After This Our Exile

After This Our Exile is the English translation to this wonderful movie entitled 'Fu zi' (which means father in Chinese). It is directed by writer-director Patrick Tam.

This movie are starred by actor Aaron Kwok (father), actress Charlie Yeung (mother), and the 9-year old boy, newcomer Gouw Ian Iskandar.

In my opinion, this movie's storyline is very simple, but it touches your heart deeply as it deals with something very close to everybody.

Most Malaysians were surprised to see that the movie is set in Malaysia (in the city of Perak, Ipoh to be exact), vividly portraying the scenery & the culture of the warm Malaysia. The slang is quite entertaining to hear too as Malaysians are well-known to speak Bahasa Rojak (mixed up language which contains different slangs & language in dialogues i.e mixture of English + Hokkien + Mandarin. It is commonly used, but not for formal functions). Kudos to the director for the extra detail taken in this respect! The story is about a family, with Dad being a gambler, harassed by Ah Long (illegal money-lender who gives out loan & ask for a much higher amount than the debt given) & a strained relationship with his wife & son. Mom, on the other hand, was not happy anymore to be with Dad, as Dad constantly beat up Mom, & Mom wasn't able to live with the no-gooder husband. Then there's the Kid, the central of the entire movie.

I enjoyed watching the entire 1 hour 55 minute of this movie as it touches my heart deeply. Patrick Tam is a genius as he directs the movie in a more realistic way, instead of portraying it like the Hollywood, which is too unrealistic at times. The movie starts with "You are my sunshine, making me happy when skies are grey..." It's very touching. No, seriously. You are heartless if you don't at least feel sympathy to any of these characters.

I believe many Malaysians would want to see more of this movie, especially TMalaya users. :-)

Like some others who have reviewed the movie, I am puzzled as to why this movie managed to win the awards it did -- except for the best supporting actor award going to the kid playing the "Boy" in the movie. He totally carried the movie -- he's really a major reason why I could sit through the 160 mins of the director's cut version of the movie.

Don't get me wrong. The movie isn't bad, but just that it's really not that good. A few pleasant surprises, besides the fabulous performance by the kid. Despite that his character is essentially a clichéd stereotype, Kwok turned out to be a much better actor than he is a singer. Also, several scenes are funny and the director's humor showed.

But the movie severely suffers from empty script and indulgent direction. The movie's character and plot developments are too light to substantiate the 3-hour duration (or, I believe, even the 2.5-hour duration of the theatre's cut). And the movie drags on and on. Sometimes it's as if the director isn't confident that the messages he intends for the audience would get through, and so he keeps re-sending them, and sometimes in an overly melodramatic way.

Another thing worth mentioning is the director (Tam) seems heavily influenced by Kar-Wai Wong. It's especially evident in the setup where the father gets into an affair with his neighbor in the hotel (reminiscent of "In the Mood for Love" and "2046"). But the movie would have benefited much if Tam's direction were crisper, subtler and more assured.

Except for the intrusive music which felt like a none too subtle attempt to evoke the sought-after emotion, this was a passable tear-jerker with a bit of sex and comedy. The music was particularly jarring because the solo piano was so much more foreground rather than background, and the distinctly European sound clashed with the tropical Southeast Asian visuals on the screen. To my Western tuned ear, the lack of strings kept the tears, which were yearning to be released, from emerging.

The "feel" of the picture was very Malaysian even though the story revolved around mostly ethnic Chinese characters. The interior and exterior shots as well as the scenes showing dining/food added to the "flavor" of the film. (Please, forgive the pun.)

Worth seeing? Maybe for a rainy afternoon or a soap opera addict. It is a tad too long and could easily be pared another 30min. I can hardly imagine watching the original version - still, I know people watching a continuing soap opera after 20yrs.

This story mostly revolves around a boy called, actually "boy" throughout the film. His parents are not happy, with his mom Lin trying to leave the son and his father (the boy's parents are not legally married) in the beginning of the film. Once she does, it is up to his father Sheng (well played by Aaron Kwok) to take care of the boy. He is a hopeless gambler, always in debt and they leave their town in China for a better chance at sustaining themselves. The film is straightforward in its telling, moving at a semi-slow pace. The film is also atmospheric at times, with the cinematography at times superb. The story in and of itself is not immediate, variations of it have been done before, but its well filmed. The reason for the grade not being higher is its lack of synergy with the characters. You may or may not care for them as the film progresses, but you don't relate to them. I suppose this is a slice of life in which the point may be that it's hard to rise above your station in life without making an honest attempt at change. That being said, this film reminds me somewhat of Wong Kar-Wai's films, it shares in those films a simple approach to a deceptively simple story. Its a good film, but not a masterpiece. It is, however, worth watching.

The above title explains it all: when vengeance binds a father and a son. That was a Chinese idiom to describe the the fate that binds a father and son together. And this best describes the movie, After This Our Exile.

After migrated to Malaysia, Hong Kong director/scriptwriter Patrick Tam decided to tell a tale of gambling-addicted father (Aaron Kwok, which earns him a Golden Horse Award from Taiwan for Best Actor) and a son (the 9 year old newcomer Gouw Ian Iskandar) who was torn between his father and his mother (Charlie Yeung).

Set in Ipoh, Perak, the story begins with the boy sensing something is amiss when his mother was exceptionally nice to him in a morning before school. He found out that she was preparing to leave the home. He informs his father, and the couple had a quarrel in their neighborhood. She fails to run away.

When the mother told the father that she is leaving him due to his bad temper and gambling addiction, he decided to change. He brought the whole family for a cruise, and yet he goes gambling in the cruise. She left the family this time round, leaving the son and the father to face the problem.

Facing with harassment from the loan sharks and tonnes of unpaid bills, the father seek another alternative to get the money by go gambling in Genting Highlands. (Note: Genting Highlands is a tour/leisure resort in Pahang, Malaysia, where it consist of theme parks, shopping malls and casinos. Popular among Malaysians and Singaporeans.) He lost the money, leaving them with larger debts. To get the money, the father gets the son to steal valuables from their neighbors.

After This Our Exile is a simple yet sad tale about the struggles between a father and the son. The father was struggling from the loss of his wife, constant debts and his gambling addiction. The son was struggling with the life without his mother, which ends up being ripped off from the privilege of continuing his elementary education. This, somehow, truly reflects on what is happening in our society today.

Kwok takes a new exploration on the role of the father, who was short tempered, selfish, and more often, cried over spilled milk. Compared to his previous roles in other features, Kwok has given his fans and audience a new look on his skills for the past decade. Yeung's role as the mother can be added more, for there are rooms in theatrical version, which can explores more on the pains she has been through.

The 9 year old Iskandar was something new for the film. Without any acting backgrounds, he amazes the audience with his fine and innocent acting skills.

While the director's cut gives the audience a fuller view on the story, the theatrical version seems disappointing, for it left the audience with too much space to guess. This has somehow unable to brought up the 'vengence' that binds the father and son together, leaving a bittersweet aftertaste.

After This Our Exile sounds common to some, but it left the audience to re-examine the strained relationship between a father and the son.