Ilo Ilo


Ilo Ilo is a 2013 Singaporean drama film. The debut feature of director Anthony Chen, the film features an international cast, including Singaporean actor Chen Tianwen, Malaysian actress Yeo Yann Yann, Filipino actress Angeli Bayani, and debut of child actor Koh Jia Ler.
Ilo Ilo premiered at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival as part of the Directors' Fortnight on 19 May 2013. At the festival, the film was awarded the Caméra d'Or award, thus becoming the first Singaporean feature film to win an award at the Cannes Film Festival. The film was selected as the Singaporean entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 86th Academy Awards but was not nominated.
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Plot

In Singapore during the 1997 Asian financial crisis, the Lim family welcomes their Filipina domestic helper, Teresa, who like many other Filipinas has come in search of a better life. The father, Teck, works in sales for a glass company; the pregnant mother, Hwee Leng, works as a secretary in a downsizing shipping company; and the ten-year-old son, Jiale, is a troubled delinquent. At first, Jiale and Terry exhibit a troubled relationship. Tensions between them rise, resulting in Jiale one day climbing over the school fence at dismissal time just to avoid his maid, who comes every day to fetch him.
When Teck loses his sales job, he conceals it from his wife. Desperate, he accepts a temporary job as a security guard monitoring an egg farm, but was quickly fired for breaking several crates while chasing a robber. As he continues to lose money in the stock market, he acknowledges their losses to his wife, who lambastes him. Meanwhile, Jiale and Terry begin to kindle a relationship, sparking his mother's jealousy and feelings of emotional neglect by her son. Hwee Leng attends a motivational seminar, where she is moved by the optimistic words of the speaker and purchases his merchandise; he turns out to be a fraud.
Jiale shows high intellect in his obsessive calculation of past-winning lottery numbers, which he catalogues in his schoolbook. One day, after being taunted by another boy that Terry only loves him as part of her job, he pushes the boy against a bathroom wall, hospitalizing him. Threatened with expulsion and the school's administration unable to contact his parents, Terry arrives to plead for mercy on his behalf. Hwee Leng shows up, reminding Terry that she is Jiale's mother. Later, Jiale is caned in front of the school assembly.
After the family car is sold for scrap and Teck is fired from his job for committing a mistake, the Lim family acknowledge they can no longer afford to keep Terry employed. Desperate to keep her, Jiale uses his savings to purchase lottery tickets but loses. He becomes despondent, cutting a lock of Terry's hair during a tense farewell. Holding onto her cassette player, Jiale listens to Terry's favorite song, "Kahapon at Pag-ibig" by Asin, with his father in the hospital as Hwee Leng gives birth to a baby girl.

Cast

Production

Partially funded by Ngee Ann Polytechnic and the Singapore Film Commission, the film's budget is estimated to be around S$700,000.
Koh was caned several times in two takes while shooting a scene.

Reception

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 100% based on 45 reviews, with an average rating of 8.0/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Quietly compassionate and rich in detail, Ilo Ilo is a strikingly mature debut from writer-director Anthony Chen." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 85 out of 100, based on 12 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".
Ilo Ilo received positive reviews at the Cannes Film Festival. The film was later awarded the Camera d'Or award, an award which recognizes the best debut feature film in the competition. It received six nominations at the Golden Horse Film Festival and Awards and won four: Best Film, Best New Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Supporting Actress for Yeo Yann Yann.

Awards

Film

Individual