Army Daze
| Army Daze |
| Directed by |
Ong Keng Sen |
| Screenplay by |
Michael Chiang |
| Starring |
Edward Yong Ching Tah
Sheikh Haikel
Kevin Mark Verghese
Adrian Lim Meng Kiat
Ahamed Asad |
| Distributed by |
Cathay Asia Films |
| Release date(s) |
1996 |
| Running time |
84 minutes |
| Country |
Singapore |
| Language |
English, Malay, Hokkien and Mandarin |
| Budget |
S$700,000 |
| Box office |
S$1,600,000 |
Army Daze is a 1996 Singaporean comedy movie based on the 1987 theater play(which had a rerun in March 2006[1] ) of the same name by Singaporean writer Michael Chiang. Distributed by Cathay Asia Films and directed by Ong Keng Sen, the film portrays a group of 18 year old Singaporean teenagers from different classes and cultural backgrounds as they perform their National Service and their experience within the Singapore Armed Forces. The movie is spoken in Singlish, Standard English, Malay, Hokkien and Mandarin.
The tagline of the movie, From Real Blur (Singlish reference to a mental state of confusion) to Real Men.
Plot
Cast
- Edward Yong Ching Tah as Malcolm Png Wenjing, a young naive Chinese boy from a middle-upper class background. Due to being dotted by his mother, he at first has difficulty and culture shock in getting use to his new environment but slowly enjoys the life in the army. He serves as the narrator of the film including breaking the fourth wall to explain to the audience about Singapore National Service.
- Sheikh Haikel as Johari Salleh, a large, chubby Malay boy who loves rap music. He wishes to be an actor so he can meet his favorite star, Malaysian actress and singer Deanna Yusoff. Some of funny moments about him are usually about his weight.
- Ahamed Asad as Krishnamoorthy, a heroic Indian boy who acts like a typical Bollywood hero. He has positive attitude in joining the NS to prove how much of a heroic man he is to his girlfriend Lathi. Yet at the same, Krishna won't hesitate to break some rules to spend more time with Lathi.
- Adrian Lim meng Kiat as Teo Ah Beng, a mean, foul mounted Chinese teenager just like his namesake, Ah Beng. Has a serve dislike serving his National Service and is only doing it for the allowance. A recurring joke about Ah Beng is that everyone keeps telling him speak Mandarin when he talks in Hokkien. Krishna quickly become friends with him due to the latter secretly carrying a cellphone and pager.
- Kevin Mark Marghese as Kenny Pereira, an effeminate, gay man. Most of the funny moments about him are usually about how he manages to "feminize" any situation he is in.
- Margaret Chan as Mrs Png, Malcolm's mother. Mrs Png dotes on her son and expects Malcolm to get special treatment within the Army due to her husband working as a government official. However, she is unaware or doesn't realize that Malcolm will be treated the same like other recruits with no special privileges. Because she doesn't realize the training an bonding he does in the army, she thinks her son isn't eating enough and he getting stupid for spending time with the unintelligent people.
- Jacintha Charles as Lathi, Krishna's girlfriend. She is madly in love with Krishna over how heroic he is in joing the army.
- Eileen Wee Ling Yin as Teo Ah Huay, Ah Beng's younger sister. Ah Beng is sometimes annoyed about her due to the revealing clothes she wears and the fact she keeps asking hm for money.
- Daniel Gan Wei Teck as Cpl Ong, the platoon's Drill instructor. He tends to act harsh whenever the recruits try to be funny. While giving military lessons, he is also known for saying very strange aesops.
- Mark Richmond as Sgt. Monteiro, the platoon's Sergeant. He gets annoyed whenever the recruits don't act accordingly in what they are doing in the army.
- Elaine Li Hoon Cheah as Sgt. Wendy Chung, the Sergeant in charge in bayonet combat. She despises the recruits for not taking her lessons seriously. However, Ah Beng falls in love with her.
- Gerald Chew as 2nd Lt. Collin Heng, the platoon's commander. A handsome man who acts like gentlemanly and cares about the men under his command.
- Ong Choon Boone as Mr X, a man who secretly sells Malcom a book in the beginning in the movie called "101 Ways To Play Traunt In The Army", a book that shows how recruits can Truant within the Singapore Army without getting caught including how to become an Army Clerk.
- Deanna Yusoff as herself. A famous Malaysian actress and singer, she is Johari's crush. She appears in Johari's imaginations and in one segment with Malcolm about recruits having girlfriends. She also appeared at the end of the film which reveals she is Sgt. Wendy Chung's old school mate from Kuala Lumpur.
Differences from the play
The movie had several differences from the play. For example, Krishnamoorthy is an original character for the movie. Unlike the movie, the play focuses on Malcolm who plays the peacemaker and straight man within the platoon to Johari and Kenny, whom the latter two have a low opinion on National Service. Furthermore, how the characters became closer was different; in the movie, they were able to bond after talking about their problems with each other while in the play, they bonded after a crazy man attacks them and they subdued him.
Reception
With a budget of S$700,000, the movie was one of the most profitable Singaporean films during that time, earning about S$1,600,000 at the local box office.
References
- ^ "Army Daze makes a comeback to the theaters". Channel NewsAsia. 27 February 2006. http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/195381/1/.html.
External links