Last Updated on 2019-05-12 , 11:48 am
This is Mr Lee. He is a politician in Singapore.
This is also Mr Lee. He is a politician in Singapore in Jack Neo’s upcoming film, Not So Long Time Ago.
But you already knew that from the headline. What’s up with that?
Not So Long Time Ago, Jack Neo made a Film
Which was actually Long Long Time Ago (in 2016).
Editor: Stop this s***
Okay, sorry.
That (Long Long Time Ago) was the first film in a 2-part period series. The one we are talking about today (Not So Long Time Ago) is the second one and its sequel (though it sounds like the kind of sequel which doesn’t absolutely need you to watch the first one).
So what is it about and why is politics involved?
1980, a time of change
Having lived through the period himself, Jack Neo says he sees the 80s as the second half of Singapore’s nation-building.
As reported by AsiaOne, Jack elaborated: “People had moved from the kampung and settled into the HDB flats, Singapore’s economy was on the rise, and the Government was very clear on the direction that they wanted to take.”
Trapped in the middle of all that is Ah Kun, Mark’s character, who has trouble understanding and adapting to the change.
According to Mark: “(Ah Kun) constantly thinks that the government is taking care of the country’s future but not its present. Hence, as someone who comes from the kampung, who is uneducated and hot-tempered, he will speak out.”
Ah Kun has trouble accepting the new Government policies, but as Mark explains, “everyone has to because it concerns the future of the country. Yet, this is a concept that he doesn’t understand.”.
It seems like through this character and the others common folk in the film, Jack attempts to express the thoughts of Singaporeans in that era, to “explore the people’s reaction towards Singapore’s political climate and their feelings towards how the government manages the country”.
Walking Through a Mine Field
Politics has always been a touchy subject, but Jack trudges on anyway with the interest in representing a part of our history.
That doesn’t stop the actors from joking about their eminent incarceration. “If we’re questioned by the authorities, we’ll say it’s the scriptwriters’ fault,” Mark says.
But anyways, if you’ve watched Jack Neo’s movie, you’ll know that he’s always walking on thin ice with his movies…and so far, the only time he has apologised publicly is for something that doesn’t involve his movies #IfYouRemember
Coming to Cinemas
Not So Long Time Ago is set to release in November. Depending on the public reception to a film about Singapore’s history, a third sequel may come up.
For more information about the filming itself, check out this video by Asia One.
Here’s a simplified summary of the South Korea martial law that even a 5-year-old would understand:
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