Love in a Puff

This is a love story about two people who met when they were smoking in the smoking box.

Liked the interesting interview segments that were interspersed in the film! The lead actress was pretty charming despite saying swear words occasionally.

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Stand By Me Doraemon 2

This movie is based on a Japanese manga Doraemon. Doraemon is a robot cat who has travelled from the future to be friends with Nobita to ensure he has found happiness before it can go back. In this sequel, he is intent on fulfilling his grandmother's wish.

The travelling back and forth in time reminded me a bit of "Back to the Future II"! The grandmother is my favorite character! She is not fazed by anything that she sees and hears and also gave excellent advice to Nobita at the end!

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Over the Moon

The story is about a young girl flying to the moon to find Chang E after learning that her widowed dad intends to remarry.

Liked the nice friendly sibling relationship between the young girl and her future step brother! The moon setting looked quite futuristic!

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Whisper of the Heart

The story is about a girl who is an aspiring writer falling in love with a boy who wants to be a violin maker.

This felt a bit like "Only Yesterday" with only the childhood segments. Both films also have English songs sung in Japanese! I liked the Shizuku character as she felt like a nice girl-next-door character who is trying to find her way in life!

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Dangal

The story is about a father training her daughters to be world class wrestlers so that they can win medals for India.

Liked the nice songs and the father daughter relationship in the film! Didn't like the parts with the coach who was depicted as evil for no reason. The director also tried too hard to make the match exciting by making it an almost impossible task for Geeta to come from behind.

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Mulan

The story is about a girl who went to the Army in ancient China to fight against foreign invaders by disguising herself as a man.

Liked the nice songs and the great problem solving skills of Mulan! I also liked the warm father daughter relationship!

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A Dog's Journey

The story is about a loyal dog that remembers its purpose to protect its owner's granddaughter even after going through several deaths and rebirths as a different dog.

Liked the nice heartwarming plot! The two main characters were really likable too! The evil side characters were a little bit of a caricature though and the part where the granddaughter walked away normally after a car accident didn't quite make sense.

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Found

This is a documentary about three cousins going back to China to find out more about their past. They were abandoned by their parents in China and adopted by Americans.

Liked the strong bond among the cousins and their journey to search for their identity! The potential sister of Chloe really looked like her! Can't really blame the father from doubting the report!

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Lovers Are Wet

The story is about how a young man who worked in a cinema at a small town befriended a strange couple.

Liked the folk song sang by the protagonist. The film was a bit abstract for me though.

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Night of the Felines

The story is about a group of women working in a Turkish Bath in Tokyo, focusing on a love triangle relationship of one of the women.

The film felt a bit like a mix of "Streets of Shame" and "When a Woman Ascends the Stairs". The love triangle relationship was the strangest one that I have ever seen!

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Satoshi Kon: The Illusionist

This is a documentary on a Japanese animation director, Satoshi Kon. He is well known for blurring the lines of dream and reality in his films.

It was great to hear that so many directors admired him and were influenced by him! Was pretty surprised to learn that the voice actress for Mimi in "Perfect Blue" was a former idol! Would love to catch "Paranoia Agent" if I have the chance!

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Josee, the Tiger and the Fish

This is a story about a young man who loved the sea and two women falling in love with him. One of them is a handicapped woman called Josee.

Liked how Josee modified the mermaid fairy tale to describe her situation in the library! A pretty apt film to watch shortly after the Paralympics games!

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Misha and the Wolves

This is a documentary about a woman called Misha who recounted a fantastic childhood adventure to her neighbours and friends that later became a bestseller book.

Liked the interesting twists and turns in the documentary! The perspectives from the different experts and friends helped to shed light on the person the protagonist really was!

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Stand By Me Doraemon

This movie is based on a Japanese manga Doraemon. Doraemon is a robot cat who has travelled from the future to be friends with Nobita to ensure he has found happiness before it can go back.

Was a little bit disturbed over the use of the giant egg gadget to win over Shizuka but I realized that it was meant to set up for what was to come next; Nobita to prove that he is worthy through his own merit. I was moved by his determination to be less dependent on Doraemon towards the end!

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ciNE65 MMA 2021 (Winning Films)

There were 12 winning films at the ciNE65 movie makers award 2021. They explore and express the Singapore Identity by telling us what Singapore means to us through film with "Stronger Together" as this year's theme.

Liked "Knock Knock!" the best as it shows the nasty and nice encounters of a hearing impaired delivery man! "Siti" comes in a close second as a heartwarming film that describes how the helper knew her employer much better than the employer's daughter and was treated as part of the family in the end. I also liked the light hearted "Ala-mask!", "Little Miss Mischief" and "Whirling Gears"!

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The Diam Diam Era 2

This is a sequel to "The Diam Diam Era" and it is about how people grew up in Singapore during the 1980s seen through one extended family.

Thought the director didn't paint a very good picture of the opposition parties. Especially didn't like the supposedly English educated chairman. Glad that the cousins made up in the end!

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The Diam Diam Era

The story is about how people grew up in Singapore during the 1980s seen through one extended family.

Liked the familiar old Singapore sights and sounds! Really brought back old memories! A little bit sad that the Xinyao singer was just a pretty vase with very little spoken lines.

Internet Movie Database Link

CSC Online Scrabble Competition 2021

The CSC Online Scrabble Competition is an annual event for organisations in the civil service to take part in a friendly game of Scrabble. It was held online on 5th June 2021 from 9.30am to 3.30pm. A total of 34 people from 7 organisations took part including three from MINDEF.

Here's my match report.

Game 1: Choo Kay Wei (HDB)
I scored well with ZOA(38) and QuOTES(51) to win the game but could have scored even more. First, I chickened out from front hooking my S to an existing CAG on the board only to have my opponent play it later. Then I had the chance to play LAITIES but back hooked the S to an existing NE on the board. It got challenged off but I wasn't sure which was the phoney so didn't play LAITIES again when I had another chance to play it.

Won 360-274. 1-0 spread +86

Game 2: Khaili (MHA)
I bingoed with TINNIER(70), OUTSPEED(76) and scored well with QIN(39), CANDY(36), ZOS(36) and KA(40) while he bingoed with SOWABLE(68), SCARIER(72), INNATELY(62) and MALTESE(77) and scored well with HAM(36). Gave my opponent extra 15 points for challenging SOWABLE, GOBO and MALTESE.

Lost 423-469. 1-1 spread +40

Game 3: Daniel Lam (PA)
I bingoed with GREATER(73), SELLERs(68) and scored well with ZAS(46) and VILLA(32) while he scored well with FAYED(33) and HM(40).

Won 413-308. 2-1 spread +145

Game 4: Govinda Ghale (MHA)
I bingoed with OUTSIDER(62) and scored well with SECO(38) while he bingoed with AWAITeD(78), LAUDERS(76) and scored well with QUIZ(48), GOURDY(44), JINGLER(46) and CABs(36). Didn't do well as I also mistakenly front hooked an E to QUIZ instead of S and phoneyed with OARSLINE* hoping that it woud be good.

Lost 308-474. 2-2 spread -21

Game 5: Cecilia Koh (HDB)
I bingoed with AStERIA(70) and scored well with SLAW(34) and PLEDGE(36) while she scored well with EX(38) and ZOs(43). Must be getting a little bit tired as I challenged simple words like HEIR. Thought it should be spelled HIER*.

Won 395-341. 3-2 spread +33

Game 6: Rosan (MHA)
Didn't manage to play with Rosan as he had urgent work to do, so I was given a bye.

Won 150-75. 4-2 spread +108

Game 7: Koh Jing Xuan (MINDEF)
I bingoed with SLeNDER(71), WEARIER(83), OVERlOAD(63) and scored well with AFTER(36), OF(33) and OK(36) while he bingoed with BOTANISE(89) and scored well with QI(31), INJECT(32), ZEST(58) and DIXIE(32).

Won 439-378. 5-2 spread +169

Game 8: Sharon Chia (HDB)
I bingoed with ANnUItY(66) and scored well with FAVOR(30), KART(31) and LUZ(46) while she bingoed with LAPSERS(72), CASTERS(84) and scored well with DEX(37). My phoneys with GOW* and TAUTIER* also got challenged off. Was really lucky as I was trailing my opponent since her first bingo but just overtook her by a little bit by bingoing out.

Won 388-347. 6-2 spread +210

I played with players from HDB, MHA, PA and also with my own team mate! Won all my games with HDB but lost 2 out of 3 games with MHA. Final result was 5th placing out of 34. Not too bad in my opinion considering the number of mistakes I made. Hope next year will be an online competition again so that I can play in the comfort of my home!

Like the Dyer's Hand

This is a documentary of a Chinese literature scholar, Ms Yeh Chia-ying who taught in universities around the world.

Not really a fan of Chinese poetry but the film gave me a peek on the minds of literature scholars! I think writing poetry probably helps to exercise the brain as the protagonist looked very sharp despite her old age.

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All About ING

The story is about how a family coped with the father's terminal illness of liver cancer.

Liked how the film was told from the perspectives of the mother, the son and the father! Gave me a better understanding of what everybody was thinking about.

Internet Movie Database Link

The Good Daughter

This is a documentary about the life of a Vietnamese woman who married a Taiwanese man to help her family escape poverty.

Liked how the film gave a balanced view of what everyone thought of the situation: the mother-in-law, the husband, the wife and the wife's family.

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Little Big Women

The story revolves around the wife, the daughters and the mistress of a man who died early in the film.

Liked how the film slowly revealed what happened in the past through flashbacks and casual conversations!

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Classmates Minus

The story is about the lives of four middle aged men who were good friends since high school. They are in different jobs: a director, an insurance agent, a paper house maker and a temp worker.

Liked the voice over narration that gave the film a distinctive Taiwanese flavour through its language. Was a little bit surprised by the ending.

Internet Movie Database Link

Fresh Wave Short Film Showcase

The short film showcase consisted of three films from Hong Kong: "The Bridge", "busydoingnothing" and "Eternal Sunshine". "The Bridge" is about a family who lives in different places such as Hong Kong, Hainan Island and Shenzhen but gathered for an ancestral ceremony. "busydoing nothing" is about a young woman working at a thrift shop. "Eternal Sunshine" is about how an old woman looked after his autistic son.

Liked the relaxed lifestyle at the countryside in "The Bridge", the interesting encounters at the shop in "busydoing nothing" and the heartwarming mother and son relationship in "Eternal Sunshine". Gained a glimpse on what are on the minds of Hong Kong people from these short films.

Singin' in the Rain

The story is about how a movie company transitioned from silent films to sound films.

Learned about this film from the MIT Open Courseware, The Film Experience Course. Liked the nice songs and exciting dance choreography! The plot was interesting too! Didn't know there were so many technical challenges involved!

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MIT OCW The Film Experience Lecture 12: The Musical (continued)

A Tale of Three Sisters

The story is about how three sisters from a small village longed to live in the city by becoming nannies to rich people's children.

Quite slow moving but I liked the nice mountain scenery and the love among the sisters! The husband turned out to be smarter than I had expected!

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It Happened One Night

The story is about a rich girl falling in love with a young man while running away from home.

Learned about this film from the MIT Open Courseware, The Film Experience Course. Liked the intense verbal exchanges between the couple and the adventures that they went through! Thought the director did a good job in creating an ending without the presence of the female lead!

Internet Movie Database Link

MIT OCW The Film Experience Lecture 8: The Work of Movies; Capra & Hawks

A Family Tour

The story is about a family touring Taiwan under unique circumstances. The grandmother is in a tour group while the couple and their child followed her around in a cab.

Liked how the film tried to explain how mainland Chinese, Hongkongers and Taiwanese have different ways of thinking due to their background! Didn't realise it was partly inspired by the director's own story until I checked out the reviews!

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The General

The story is about a train called "The General" that was stolen during the American civil war.

Learned about this film from the MIT Open Courseware, The Film Experience Course. Liked the nice storyline and the exciting stunts performed by Keaton! Was really surprised when he stuffed his girlfriend in the sack and got her to remove the carriage pin while in the sack! She was not just a beautiful vase as I had imagined!

Internet Movie Database Link

MIT OCW The Film Experience Lecture 2: Keaton

7 Letters

This is an anthology of seven short films by seven different directors to celebrate SG50.

Liked the scary monster in "Cinema", the mischevious kids in "That Girl", the tense family relationship in "The Flame", the friendly neighbour in "Bunga Sayang", the quest to find out about one's past in "Pineapple Town", the nice voice over narration in "Parting" and the historical pictures of Singapore in "GPS".

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That Girl in Pinafore

The story is about the hopes and dreams of a group of young people who loved Xinyao.

Liked the nice music that went along with story very well! The plot on the other hand didn't really make sense towards the end but I thought it was still a good effort by the director who brought us back to Singapore in the 90s!

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Mirai

The story is about a family that consists of father, mother, a big brother and a baby sister. The big brother does not really like his little sister as his parents pay more attention to her now.

Liked the fantasy sequences involving different characters from the past and future! The ending was really well done as it joins all the dots to form the overall picture!

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Blue Hour

The story is about a woman's journey back to her hometown with her best friend.

Liked the theme of family love and rediscovering one's purpose in life!

Internet Movie Database Link

Talentime

The story is about the lives of people from different races in Malaysia. Some of them are participants of a Talentime show in school.

Liked the nice songs and how the director showed that it was possible to live harmoniously with each other although some could still be prejudiced against others!

Internet Movie Database Link

Mental

This is a documentary about people with mental illness.

Gained an understanding of the clinic's daily operations and what the patients were going through! Most of them are just normal human beings like the rest of us. I especially liked the poetry by one of the patients towards the end!

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Yellow Cat

The story is about a man who dreams of building a movie theatre together with a girl he met. He stole money from an influential guy and had to hide from him and his gang.

Liked how the film was divided into chapters with a paper drawing of what we might expect! It probably has some reference to the film "Le Samourai" so would want to check it out if I have the chance to see the similarities.

Internet Movie Database Link

SGIFF Shorts

Wanted to watch some short films during the Singapore International Film Festival, so I picked the following 10 films as a bundle.

• Singapore Films: "New Born", "Here is Not There", "Rocketship", "Nursery Rhymes"
• Animation: "Sexy Sushi", "Water Melon Please"
• Video Essays: "Her Five Lives", "Casting a Spell to Alter Reality"
• Asian Films: "Judy Free", "Sunrise in My Mind"

Liked the great acting by the female lead in "New Born", the dramatic twist in "Here is Not There", the little boy's efforts to bring the family together in "Rocketship" and the nice songs in "Nursery Rhymes".

Both "Sexy Sushi" and "Water Melon Please" were a little abstract and touched on some existential issues.

Learnt about the history of Uzbek films in "Her Five Lives" and appreciated Hou Hsiao Hsien's films better with "Casting a Spell to Alter Reality".

Liked the special effect to make the father figure fuzzy in "Judy Free" and the chit chat in "Sunrise in My Mind".

A Balance

This is a story about a documentary director who covers scandals and what happens when she is about to be involved in one herself.

Liked the moral dilemmas presented in the film! Is it better to tell the truth and risk getting shamed by society or be burdened with having to tell lies the rest of your life and potentially harming others? Not really sure if the lead actress made the right choice in the end.

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Slalom

This is a story about an athlete who skis and her relationship with her coach and family.

Great acting by the lead actress! Realized it is not so easy to spot a possible offender as it may happen suddenly under specific circumstances.

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Sementara

This is a documentary on the sights and sounds in Singapore during its SG50 celebrations.

Liked the scenes with people from different religions and cultures! Learned more about people from all walks of life from the interviews!

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Moving On

The story is about a family trying to move on in their lives in their own ways.

The pace was a little slow at the start but I appreciated the film more after all the characters were introduced. Liked the nice family atmosphere of them eating together and the grandson showing off his dance! The old song that the grandfather listened to was quite nice too!

Internet Movie Database Link

The House Of Us

The story is about a little girl trying to bring her family together through cooking and planning a family trip. She made friends with two girls who are even younger than her by chance.

Liked the happier moments when the three girls played together! Thought some parts were not very logical such as the mother's reaction towards the milk incident, the little girl refusing to answer her calls and the fear towards a man sleeping in his cart but I still enjoyed the film.

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From Victoria Street to Ang Mo Kio

This is a film about the history of the CHIJ St Nicholas school. It has a dramatized story, interviews with former students and principals as well as documentary footages. I liked the depiction of the old school compound with the creaky staircase and the naturally well ventilated classroom space! I also liked to hear the fond memories of the interviewees and to learn about the history of our education system through the documentary clips!

Our Time Machine

This is a documentary about a son making a puppet theatre show as a tribute to his father.

Liked the interesting concept but also wondered if it was worth spending so much time and money on the project! The puppet handlers were pretty skillful in my opinion!

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Shukuhachi: One Sound One Life

This is a documentary on an ancient Chinese wind instrument that is made of bamboo.

Liked the nice Shukuhachi music in the film! Was impressed by the woman who imitated the music of different Chinese minorities that were inspired by nature such as the rooster or the sheep!

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Tamaran Hill

The story is adapted from a novel and it is about a young girl trying to find out more about her past when she digs deep into the history of Tamaran Hill.

Liked the voice over narration, the animation sequences of the words flying and the mother singing as well as the old historic photographs! I felt that reality and fiction fused together at times.

Social Dilemma

This is a documentary on the impact of social media on the world.

Liked how the film physically showed what the artificial intelligence might look like in person! Didn't realize how entire nations like Myanmar and Hong Kong were affected by social media! The takeaway for me is to turn off notifications so that I still can enjoy my offline social life.

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Isadora's Children

The story is about four women trying to learn a dance created by a choreographer to commerorate her children who died in an accident.

The pace was a little bit slow but I liked the elegant dance movements and the different perspectives on how different people approach a subject: from a book, bouncing ideas with each other through conversations and personal experience.

Internet Movie Database Link

Rising Phoenix

This is a documentary about the Paralympics.

Liked the personal stories of the athletes and how different sports and different countries were featured!

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CSC E-Scrabble Competition 2020

The CSC E-Scrabble Competition is an annual event for organisations in the civil service to take part in a friendly game of Scrabble. It was held online on 12th Sep 2020 from 9.30am to 3.30pm. A total of 37 people from 8 organisations took part including two from MINDEF.

Here's my match report.

Game 1: Muhammed Farhan (MHA)
I bingoed with COSINES(78) and scored well with JET(33) while he scored well with UNFACE*(42), HOX(48) and HAZE(36).

Won 370-332. 1-0 spread +38

Game 2: Chan Andi Andy (PA)
I bingoed with FALTERS(78), EROTISE(72) and scored well with DJIN(36), LIKE(30) and MUX(37) while he scored well with ZA(33) and HOAX(39). I challenged his TORAN as I was not sure if it was valid but it turned out to be good.

Won 474-189. 2-0 spread +323

Game 3: Marlon Prudencio (LTA)
I got away with a phoney bingo TRELLERS*(61) and scored well with WALTZ(34), HUE(37) and QIN(44) while he bingoed with ELMIEST(90), CAREENED(63) and scored well with OK(38), JAILS(47) and RAND(31). Was quite surprised when he put down a phoney bingo FISHMEN* and I challenged it off successfully! Learned two new words, ELMIEST and SKEN.

Lost 374-438. 2-1 spread +259

Game 4: Joseph Tan (HDB)
I bingoed with sPoRTED(72) and scored well with DORY(36), PIS(31) and KIN(33) while he bingoed with RAVENOUS(72), HORSING(72), STEAMIE(70) and scored well with JEED(40), DEIL(31) and REZ(32). Played two phoneys that were challenged off: SHINT* and WINKIE*. Was considering between WINKIE* and WINKLE which would have scored 50 points but chose the wrong one in the end.

Lost 320-489. 2-2 spread +90

Game 5: Ramamoorthy Rajagopal (MHA)
I bingoed with HUNTERS(78) and scored well with SEZ(32) and MOA(31) while he bingoed with SILTIER(73), BLASTER(69) REPEALER(68) and scored well with HANKY(35), BIRD(32), QI(36) and JIG(30). He put down SLITIER* initially and I challenged it off but he put down the correct anagram on the next turn. Was surprised in the middle of the game when he passed his turn for no reason, then found out that he was trying to change tiles but accidentally pressed the pass button instead.

Lost 372-443. 2-3 spread +19

Game 6: Govinda Ghale (MHA)
I bingoed with cLEAVED(78), TrIAGES(75), ATTIRES(83) and scored well with HIVED(50), ZIG(43) and DEX(43) while he bingoed with UNNATIVE(72), INCASES(67) and scored well with MOW(33), QUIN(36) and ZEL(36). Was quite surprised that INCASE took an S back hook.

Won 496-403. 3-3 spread +112

Game 7: Muhammed Farhan (MHA)
Played Farhan again in the first king of the hill. I bingoed with GUITARS(73) and scored well with YOK(33), ZARFS(81), HON(30) and WUDS(30) while he bingoed with LEAVING(76) and scored well with JEE(30) and QUIT(46). Fatigue might have set in for him as he played OT* which was obviously no good and I challenged it off. That might have made a difference in who won the game as our scores were not too far apart.

Won 418-397. 4-3 spread +133

Game 8: Shahrul Kamal (SP)
I bingoed with TEEINGS(83) and scored well with ZEA(31) and HAIR(30) while he bingoed with COWARDS(86) and scored well with VEX(33), INJURE(63) and RETRY(38). Late in the game, I was 20 points behind and there were 5 tiles in the bag including possibly the Q. There were two I spots on the board and I blocked one of them, thinking he would play a Q on the other I spot. He played RETRY front hooking the Y to be CLAD instead and was ahead by 47 points. He was stuck with the Q though and I managed to outscore him by playing one or two tiles at a time while he passed several times.

Won 393-388. 5-3 spread +138

I managed to play with players in 5 different organisations. A pity I didn't have the chance to play with players in Ministry of Health and Ministry of Law. Final result was 12th placing out of 37. Not too bad in my opinion considering the number of mistakes I made. Hope next year will be an online competition again so that I can play in the comfort of my home!

High Score

This is a documentary about the video game industry, how it evolved from the arcade, to specialised console and then to the personal computer.

Liked the use of the nice cartoonish animation to tell parts of the story! Used to play Street Fighter II quite a bit when I was doing my National Service so it was quite nostalgic to see it on the screen.

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Athlete A

This is a documentary about a scandal involving the United States Gymnastics Olympics team doctor, Larry Nassar.

Liked the interviews with the gymnasts and the people who were helping them! The doctor should have been caught long ago, thank goodness he is being punished for his bad deeds now!

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Wanton Mee

The story is about a food critic interviewing hawkers of traditional local food. The film also shows his relationship with his colleagues and with his father.

Liked the heartfelt interviews that focused more on people rather than the food itself! Might be interesting to do a food tour around Singapore to visit those stalls!

Internet Movie Database Link

The Teenage Textbook Movie

The story is about students finding love at a fictional junior college. It is based on the novel "The Teenage Textbook" by Adrian Tan.

Liked the old Singapore landmarks like Borders and the old style bus stops! The characters were a little bit too stereotypical and some scenes were not quite believablebut I enjoyed watching the ups and downs of their relationships.

Internet Movie Datbase Link

The Songs We Sang

This is a documentary on the history of XinYao, folk songs created by young Singaporeans in short.

The second Singapore documentary that I saw during the National Day weekend. Liked the historical footages and the lovely songs! Brought me back to my secondary school days when my friend introduced me to Eric Moo.

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To Singapore, with Love

This is a documentary about Singaporeans who had to stay abroad because of their political beliefs.

I appreciated how the director made us feel that they love Singapore too despite being treated as outsiders. Perhaps the director should also interview staff from the security department to make the film less one sided. Was quite surprised by how strongly the father of two children felt for the Singapore Armed Forces and the female doctor for the Palestine cause. Can't imagine myself hiding in the jungle for so long without an end in mind.

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The Speed Cubers

This is a documentary about two of the greatest speed cubers in the world, Feliks Zemdeks and Max Park.

Liked how Feliks and Max encouraged each other despite being competitors! I learned that competition is not just about winning but also about how to lose gracefully too!

Internet Movie Database Link

Spelling the Dream

This is a documentary about how Indians in America came to dominate the spelling bee contests.

Liked how hardworking the kids were in preparing for the contest and how the parents supported them! The interviews gave me a better idea of how the Indian community felt about their achievements.

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Little Women

The story is about the lives of the daughters in the March family around the American Civil War period.

Liked the nice sisterly bond among the little women! Was pleasantly surprised that Emma Watson has grown into a pretty young lady since I watched her as Hermione in the first few Harry Potter movies! The switching to and fro from the present to the past worked really well and less confusing as I thought it would be!

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Kramer vs Kramer

The story is about how the husband and wife of the Kramer family drifted apart and fought for the custody of their son.

Great acting by the son who was only about 7 years old at that time! Almost thought that the husband would fall in love with his neighbour downstairs but I guessed wrongly. The couple could have saved much legal fees if they had realised earlier that the best arrangement was to remain status quo!

Internet Movie Database Link

Parasite

The story is about how the members of a poor family managed to all work under a rich family through their street smartness and what happened after that.

Liked the ingenious plans crafted by the poor family! Thought I knew what would happen when the son took out the stone from the bag but I was really surprised by the twist towards the end! Great social commentary about the differences between the rich and the poor too!

Internet Movie Database Link

Leon in Wintertime

The story is about the adventures of Leon the bear during winter time. Watched this at the "We Are One film festival.

Liked how the film tackled serious issues like discrimination based on one's looks! Also liked the budding friendship among the elephant, the bear and the hedgehog!

Internet Movie Database Link

Poppety in the Fall

The story is about the adventures of Poppety during autumn time. Watched this at the "We Are One film festival.

Liked the part where the whale asked everyone to tell him their secrets! The secret came as a surprise for me as I hadn't watched "Leon in Wintertime" yet which was supposed to be the first in the series.

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Bonnifacio in Summertime

The story is about the adventures of Bonnifacio during summer time. Watched this at the "We Are One film festival.

Liked how proactive the bad guy was to figure out a way to climb up the mountain! The princess and her friends saved the day again!

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Molly in Springtime

The story is about the adventures of princess Molly during spring time. Watched this at the "We Are One film festival.

Liked the resourceful Molly and the friendship among the bear, the elephant and the hedgehog! The bad guy was really evil too! Great use of language to refer to the wild bear as bare naked!

Internet Movie Database Link

Anna

The story is about how women in Ukraine dated men from United States. Watched this at the "We Are One film festival.

Liked the translator scene and the twist towards the end! The translator did a good job in saying what needs to be heard!

Internet Movie Database Link

Route-3

The story is about what happened when a young man saw a pretty girl on the bus. Watched this at the "We Are One film festival.

Liked how the bus was packed with people and how the young man was able to fix his gaze at the pretty girl despite the distractions! Thought the eating orange scene was a little bit too suggestive though.

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Cerulia

The story is about a woman re-visiting her childhood home. Watched this at the "We Are One film festival.

This film caught my eye as it was from an unknown film festival: the guadalajara film festival. Liked the eerie stop motion animation! Reminded me a bit of the movie Coraline. Ending was a little bit too scary for me though.

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see factory sarajevo mon amour

This is a collection of five short stories about motherhood: In Your Hands, The Package, The Right One, Spit and The Sign. Watched this at the "We Are One film festival.

Liked the plot in "Spit" and the black and white cinematography in "The Sign"! I was amazed by how the different issues faced by a mother could be described in a such a short time!

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Sisterhood

The story is about a middle aged woman who moved to Taiwan fifteeen years ago going back to her hometown in Macau to visit her friends. They used to work together in a massage parlour. Watched this at the "We Are One film festival.

Liked the flashbacks to Macau in the past and the strong sisterly friendship! The film reminded me a little of "Only Yesterday", especially towards the end where the protagonist saw her old self.

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Toto

The story is about a grandmother's relationship with her grandchildren and her personal digital assistant. Watched this at the "We Are One film festival.

Liked how the grandmother treated the robot just like a human being! Bad idea to upgrade as it erases everything it has learned!

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15 Shorts

This is a series of 15 short stories by local film directors.

My favorite films were "Plague", "The Listener" and "Shanti". I liked the drama within the small flat in "Plague", the nice soothing voice in "The Listener" and the ordinary unassuming hero in "Shanti"! Learned a bit about history in "Still Standing" and "Majid the Legend". Thought "The Brown Dog" and "The T(h)ree Lives" were well shot too!

15 Shorts YouTube Channel

Black Barbie

The story is about how a young black girl grew up hating how she looked but finally accepted who she was. Watched this at the "We Are One" film festival.

A very nice animation with smooth flowing transitions, words flashing across the screen and voice over narration that sounded like a poem!

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Travelling While Black

The story is about how black Americans faced discrimination when they were travelling long distance across America many years ago.

Watched this at the "We Are One" film festival. First time watching a movie with virtual reality controls! Not sure how to best make use of it though. Quite sad to hear that black Americans still facing discrimination even until today.

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Made In Japan

The story is about what happened when a group of friends started to make up stories to the media on what they know about a murderer on the loose.

Liked the interesting relationship between media and the interviewee! The media hopes for scandalous details to bring in more sales so this indirectly tempts the interviewee to make something up.

Japanese Film Festival Link

The Breakfast Club

The story is about five American high school students learning more about each other during a weekend class detention.

Liked how the students sat down and had in-depth conversations with each other! Not as much action as "Back to the Future" that came out in the same year, but I learned a bit more about young people in the '80s from this film.

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From Up On Poppy Hill

The story is about the lives of a few school children in Japan just before the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.

Liked the old style kitchen and the friendship between the two protagonists! Looked quite fun riding the bicycle downhill!

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Lady Bird

The story is about a girl growing up in Sacramento California but dreams of going to college in New York.

Liked the snippets of life in a Catholic all girl's high school! A nice coming-of-age story where the protagonist made mistakes along the way but realized that there is no place like home in the end!

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Excited Death

The story is about a girl who secretly admired her handsome neighbor next door. She then bumped into a man who is a secret admirer of the neighbor's girlfriend and formed plans together to break them up.

Liked the voice over narration of the protagonist and the ridiculous plans which were doomed to fail! Recognized the park near Ghibli Museum for their first plan from my recent Japan trip!

Japanese Film Festival Link

Girl's Encounter

The story is about a shy girl coming out of her shell after she made a new friend in school. There was something strange about the friend though.

Liked the friendship of the two girls! Great suspense in keeping the audience guessing what might happen next but didn't really like the fantasy sequences as they were a little bit weird for my taste! A thought provoking film as it made me wonder if it is really a good idea to not feel pain in life!

Japanese Film Festival Link

Infinite Foundation

The story is about how a girl learned to follow her dreams after she met a mysterious girl who plays the ukulele in an abandoned factory and joined the school's drama club.

Liked the nice songs played by the mysterious girl! Thought the drama club should have backup plans for the lead role. The disagreements among the classmates were pretty intense in my opinion!

Japanese Film Festival Link

Please Don't Go Anywhere

The story is about a girl's obsession with her boyfriend's ex-girlfriend. She imagines what she is like even though they have never met.

The pace was a bit slow initially and I even switched to another movie around the 8 minute mark. But things got much more interesting after she opened her cupboard and got a surprise! Liked the interaction between the two girls! Ending was a little bit abrupt though.

Japanese Film Festival Link

Wander Life

The story is about a girl being bullied in school.

Liked the friendship between the girl and the nurse! Amazing how the band came up with a song in one night! Searched for the music video and thought it served as a nice ending to the movie.

Japanese Film Festival Link

Rent A Friend

The story is about a woman who writes about her experience of renting a friend in an online magazine. He accompanies her to places of interest and chit chats with her while remaining professional by being not emotionally involved.

Liked how the woman, her roommate and her rental friend all made music together towards the end! Thought the woman was confused herself on what she was trying to achieve though.

Japanese Film Festival Link

Inner Loop Couple

The story is about two people walking around Tokyo and chatting with each other throughout the night after they reached the terminal station.

An online Japanese film festival, what a great idea! The film reminds me a bit of "Before Sunset" which has lots of dialogue and walking scenes around Paris. The song is nice and catchy too!

Japanese Film Festival Link

The Platform

The story is about a prison where food is delivered to the inmates on a platform moving downwards. People on the higher levels have a lot of food to eat while those on the lower levels often starved.

Liked the interesting idea and how the director tried to pair up the protagonist with different personalities as room mates! The ending was not very well done in my opinion though.

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Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood

The story is loosely based on a real life event in Hollywood on 8 to 9 Aug 1969. The characters consist of real people like American actress Sharon Tate, actor Bruce Lee and a hippie cult as well as fictional characters such as a famous cowboy actor and his stunt double.

Liked the cowboy acting scenes and the lovely interaction between DiCaprio and the young child actress! Was quite worried about what might happen towards the end but was relieved when the good guys survived!

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Midnight Diner: Tokyo Stories

The story revolves around the people visiting a dining place in Tokyo that only opens at midnight.

For season one, I liked "Tonteki" about a girl who knit sweaters for people she fancied and "Omelette Rice" about the love between a Korean girl and a Japanese scientist. For season two, I liked "Salmon and Mushroom" about a barber couple and "Kitsune Udon" about two voice actresses who struggled to keep their friendship. All the other episodes are interesting in their own ways!

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Cheer

This is a documentary about an award winning cheerleading team in Texas.

Liked the interesting stories of the members of the team! Had a better idea of what it means to be fair, strict and empathetic from the coach, something that I should learn as a parent.

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Arietty

The story is about how a family of small people stayed in a house of normal people but had to move as they were discovered.

Liked the friendship between the daughter Arietty and the young boy! The action sequences of climbing around the big house looked exciting too!

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Mad World

The story is about the effect of bipolar disorder on a family.

Liked the flashbacks that gradually explained what happened in the past! The friendship between the little boy and the protagonist was quite cute too. Guess sometimes we have a pre-conceived notion what someone might be like but it may not be true once we get to know the person better.

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Certain Women

The story is about how four women in a small town deal with loneliness in their own ways.

Liked the last story of the rancher the best! Great acting by all the female leads! I learned that talking a lot doesn't necessarily lead to good communication.

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American Factory

This is a documentary about the people working in an American Factory owned by a Chinese billionaire.

Liked how the film presented both the Chinese and the American points of view! There was no real bad guy here but I thought it was a bit ridiculous for the chairman to have a self portrait of himself hanging in his office.

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37 Seconds

This is a coming of age story of Yuma, a manga artist who suffers from cerebral palsy.

Liked how independent Yuma was despite her disability! The animation effects were great for both the father holding a baby girl high in the sky drawing as well as Yuma's portfolio sketches for the new company!

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Ocean Waves

The story is about how two countryside boys fell in love with a girl who came from the city.

Liked the depiction of school life but didn't really like the city girl who didn't show much teamwork at all!

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A Sun

The story is about how a family mended their broken ties across a few years.

Thought the father looked like Ma Yun from Alibaba! Liked the parts where they showed different pairs of people walking around together. Was surprised by the twist at the end!

Internet Movie Database Link

I Lost My Body

The story is about the life of a young man who became disabled and how his hand travelled around the city to search for him.

Liked the interesting point of view from a hand! Bad idea to try to catch a fly while operating on the workbench!

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Boogie Nights

The story is about the life of a group of pornography actors and actresses from the late 70s to the and early 80s.

Liked how the film portrayed the community as ordinary people with dreams! Quite sad that some of them were looked down by others because of their occupation! Good to see Roller Girl back to school!

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Toy Story 3

The story is about the adventures of a group of toys in a childcare center.

Learned not to judge the book by its cover after watching the movie! Another lesson I learned was to pass to others what we don't need instead of throwing them away.

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Marriage Story

The story is about a married couple with an eight year old son getting divorced.

Liked the opening scene that introduced the wife and the husband in sequence! The small details make the characters come alive! Also liked the giant zoom ins and descriptive monologues! Reminded me a bit of Bergman's movies.

Internet Movie Database Link