RIFLE RANGE BOY

After Yang (2022) Written & Directio n:  Kogonada When we show our respect to elders and the departed, we are not offering to revere the physical body or the 'soul'. We are showing reverence for the memory of their lives. Besides reenacting the good times we had spent together, we give due recognition to the memories they imbibed through their time on Earth. At the end of the day, that is all we have or bring back, the data of events. It is assumed that we humans learn our lessons from situations. By showing our salutations, we hope some of these lessons will be transferred to us at a metaphysical level. Everybody's learnt experience is different, and we respect that. We are in no position to judge what was done or should have been done. This seems to be the message at the end of this sombre and sedate sci-fi drama. It is set sometime in the future when humanoids do domestic help and nannying. The cloning of humans has entered the mainstream. The job of providing domest...

It was an informal meeting planned in haste. A varsity mate, now residing overseas, after his ‘tanah air’ had turned her back on him, had made a lightning trip back. In a jiffy, a few friends on each other’s speed dial decided to flock together at an upmarket Chinese restaurant. Some of them have not met each other for more than 40 years.   TS walked in into the restaurant with a sense of awe. He was amazed to see what he saw through the ceiling-level glass window that overlooked the skyline of Damansara.  “Wow, just look at that,” he said. “40 years ago, I worked as a construction worker during my semester breaks there. This whole area was just lush greenery then. Look at it now!” “My boss then kept telling me the developer’s mega plan to have multi-tied buildings, shopping complex, underground parking, hotels, and more.” “It had materialised right before our eyes. They are pure visionaries. Imagine 40 years ago, they knew how the country would look now.” That soon ...