Sunday, January 12, 2014

Review Of: ILO ILO

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I've just watched "ILO ILO" (:

Directed by Anthony Chen
Starring Chen Tianwen, Yeo Yann Yann, Angeli Bayani, Koh Jia Ler
Synopsis:
Set in Singapore, Ilo Ilo chronicles the relationship between the Lim family and their newly arrived maid, Teresa. Like many other Filipino women, she has come to this city in search of a better life. Her presence in the family worsens their already strained relationship. Jiale, the young and troublesome son, starts to form a unique bond with Teresa, who soon becomes an unspoken part of the family. This is 1997 and the Asian Financial Crisis is beginning to be felt in the region

(Source: GSC Cinemas)


A "down-to-earth" story that really shows the hardships of a Singaporean family during the Asian Financial Crisis in 1997.

Anthony Chen took a serious and realistic way of diving into the life of Singaporean families during the crisis through the eyes of a Pilipino maid and also giving a serious tone to the film but also adding a tinge of some comedic moments in the film. But I was expecting a bit more from the movie as the ending was quite abrupt, in my opinion.


The story was in a way "genuine" as I said, it dives quite deeply into the family's life and habits, without missing on the small details. The story flow quite well and it was rather relatable to most families in different societies, especially during hardships.

The plot was good, although I expected much more due to the rather abrupt ending. But that can be forgiven considering the genre and theme this movie was going for. Many scenes were well written to show each and every character's troubles and conflict, but still I felt that those scenes could've escalated to something more hmm.

Acting was great. The actors portrayed the characters really good and realistic. For some moments, it really felt like a documentary of the family's real life. Fyi, Yeo Yann Yann was really pregnant in the movie. 

The cinematography was good, simple and not too flashy. The tone of the film make it really seem like a film made in the 90s. 

In a nutshell, "ILO ILO" is a genuine, realistic movie which touches on many family and individual values. If you enjoy those real-life stories about people and society, or enjoy "International screens/Foreign films", you should give this a go. 

My Rating?

Plot : 3.75/5
Storyline : 4/5
Characters*: 5/5 
Effects** : 3.5/5
OVERALL : 8/10.

Trailer:



2 comments:

The Special One said...

ILO ILO. I haven't watched. The way you told the story seems to be a good movie.

Iriene said...

I was thinking of watching this movie
as I read that they won numerous international awards. Congrats the director, Anthony Chen and his team for a fabulous job!

Movie Rating Guide. :)

Lately, I've changed my movie ratings a little. (:


Plot :

is the flow & structural plot of the movie itself.

Storyline :

the overall idea & the concept of the movie.

Characters:

The character's overall acting & character built-up in the movie. Or for animation, the voices & character built-up too.

Effects* :

The visual effects, 3D effects, movie scores/music, graphics, animation of a movie respective to it's genre.


SO, there it is. Thanks! :)