12 Storeys Synopsis:
The stories of ordinary people in Singapore, as silently witnessed by a lonely spirit.
12 Storeys Movie Review:
Eric Khoo's 12 Storeys is a caustic critique of the state of the Singapore's soul, exploring the social issues that lie beneath the surface of the gleaming, economically successful island- state. What we see is something rarely talked about, perhaps even acknowledged, by the authorities and mainstream society.
The film begins by taking the viewer through a montage of slices from the lives of tenants in the grey government housing estates, like flicking through pages before settling to focus on the life of a disaffected loner, who jumps to his death. His wandering ghost provides the connecting arc between three main stories, a silent observer to the intimate lives of these characters. The first focuses on Ming (Koh Boon Poh), who, at the cost of his own personal fulfilment, strove to live up to the traditional Chinese expectations of the eldest son of his family. With the parents away, he is in charge of his two younger siblings, Trixie (Lum May Yee ) and Tee (Roderick Lim). In the second story, overweight and lonely San San (Lucilla Teoh) contemplates suicide, her mother's torrent of abuse still ringing in her ears long after her death. And lastly, noodle-hawker Ah Gu (Jack Neo) is hen-pecked by his new mainland Chinese wife (Quan Yifeng), a shrill woman disappointed that her husband wasn't the rich businessman he said he was.
Each of these characters are allegories: Ming represents the anally retentive aspect of Singaporean authority, but also at a personal level, the frustration and despair stemming from a man dealing with his own ineffectuality. His two rebellious younger siblings, promiscuous Trixie and the surly Tee, represents the younger generation made bored from the comfort and security of their society. San San's deep unhappiness stems from her mother's abuse, her upbringing representing the dark side of the much vaunted Asian values apparently credited with the success of the country. Ah Gu's wife, though having gold-digging tendencies, provides an outsider's viewpoint on the over-regulated environment of the society with acidic and belittling force. And throughout the whole film, several characters rattle off grim statistics afflicting this Asian "utopia" - suicide rates, teenage pregnancies, venereal diseases, etc. The film is so topical that it even includes the headlines of the day.
The Singapore depicted here on film is one filled with an extraordinary Babel-like cacophony of languages: not only the lexicon of Singlish (Singaporean English) but at least four Chinese dialects, along with Malay and Tagalog. Gossip and business are conducted at coffee shops, as of old, and slices of the down-to-earth colorful streetlife contrasts strongly with the austere sterility that Singapore is unfortunately turning into. There is a feeling of loneliness, despair and alienation, from the suicide of the young man, the longing of a Fillipino maid for her distant child, to the regret and homesickness of Ah Gu's young bride. Though at times rather extreme, harsh and rough around the edges, the importance of this film is rightly deserved. And at the end of the film, the wandering ghost provides what comfort it can to a grieving San San, showing a small spark of hope and optimism for the future.
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12 Storeys review written by: Eden Law
7th October, 2008 
