. Using Forever Fever (dir. Glen Goei, 1998) and It’s a Great Great World [Da shijie] (dir. Kelvin Tong, 2011) as illustrations, this thesis first takes a closer look at the transition of Singaporean film industry from the late 1990s through the first decade of the 21st century, putting it together with the preservation surge taking place at a societal level so as to understand the context in which kampung nostalgia is formed on screen. The next chapter analyzes Homerun [Paoba haizi] (dir. Jack Neo, 2003) and the getai films, namely 881(dir. Royston Tan, 2007) and 12 Lotus [12 Lianhua] (dir. Royston Tan, 2008), so as to zoom in on the kampung nostalgia and how it is translated on screen. Chapter 3 turns its attention to the significance of kampung nostalgia in Singapore cinema with Sandcastle [Shacheng] (dir. Boo Junfeng, 2010) as an example to elucidate its connection with the Singapore identity. iv This thesis will finally end with a brief outlook of Singapore cinema on the periphery of Chinese cinemas. Nostalgia is a universal yet unique theme for the different cinemas. This study of nostalgia in Singaporean cinema will therefore enable us to see Singaporean cinema as a unique individual but not in isolation. While it helps to illuminate the country's own societal issues, it shines light on its position in the World Cinema as Chinese cinema's bridge to the rest of the cinemas too. Keywords: Singaporean cinema, Nostalgia, Kampung, Chinese cinemas, Memory, Singapore society v List of Figures Figure 1. ...................................................................................................... - 32 - Figure 2. ...................................................................................................... - 34 - Figure 3. ...................................................................................................... - 35 - Figure 4. ...................................................................................................... - 35 - Figure 5. ...................................................................................................... - 38 - Figure 6 ....................................................................................................... - 41 - Figure 7. ...................................................................................................... - 42 - Figure 8 ....................................................................................................... - 45 - Figure 9. ...................................................................................................... - 45 - Figure 10 ..................................................................................................... - 47 - Figure 11 ..................................................................................................... - 60 - Figure 12. .................................................................................................... - 61 - Figure 13 ..................................................................................................... - 71 - Figure 14 ..................................................................................................... - 71 - Figure 15 ..................................................................................................... - 72 - Figure 16 ..................................................................................................... - 73 - Figure 17 ..................................................................................................... - 73 - Figure 18. .................................................................................................... - 74 - Figure 19 ..................................................................................................... - 78 - vi Figure 20 ..................................................................................................... - 79 - Figure 21. .................................................................................................... - 79 - Figure 22 ..................................................................................................... - 80 - Figure 23 ..................................................................................................... - 81 - Figure 24 ..................................................................................................... - 82 - Figure 25 ..................................................................................................... - 91 - Figure 26. .................................................................................................... - 91 - Figure 27 ..................................................................................................... - 95 - Figure 28. ...................................................................................................