I absolutely hate the movie because my wife and I were a fricking mess throughout the film. A couple of weeks ago we saw the trailer and in the midst of it we practically turned towards each other simultaneously and said in unison "Sure cry one. We must see."
This is a human interest story based on a true story. A principal of a prestigious school for little tots played by Miriam Yeung, steps down feeling very disillusioned by what education is really about. Later, while filling her void with activities, she sees a news on the television that would change her life. A kindergarten with only five students in Yuen Long will be forced to close down and they are hiring a principal-teacher-janitor. The salary is stated as HK$4500 (S$793) a month, not negotiable.
Miriam Yeung is a piece of fantastic casting. There is something about her that is so natural and down to earth. Her chemistry with her tots is spot on and believable. Maybe it is the fact that she has become a recent mother which I feel has improved her acting. Or it may be something about a person with a singular goal in life (which is not prestige or money) that makes her unfolding story so inspiring. Being a teacher myself, I really love how she teaches her underlings. She doesn't pay lip service and she never shies her kids from brutal truths. She uses action, not mere words to show her love for the kids and in so doing lay the blueprint for how they would want to live their lives. Her methods are not earth-shattering, awe-inspiring or even Hollywood-type cinematic envelope pushers but I come away feeling completely inspired. Allow me to share an example. While doing home visits she realizes the root of the kids' problems lie in their communication with their parents, so she devises a simple homework for the children - to find out from their parents what is their dream. That sequence is one of light-hearted moments and it completely made us a mess of emotions.
Miriam Yeung's natural performance is buoyed by other good performances by veterans like Richard Ng, Fung Shui-Fan and Philip Keung. Louis Koo, definitely HK's busiest actor, plays Yeung's supportive hubby. But his parallel story to Yeung's suffers from under- development.
Occasionally I love human interest movies like these. I didn't find it overtly manipulative and there are some subtle but creative scenes. The story is warm and inspiring and prior before watching, I already know where all the emotional traps are. But the really good ones know how to make you want to drop into those emo holes willingly. This one did that for us. It is also testament to a good film that even on the next day while driving my wife to work we were still talking about scenes from the movie, like what's the purpose of showing Jia Jia's dirty shoes. Hang back in the cinema when the credits run and you can see the actual kind visage of the principal and her five blessed kids.
