Movie Review - A Simple Life （桃姐）

Attended the movie preview of A Simple Life （桃姐）

A SIMPLE LIFE is a major award winner at numerous International Film Awards, including the 48th Taipei Golden Horse Awards (Nov, 2011) where it bagged the Best Director, Best Actor and Best Actress awards all at once.

Starring Andy Lau and Deanie Ip

This movie portrays the simple life of ordinary people living in Hong Kong. Accompanied with a balanced of humor and touching scenes. Brilliant work of Director Ann Hui who shows her ideas of being 'old' and how staying in the old folks home would be like. Especially the hypocrisy of how the government bodies treat the old folks at their visits to the old folks home.

The movie is that simple, that realistic and that touching.

Remarkable acting skills for Deanie Ip i felt. This movie also starred alot of big shot actors. Even if it was just a few seconds of on screen time.

I recommend everybody to take some time off their busy schedules to watch this heart warming movie. Learn to appreciate the daily yet simple things in life. Especially filial piety. Treat our elders with respect even though we might be distant away from each other given the technology we have available to us. We are so consumed in our 21st century fast paced society.

Movie Rating: 4.5/5
A SIMPLE LIFE will be released in Singapore on 9 March 2012.
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Synopsis:
Based on real people and events, CHUNG Chun Tao, or Ah Tao, was born in Taishan, China. Her foster-father died during the Japanese Occupation and her foster-mother sent her to work as a servant for the Leung family. She has been in service there for 4 generations lasting 60 years. During this time, some members of the Leung family passed away and some emigrated. For the past decade, Ah Tao lived with Roger, the only family member left in Hong Kong.

Since her teenage years, CHUNG Chun-Tao has worked as an amah – a servant – for the Leung family. Known as Ah Tao, she witnessed every aspect of the family’s life. Now, after 60 years of service, she is looking after Roger, who works in the film industry and is the only member of the family still resident in Hong Kong. One day Roger comes home from work to find that Ah Tao has suffered a stroke. He rushes her to hospital, where she announces that she wants to quit her job and move into a nursing home.

Roger researches the possibilities and finds her a room in an establishment run by an old friend. Ah Tao moves in and begins acquainting herself with a new ‘family’: the brisk but fundamentally kindly supervisor Ms Choi and a motley crew of elderly residents, including the dapper Uncle Kin, the jealous Auntie Kam, the erudite ‘Headmaster’ and the good-hearted dialysis patient Mui Gu. Giving ever more time and attention to Ah Tao’s needs and pleasures, Roger comes to realise how much she means to him. Roger’s mother visits from California and suggests reclaiming an apartment building the family owns to provide Ah Tao with a final home of her own.