The World of Movies: A Land Imagined
Written by Rachael Crawley
The World of Movies is a series that explores global cinema, drawing on films from many countries, industries and eras. This week, we follow a detective in Singapore.
A Land Imagined.
May contain spoilers
Detective Lok (Peter Yu) has been called to investigate two missing construction workers. Met with indifference from most parties, he turns to the seedy side of the city – and discovers a great deal more than expected.
So yes, A Land Imagined (Yeo Siew Hua, 2019) is a modern film noir, down to the misty city lights and the (excellent) jazz score. Lok, as played by Yu, retains the world-weariness of the detective archetype, but shows a sad vulnerability, which feels like a newer development from the days of Bogart and Mitchum. The film retains thematic and social aspects that are unique to Singapore, too, particularly in its economic growth (and the complications therein). While the film is clearly paying homage to the classic crime film, it is also rooted in real-life modern society.
This compact film (one hour and thirty minutes) delves right into the plot, taking us deep into Singapore’s industrial world. While it is efficient, I would not call it fast-paced. At times, in fact, it even verges on slow, mostly in the second act. There are plenty of lingering shots on the characters, and there is quite a bit of time devoted to the setting. It can cause the film to drag a bit, but it also enhances the mood. The ending, however, shifts adroitly into a slightly surreal mood, while holding onto its intensity, and is one of the film’s stronger sequences.
A Land Imagined.
Like many mystery films, the city itself is a prominent figure. As Lok wanders in his search, we see different sides of it, from a sidewalk celebration to an Internet café to a huge construction site. There are plenty of memorable characters. Most notable among them is Mindy (Luna Kwok), a worker from said Internet café who becomes involved with the mystery. Her character is the most enjoyable of the film, and much of that is thanks to Kwok’s compelling performance as this tough and independent woman. Overall, it is a movie of strong performances and well-developed characterization, particularly from Xiaoyi Lu as the missing worker Wang Bicheng.
The movie shifts away from the genre during some sequences with the migrant workers, whose story is (unusually) given to us in parallel with the detective’s. I think this transition is the film’s one true drawback. The movie draws so deeply on its mood during the detective scenes that the stark realism in the workers’ plot feels jarring. Both plots hold up well – it is in the transition that the film falters, not the content. At the same time, this drawback is a slight one.
While A Land Imagined sometimes uneasily balances the space between social drama and hardboiled detective story, it has a lot of effective elements. Its excellent score, elegant cinematography and careful handling of setting enhance the film greatly, while the homage to common detective tropes makes it appealing to crime and mystery fans. If you are interested in a modern take on film noir, this is a good place to start.
Rachael Crawley holds a Master's Degree in Film and Photography Preservation and Collections Management from Ryerson University, and has worked with film in Canada and in Europe. She adores language and cinema, and how these subjects interact with each other.