Think Big Big 大大哒 : Back to Simple Storytelling

After success with The Journey and Ola Bola, director Chiu Keng Guan is back to basic with Think Big Big 大大哒. Compare with the former 2 movies (not the earlier works), the current CNY movie lack the impact of the Ola Bola or the vast exposure of the Journey. But to be fair, Think Big Big is the most polished and neat film among his works.


The CNY story follows the main character Moon who despite her obesity, is a happy person surrounded by supportive parents and also good friends who are closer than a sister. In addition to that there is a loyal male friend who secretly admire her. Through fate, she is forced to enter a weight losing competition. After winning, she is signed on to be the spoke person for a advertising program which encourage public to give their opinion to form an idol of their dream. Opinion on how to dress, where to go, what food to eat, making the final product idol of their dream. Its actually a workable idea in real life, but unsure how long would it last. While growing in popularity, Moon began to lose herself, her identity, and finally her family and friends.


Full of moral lesson, Moon teaches us to stay true to ourselves, not to conform to public views especially in this world full of social media. A useful mirror, it reflects on the current generation where a person is define by how he or she is viewed via facebook, instagram or tweeters. How happy we are depends on how many likes we get on the photos we posted. How upset we are depends on how some complete strangers posted sarcastic remarks on our post.

As I said earlier, this movie is the most polished of the lot. It felt like a modern Chinese movie, with each department did their job well. The casting was daring, but effective. Chiu chose to use 3 different actress to play the title character in their different weight, instead of using prosthetic addition like other similar shows. The script was written smartly though too few jokes for a CNY movie. The cinematography is as beautiful as ever (though still prefer Ola Bola). It lack the impact of Journey or Ola Bola. I do not feel like yelling in support while watching Ola Bola or crying with pride of my heritage while watching Journey but Think Big Big tug at your heart. The story is simple but there lies the simplicity of it, simple storytelling. Telling of a down to earth story, a story about everyday things, something we can relate to but taken for granted. And Chiu is a great story teller.


ratings: 3 half poink~!
comments: though Journey and Ola Bola have their own technical flaws, but are superior movies.