The concept of online dating nowadays, particularly for middle aged people, is one that has been implemented in cinema, mostly for comedic reasons. Tay Bee Pin, however, takes a somewhat more serious look at it in “The Fourth Man”, while adding a number of other elements in his narrative, in a short that was commissioned by the Singaporean Ministry of Education.
The Fourth Man is screening at Osaka Asian Film Festival
The movie begins in oneiric fashion, with the protagonist ‘stating' how it all started under a small clip including photos from her past and her playing the piano. The story then cuts impressively to Singapore through panoramic and long shots, under a rendition of “Que Sera Sera”. Soon it is revealed that the main story concerns a middle-aged Malaysian banker living in Singapore who decides to take a series of blind dates. As expected by the title, the three first do not work for various reasons, until the fourth, a butcher by trade comes into the picture and starts talking rather sincerely about pig slaughtering. Gradually, the conversations change to literature and philosophical themes.
Apart from the obvious comment about the concept mentioned in the prologue, Tay Bee Pin directs a movie that shows how people think nowadays, and why relationships have become so difficult for reasons having to do with money, family, and societal and familial expectations. That sincerity, that is not implemented for practical reasons, along with a proper ‘sense' of shame, comes from a man who kills pigs for a living does emerge as somewhat cliched (for cinema that is) but actually works quite well, allowing the director to present two completely different kinds of life in the Singapore. At the same time, he sends a message about how opposites attract, which also moves into cliche territory though. Furthermore, the reading part does go a bit too far, considering the nature of the particular reading, as does the concept of the deep-thinker laborer and the not so deep financier.
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On the other hand, the difference of the two protagonists, which also extends to their appearance, with her looking constantly impeccable like a model and him constantly sweating, adds a level of entertainment to the story, which applies to the whole of the visual aspect of the short. In the same fashion, the whole presentation of pig butchering, including a rather strong black-and-white sequence, adds another level to the context. This variety of images actually appears throughout the movie, usually with dark scenes that point more towards a thriller, in a trick that works quite nicely here, also due to the excellent cinematography and the impressive use of sound. This approach extends to another aspect of the narrative, as the film also functions as a tour guide of the city, although the music video approach in that regard, does emerge as cliched also and somewhat cheesy.
The editing, particular in the montage of the first three dates, is one of the best aspects of the film, with the connection of the various cinematic elements here being ideal, and the surprising ending, in somewhat meta fashion, definitely compensating.
Cynthia Koh and Lester Lee play their parts with a fitting sense of measure, highlighting the differences of their characters and their chemistry quite eloquently.
Despite some crucial issues, mostly having to do with the many cliches and some excessiveness in the script, “The Fourth Man” is rather well-shot, entertaining, and manages to make its comments through an approach that remains intriguing for the majority of the 25 minutes of its duration.
