Singaporean Man of Mystery

Remote-controlled death bracelets. Cars with doors that open like wings. Guns that go 'teew' with no smoke or projectiles. It would've been hilarious enough if this was a spoof of '60s spy movies. It is all the more hilarious because it is a '60s spy movie--and was probably taken rather seriously by audiences when it was first screened. And of course, the clincher: it was filmed and set entirely in Singapore.

Welcome to Jefri Zain - Gerak Kilat, the first and only instalment of the adventures of Singapore's own James Bond. Currently on a limited run as part of the ongoing Screen Singapore festival, it's a hidden gem, overshadowed by the hype accorded to Ring of Fury and the Kill Bill-inspiring Cleopatra Wong.

I watched this with my girlfriend at Alliance Francaise this afternoon, and I'm glad I did--it was an absolute riot. I'm normally worried about my explosive laughter at shows because it sometimes irritates other audience members. I was extrememly relieved, therefore, when those around me started guffawing minutes into the movie and persisted in this manner till the end.



Gerak Kilat is pure, endearing kitsch. It revolves around the titular secret agent's attempts to foil the plans of an unnamed evil organisation, led by a sinister unnamed General. He is aided and abetted by two other agents who operate, rather implausibly, out of a laboratory beneath his large house.


In the process of unravelling its non-existent plot, the film pulls out every cliche in the spy movie book: incompetent henchmen, femme fatales, secret passageways, hi-tech gizmos and even a rooftop chase in a part of '60s Singapore which is unrecognisable until Capitol Theatre comes into view. What is particularly charming, however, is its supremely low-budget stylings.