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VIFF 2009 | At the End of Daybreak
By VIFF Correspondent Jordana MahAt the End of Daybreak
Malaysia/Hong Kong/South Korea, 2009, 94min
DIR: Ho Yuhang
Hailing from Malaysia, director Ho Yuhang and stars Tsui Tin-yau, Jane Ng Meng-hui and Kara Hui, bring us a tale of love and life gone horribly wrong. The story begins and ends with young Tuck Chai, a working-class 23-year-old who lives with his alcoholic mother, and his 15-year-old girlfriend Ying. While Tuck works, Ying wanders through her days at school with glassy-eyed stillness, escaping from class and, later, bullying girls on the back of Tuck`s motor-bike. The lives of these young lovers' are thrown upside-down when their relationship is discovered by Ying`s parents, who threaten prosecution and demand retribution. Tuck`s fiercely protective mother tries her best to protect him, but Ying`s parents are out for blood and, as his options narrow, Tuck becomes more and more desperate. Ying is no help to Tuck either; she shuts him out from her life with little sympathy or care. Even as Tuck pleads with Ying, saying he could go to prison, Ying only stares blankly, driving Tuck further into to madness.
Schema Magazine's coverage of VIFF 2009 is sponsored by the Toronto Reel Asian Film Festival
Ho Yuhang expertly grabs the audience and doesn`t let go until the last frame. Westerners may be used to films saturated with dialogue, but this film manages to convey just as much - with much less. Malaysia's lush, tropical landscape and swaying trees provide stark contrast to the desperate events unfolding. Characters vacillate between laughter and tears, camaraderie and violence - often in a matter of moments - and we are shown how anyone is capable of doing very shocking things.
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October 16, 2009 at 12:54 AM
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