To be honest, I had no intention of watching this local production, assuming that it was just another run-of-the-mill movie that focused on stereotypes such as those in I’m Not Stupid and Money Not Enough. The glitzy movie posters gave me the impression that it was about getai and that it would be filled with getai performances like those held in HDB estates, sans cheap-looking costumes and terrible singing and songs. The reason why I did watch it was because my family decided to watch it together, so I thought, “Why not? I won’t be paying for it anyway.”

Well, as you can imagine, I was very wrong. The movie did involve getai, but the focus was really on two girls who aspired to be famous getai singers. They were best friends under the tutelage of a seamstress. Upon realising that their voices weren’t good enough, they approached the seamstress’s estranged twin sister, who gave them the voices of the “Ming Zhu Jie Mei”, a popular duo act in Singapore’s getai scene. From then on, they rose to fame as “The Papaya Sisters”, or “881”, only to have conflicts with another popular duo act, “The Durian Sisters”. Also, one of the two girls develops cancer, and dies as a result, leaving her partner to perform getai on her own.

One of the things I loved was actually the getai performances. Though they were glitzy, they were a far cry from the costumes we get to see during actual getai performances. There were those of an Egyptian queen, Japanese ladies, and life-sized dolls. The brightly-coloured and varying looks they achieved definitely added to the entertainment value.

To add on to it, the music was amazing. The songs they performed to were all in Hokkien, and despite being dismissed as “oldies”, they are still great to listen to, and the lyrics are just as meaningful as any other song. Such music is popular among the older generation, but not those in the younger generation, including me. After watching the movie, however, I’ve grown fond of Hokkien music.

Another thing I liked was storyline. It was refreshing to watch a local production that was based on something that a lot are not familiar with, that being getai. I also enjoyed watching Qi Yu Wu’s character, who was a mute and deaf man who carried a chicken around with him everywhere. He added comic relief and, being the only guy starring in the show, also added a little romance to the movie. It was also very touching, the strong bond the two girls shared. They were as close as sisters, if not even closer. Seeing one of them pass away was heart-wrenching, but it was even more heart-breaking to see the other girl lose her.

So put together the beautiful costumes, great performances, bright lights, great Hokkien music, and elements of happiness, sadness, humour, romance and grief, and you’ll have an amazing local production: 881.