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28 July 2008,
1pm at the NLB, The Pod
The first "Money Not Enough" was a phenomenon
feat in Singapore film history. Jack Neo and gang managed
to hit a chord with the Singaporean audience and broke
the myth that a locally made film cannot be commercially
viable. In the commercial sense, it was surprising that
sequel were not churned out immediately after the record
breaking hit. Jack Neo revealed to us that initially
he didn’t want to do a sequel as he wanted to
preserve the wonderful memory of the original film.
But after numerous requests by collaborators and sponsors,
and to mark his ten years tenure in the movie industry
with something special, Jack Neo and his usual collaborators,
Mark Lee and Henry Thia are back to present the second
'Money Issue' film.
This
time round, instead of being friends with money problems,
the trio portrays three siblings from different income
group that faces different money woes.
Henry
Thia plays the eldest brother, Yang Bao Hui from the
lower income group who have to content with a low paying
job while trying to strive it rich. Director Jack Neo
remarked that besides keeping the original three main
cast member of Money Not Enough, the real reason for
working with Henry Thia would be his undeniable comedic
presence and strong natural performance. He pointed
out the scene when he sends his mom to the old folk’s
home would be a testament of his acting ability.
Equally
strong would be Mark Lee’s performance as the
youngest brother, Yang Bao Huang who represents the
middle income group that spends more than his learning
capabilities. Director Jack Neo commented that Mark
Lee’s role in this movie is a departure from his
previous effeminate performance in Ah Long Pte Ltd,
which required him to play a realistic fun loving Ah
Beng without the exaggerations.
Meanwhile
Jack Neo would be taking on the role of the middle brother,
Yang Bao Qiang who was the most successful among the
brothers. However with a title like Money No Enough,
it would be easy to figure out that he would run into
money problem and eventually had to content with the
change in financial situation.
Besides
rounding the original cast, Money Not Enough 2 also
had infused with a few new faces and it came mainly
as actresses playing the women in the Yang brothers’
lives. First of all, Vivian Lai, a familiar face in
the local Channel 8 variety show will be playing Yan
Yan, Yang Bao Huang’s wife. Although this will
mark her on screen debut, Mark Lee noted that his favorite
scene was his on screen wife Yan Yan being escorted
by the police and credited to her fine acting skills
that made that scene so memorable to him.
Another
first timer with movie would be Zhu Ling Ling, one half
of the famous Getai group Ming Zhu Sister, taking on
the role of Yang Bao Qiang (Jack Neo)’s wife.
Still jittery about her own performance, Director Jack
Neo comforted her that her debut scored at least 80
over 100.
Although
it wasn’t Lin Ru Ping’s first time in the
big screen, she commented that Director Jack Neo had
made her do a first in her role as Xiu Yun, Bao Hui’s
wife and that revealing her cleavage. She mused that
if she gets a divorce after Money Not Enough 2 hits
the big screen, she will be holding Jack Neo responsible
for her happiness for the rest of her life.
Last
but not least, the 81 years old comedy veteran from
Malaysia, Lai Ming had impressed Jack Neo so much during
their last outing in Ah Long Pte Ltd that it wasn’t
difficult in casting her as the mother of the Yang brothers.
Director Jack Neo remarked that he was blown away by
her motherly performance, especially when she acted
sickly in the old folk’s home.
With
such strong performance, the director and cast commented
that after their surprise brush with the Golden Horse
Awards recently, Money Not Enough 2 stands a good chance
to get into nomination, particularly Lai Ming’s
performance. Will their performance be good enough?
Check
out their performance on 31st July 2008 when Money Not
Enough 2 opens in our local cinemas.
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