New Friend

New Friend (新客)
Directed by Kwok Chiu-man (郭超文)
Produced by Low Pui-kim (劉貝錦, 1902 to 1959)
Starring Cheng Chao-jen (鄭超人 (鄭連捷))
Luk Chao-yuk (陸肖予)
Wee Mong-may (黃夢梅)
Cinematography Kwok Chiu-man (郭超文)
Release dates
  • 29 April 1927 (1927-04-29)
Running time
 99 minutes
Country
Language silent film with Chinese and English subtitles

New Friend (Chinese: 新客; pinyin: Xin Ke; literally: "The Immigrant") was the first Singaporean film shot entirely in Singapore and Malaya. It was produced by Nanyang Low Pui-kim's Self-made Motion Picture Company (南洋劉貝錦自製影片公司), in association with Low Pui-kim (劉貝錦, 1902 to 1959), who served as the producer and Kwok Chiu-man (郭超文), who was both the director and cinematographer.

The silent film New Friend (新客) is a melodrama about a newly arrived Chinese immigrant to Singapore. The film was released on April 29, 1927, in Chung Wo Cinema (中和電影場) in Kau U Fong (九如坊), Hong Kong. It was first screened in Singapore at the Victoria Theatre (維多利亞戲院) on the 4th of March for a public test. Its official premiere was at Marlborough Pub and Theatre (曼舞羅戲院) on Beach Road (小坡海墘十二間), Singapore.

Cast

Synopsis

Sham Hwa-kueng (沈華強) is a poor orphan from the Republic of China who moves to Malaysia hoping for a better life. He stays at his rich uncle Tiew Tin-shek (張天錫)’s residence.

Tiew Tin-shek (張天錫) operated a "Sin Teik Seng (新德成) rubber firm" in Muar, Malaysia. His family is composed of his wife, Ngai (顏氏), eldest daughter Tiew Wai-ching (張慧貞) and a naughty son Tan Ping-fan (陳炳勳).

Sham Hwa-kueng (沈華強) is appointed into the rubber firm as a trainee; his children like to play tricks on the innocent cousin Sham Hwa-kueng (沈華強), because he doesn’t know Nanyang custom.

Meanwhile, the English clerk Kim Fook-sing (甘福勝), the antagonist, is making trouble. He wants to marry Tiew Wai-ching (張慧貞) for her family’s wealth. However, Tiew Wai-ching (張慧貞) prefers the newly arrived cousin Sham Hwa-kueng (沈華強).

One day, Kim Fook-sing (甘福勝) finds Tiew Wai-ching (張慧貞) playing the piano in the sitting room, harmonizing with Sham Hwa-kueng's (沈華強) Chinese flute. Kim Fook-sing becomes angry because of this, and decides to play a trick on Sham Hwa-kueng (沈華強), so he tries to force him to resign his post, and move to Singapore. Tiew Wai-ching (張慧貞) realizes that Kim Fook-sing (甘福勝) is a playboy and hooligan, so she goes to Singapore, and studies in a girls high school with her local friend Low Kit-yuk (劉潔玉), and falls in love with the friend's cousin, Sham Hwa-kueng (沈華強).

Kim Fook-sing (甘福勝) successfully persuades Tiew Tin-shek (張天錫) to let him marry Tiew Wai-ching (張慧貞). Tiew Wai-ching (張慧貞) refuses her dad’s decision, and escapes into the jungle, where Kim Fook-sing (甘福勝) catches her with the help of his hooligan friend Chao Ping (趙丙). Sham Hwa-kueng (沈華強) enters the jungle to save his love Tiew Wai-ching (張慧貞), and fights a python and crocodile for her.

Eventually, Sham Hwa-kueng (沈華強) uses Chinese Kung Fu to battle Kim Fook-sing (甘福勝) and Chao Ping (趙丙). They are defeated, and drive away in an attempt to escape but they end up falling off a cliff. Finally, Tiew Wai-ching (張慧貞) gets her wish, and marries her cousin Sham Hwa-kueng (沈華強).

References

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 9/24/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.