There is a scene in “Ilo Ilo” where the maid and the only child of the Singaporean family run up to the roof of their apartment complex to watch the sunset.
“The view is so beautiful here. That must be why everyone jumps from this roof,” the child says with a giggle, and, somehow, we’re able to find humor in this. But moments later when the maid slaps the child and quips, “You just think killing yourself is so funny, don’t you?” that humor is silenced.
True, it’s easy to chuckle at misfortunes suffered by the family in the beginning of “Ilo Ilo,” but progressively, it becomes apparent that these scenes aren’t just staged fantasies; they reflect the harsh reality of financial crisis in Singapore during the ’90s, and its effect on a Singaporean family and their Filipino maid. Director Anthony Chen’s story doesn’t have any symbolism. You won’t find scenes of total maniacal outbursts and pots and pans flung around the house in order to represent sadness. Instead there are quiet breakdowns and pieces of the story that feel uncomfortably familiar, even though Singapore and the country’s financial struggles set in 1997 may feel foreign.
The events that make up the plot don’t necessarily all have a specific meaning; they seem to happen just like in life: naturally. The rooftop scene is one example, but another would be when the child, afraid to fully expose himself to the maid while taking a bath, is disarmed by the maid’s jokes (“You think I’ve never seen one before? I’ve seen bigger.”). The humor doesn’t feel cheap; it feels ordinary. It’s a funny situation, but it’s not simply used as a tool for comic relief.
The film contains an escalating conflict that, even by the end, holds no resolution. To try to smooth it over and force an end on it would have felt unnatural. It’s apt that a film like “Ilo Ilo,” which has such claims to reality, does not have a simple resolution. Life, after all, doesn’t either.
Grade: A– Runtime: 99 minutes See if you liked: “Persepolis”
