18 Grams of Love (2007)

Director:

Yew Kwang Han

Writer:

Yew Kwang Han

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

How much does love weigh?

Plot:

Two men write anonymous love letters to test if their wives are faithful. When their wives actually respond, the two men are left in a fix of what to do. |

Plot Keywords:

Love Letter | Suspicion | Bookstore | Flashback | Husband Wife Relationship

Cast

Adam Chen	...	Ah Hui
Yann Yann Yeo	...	Michelle (as Yann Yeo)
Alaric Tay	...	Zihua
Magdalene See	...	Xiao Tong
Shun Ai Liu	...	Female Critic 1 (as Low Shun Ai Angel)
Ariel Hay	...	Female Critic 2
Wen Wayne Kuo	...	Model 1
Dongli Lin	...	Model 2
Bobby Teo	...	Model 3
Jimmy Yeow	...	Model 4
Chin Juan Han	...	Salon Uncle 1
Tiang Choon Koh	...	Salon Uncle 2
Kay Seng Lim	...	Salon Uncle 3
Steven Lim	...	Salon Uncle 4
Candice Chua	...	Ex-Girlfriend
Soo Chen See	...	Aunt
Alicia Lee	...	Daughter
Fan Yang	...	Radio DJ (voice)
Chau Min Lee	...	Boss (voice)
Neil Lim	...	Ryan (voice)
Chee Nien Lau	...	Roy (voice)
Warren Sin	...	Ray (voice)
Yew Kwang Han	...	Rick (voice)

Directed by
Yew Kwang Han

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Yew Kwang Han

Produced by
Chee Nien Lau	....	producer
Kelvin Tong	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Neil Lim

Cinematography by
Long Fei Liu

Film Editing by
Grace Xiao

Production Design by
Jacke Tan		(as Tan Boon Hui)

Art Direction by
Jacke Tan		(as Tan Boon Hui)

Makeup Department
Doreen Cheng	....	hair stylist
Doreen Cheng	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Kah Hui Lau	....	post-production supervisor
Chau Min Lee	....	production manager
Warren Sin	....	assistant production manager
Ian Wee	....	post-production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Candice Chua	....	assistant director

Art Department
Alicia Lee	....	assistant art director
Joshua Nair	....	art department intern
Nooriani Shah bte Sikkander	....	intern
Anissa Azyyati Poerwo Soeparman	....	intern

Sound Department
Neil Lim	....	audio post-production engineer
Amin Suwari	....	sound recordist

Visual Effects by
Patrick Woo	....	visual effects artist

Camera and Electrical Department
Weiming Choo	....	assistant camera
Michael Lee	....	grip
Wai Chung Leong	....	grip
Aaron Lim	....	grip
Eric Low	....	grip

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Yi Ren Lee	....	wardrobe assistant

Other crew
Candice Chua	....	location manager

Production Companies

• Boku Films

Other Companies

• Studio.MB  audio post production
• Widescreen Revolutions  HD post-production facilities

Runtime:

85 min

Country:

Singapore

Language:

Mandarin

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Singapore

Company:

Boku Films

Enjoyable rom-com with something to think about

Han Yew Kwang is not a very well-known name in Singapore other than to those actively following the local film industry. This film, "18 grams of Love", is his sophomore feature. His first is a expanded remake of a short he shot, named "Unarmed Combat", funded largely by the Singapore Film Commission. Let me say straight off that "18 Grams of Love", though not flawless, is nonetheless a nice take on an interesting premise which struck the director while writing the script.

"18 Grams of Love" was made on a tight budget (shot on HD) and produced by Kelvin Tong's production house "Boku Films". Yet it manages to rise above the budget restraint and presents us with an engaging script (penned by Han himself) about two young, married men who suspect their wives were having affairs behind their backs. The story is very much like that of Mozart's "Cosi fan tutte"; in a collaboration, each tries to test the fidelity of the other's wife by wooing them through love letters. The eventual fallout is what makes the movie interesting.

"18 Grams of Love" sometimes watches like modern theater, at times even like a radio drama. There is plenty of accompaniment music (mostly accordion), enough suspense for you to follow through the two friends' adventures, and humor enough of the quirky kind, decidedly of the acquired "Han" taste. But nonetheless it still manages to entertain. The production values can be considered pretty good, with colors deliberately set bright and saturated, and shots composed tightly (this is a rom-com after all, with 95% of the action happening within apartments). That is enough I think for me to give the film a 7-star rating. The art direction and the cinematography is certainly credible enough for a film on this low a budget. Even though at the end of the day detractors may say the film is lightweight and even somewhat pat in its ending, one must be reminded this is a comedy after all, although Han tries to temper the comedy with his own observations on marriage.

Han is a talented writer. As a writer he is above Royston Tan's class and as a director he is much less art-house than Tan or Eric Khoo. It's a pity so few local people have caught his films as he may well be a talent to watch; even if he might not be the finished product "18 Grams of Love" is a worthy entry in the Singapore filmography if you can take its rather light-hearted abstraction on marriage and love.