THE KID FROM THE BIG APPLE (2016)

Genre: Drama
Running Length: 2.00
Cast: Tommy Tam (Ti Lung), Tan Qin Lin, Jason Tan, Jessica Hester Hsuan
Director: Jess Teong
Screenplay: Jess Teong

THE KID FROM THE BIG APPLE is the 3rd "Buatan Malaysia" movie I watched in less than 3 months. Although this is not a sign of resurgence (yet) for our local production but it's definitely trending towards that direction if the industry doesn't get greedy but instead has a more nationalistic agenda. Despite two of its leading cast are famous Hong Kong stars, this film is undeniably Malaysian (and no, thankfully there are no "Malaysia, Truly Asia" montages in this film).

That said, the film has some universal themes such as forgiveness and the importance of family which would appeal to all walks of life especially in this part of the region. The movie tells a tale of the dynamics across three generations played by Ti Lung (the grandfather "kung-kung"), Jessica (his daughter) and Qin Lin (his granddaughter). Despite never meeting her kung-kung before, 12-year old Sarah (Qin Lin) from the Big Apple is forced to live with her grandfather temporarily in KL as her fashion designer mother has to take-on an assignment in a garment factory in China.  That sets up a coming-of-age journey for the temperamental Sarah as she tries to work out her differences with her kung-kung as well as making new friends.

Although the movie started out rather clumsily with not so funny comedy and an unbelievable New York accent, the pace took a dramatic turn for the better somewhere 1/3 into the movie. There are a few tender scenes where the actors do not try too hard - those scenes were powerful and moving for me. But I supposed the goal of the filmmakers is to make the audience cry and there are many of such blatant scenes, with emotional songs thrown in for good measure. As a result, this motion picture feels artificial at times.

Nevertheless, the film shines because of its focus and the longing to live in a simpler and playful world. Also, it benefits from its strong cast especially Jessica Hsuan. Even with a limited screen time, the audience could really feel her emotions and the pain she had to go through while raising up her daughter in New York. As for our young actress Qin Lin, her captivating performance reminds me of a very much younger version of Zhang Ziyi; has an attractive smile, strong-willed but vulnerable. As for Ti Lung, his portrayal of a dignified grandpa works very well here (oh, audiences familiar with John Woo's A Better Tomorrow, will get a kick out of watching him deliver a certain famous one-liner from that movie! I certainly did). Rounding up the stellar cast is Jason Tan, who plays Sarah’s mischievous chubby neighbour. He is the comic character with a big heart and brightens up the movie everytime he is on screen (he reminds me of Kung Fu Panda).

The Kid From The Big Apple is a sincere and heartfelt effort from first-time director Jess Teong. Stay and watch the end credits as it has snippets of footages which nicely tie up some loose ends of the film.

Rating: 7.5/10