You are the Apple of my Eye

Watched this 10 years ago and cried, re-watched this again after 10 years and still cried. Will always be my favorite romance movie of all time.

I always like school-romance movie because of this movie. I've watched this movie over and over again, listened to the music over and over again, and still remember the feelings over and over again. I never knew what's so beautiful about this movie that makes it my favorite romance movie, I guess I just like the emotional roller coaster the movies takes me over and over again.

This movie might not be everyone, but if you are like me - someone that craves a realistic romance story during teenage times, go give it a try.

This film is about a group of high school classmates' amazing years together, growing up and learning lessons in life.

"You Are the Apple of My Eye" has a simple but profoundly effective story. The backdrop of the story and the characters are all so ordinary, everyday like, which connects with people so well. Watching the film is like having a time machine, bringing me back to those days when I was just like them.

The main characters, Chia-Yi and Ko-Teng, are so well matched. They have amazing chemistry, and shows the sweet puppy love which does not fade with time. Their blossoming relationship is bound to evoke much memories, taking viewers into a treasure of sweetness which is stacked away somewhere deep in the brain. Aside from the sweetness, this subplot is also full of "if only", which brings reality back into the fairytale. It invites people to take a nostalgic trip to fill in what the "if only" is for them.

The film culminates into a great emotional zenith at the end. That beautiful shot in the banquet hall, even though is imaginary, serves as a bittersweet closure. Again, "if only" comes to mind, but only with happiness and not regret.

"You Are the Apple of My Eye" is an exceptionally well done film. There is no wonder why everyone in Hong Kong is talking about it, all social networking websites have status updates related to the film, and even many newspaper articles are named in relation to the title. "You Are the Apple of My Eye" has become a social phenomenon, and is likely to be an enduring one.

You Are the Apple of My Eye had successfully reached out and grabbed me by the throat with its many identifiable, similar moments mirroring personal experiences, at a time where school and education played a big part, and what more with co-ed schools, having friends and facing competition in going after the girl of our dreams then, who almost always turns out to be the popular school flower. Sad but true facts of life, and with game theory, anyone would have been better off with the friends of the object of our affection such as Hu Chia-Wei (Wan Wan) who turned out really well despite her less than stellar looks and knowledge (though things always change in the future for the better, like fine wine), rather than the primary, unattainable target herself, whose bookish behaviour came off very prim and proper with an unrelenting focus on school results.

But Fate always possess a hand at springing up surprises, and in Gidden's chief protagonist Ko Ching-Teng (Ko Chen-Tung) who of course is his avatar in the film, this comes in the form of the popular schoolgirl Shen Jia-Yi (Michelle Chan from Hear Me) who inexplicably takes a strong liking for someone she initially detests for being too childish, but an episode of standing up for her became a catalyst for a budding relationship to grow, stemming from the desire to help Ching-Teng improve his grades, as well as the implicit result of having a studying companion to spur her on, friendly competition and a protector of sorts in her late nights spent in school. Then there is the keen competition from Ching-Teng's own clique of likable, though one-dimensional buddies, from the nerd Boner (Yen Sheng-Yu), the obligatory fatty A-Ho (Steven Hao), the bragger (Owodog) and the weirdo Groin (Tsai Chang- Hsien) with his repertoire of strange tricks up his sleeves, who each have their own way at courtship, to varying degrees of failure, trying as hard as they can to try and win her affections.

Broadly split into three areas in a young adult's life with the time spent in school between two friends who share an unwritten and unsaid declaration of their mutual affection, to post high school graduation into higher learning and the long distance put between them as the test of their relationship, and the period of the present, Giddens firmly helmed all aspects of the film and orchestrated a flowing and slick ensemble, successfully merging many different genres together, from wacky comedy to romance, and having the natural flair to pull off some of the most absurd (though not far fetched in real life) of situations especially those involving body parts and those containing plenty of innuendos to bring out the laughs (seriously, the soap bar is not an urban myth it seems), and at times presenting them for the keen eyed viewer whose eyes wander to the background of a scene, and being rewarded with sight gags.

Since the narrative unravels itself during the 90s, those like me who grew up during the era will find a lot of strong nostalgia from the production design right down to a walk down memory lane given a backdrop of historical events, or in a period of time where the mobile phone hardly has the proliferation and pervasiveness of today. Those long, snaking queues of people waiting for a payphone, bring back fond memories in really sweating it out to want to speak to a loved one until being goaded to let go or when the coins run out, and of course with advancement in phone technology being able to butt in just to hear a loved one at the end of the line post-disaster, is nothing more than comforting, though only when there is adequate signal strength.

Being a Taiwanese film, language plays a key role here especially when Hokkien gets into play, with the very colourful, familiar swear words used that will undoubtedly provide a certain kick to movie audiences here. The rich use of the language also helps to flavour the film especially with the very authentic, natural lines of dialogue, making the characters believable. Also, the rating for the film at NC16 is something of an indication of a loosening up of classification perhaps, where once sustained use of vulgarities, male on male lip locks regardless of context, and the many scenes of sex and masturbation (stylized for comedy) will likely get nothing less than an M18, but I suppose given the context of the film's setting dealing with hot blooded male characters, as well as the film being so well received in its home country, that it will be silly to try and artificially restrict its pool of audience from enjoying what is essentially a simple, yet effect story being translated for the big screen.

In some ways Giddeon's film is like Ah Niu's directorial debut effort Ice Kacang Puppy Love which is also a story about first love and peppered with quirky characters, but if the story comes from a sincere heart recounting one's own experience despite a very universal theme, I truly believe everyone's first love story will be something worth recounting given its bittersweet moments, and the lessons to be learn from it. You Are the Apple of My Eye will warm your heart and wring it with regret at the same time especially if you're able to identify with the story. It made me ponder over my own similar What If scenario, in the way parallel universes worked itself into the story, and its reconciliatory tone was something cutting very close to home, of how people change, and when we look back we're probably seeing very different persons from that point in time, when compared with who we are today.

Highly recommended and it goes into my shortlist as one of the best this year has to offer.

Nostalgia's a bitch, and this columnist is pretty sure each and every one of you reading this review is guilty of indulging in memories – as much as you know it's the present that really matters. How else would you explain the sudden emergence of movies (Smurfs and Transformers come to mind) which remind us of the good ol' days? (Ed's note: Michael Bay's pompous 'bots simply serves as a stark reminder of how good things from the past should be left alone.) Closer to home, Taiwanese novelist Giddens Ko capitalises on this innate human nature and turns his creative talent into box-office gold by directing his first feature film. The prolific and popular author has translated one of his well loved works into an accessible movie you will find no problems falling in love with. How else would you explain the phenomenal success of the 110 minute production back in Taiwan, where it beat Monga (2010) and Cape No. 7 (2008) to become the local film with the biggest ever opening day and weekend box office earnings? The story may have been a chapter of your younger days: The school prankster and the perfect student become the most unlikely friends. A relationship blossoms between the two, and before one realises it, years past and what's left are bittersweet memories of what could have been. Along the way, you also get introduced to the protagonists' friends who are familiar characters from your past – the loyal sidekick, the overweight but studious goodie two shoes and the goofy and unassuming dude amongst others. We are also introduced to thematic memories which seem to have flown past us during these hurried years of growing up. Be it the pursuit of the perfect future, the hopelessly romantic crush on a fellow classmate, or the steadfast allegiance between friends, there will be many sequences in the movie that will strike a chord with you. Producer Angie Chai sure knows her audiences well – the experiences on successful TV series like 2001's Meteor Garden (the show that launched boyband F4's career) and 2003's Love Storm have made this movie an unabashedly likable idol drama. It has all the ingredients of a crowd pleaser: Besides the nostalgic storyline, the stars are pleasing and charismatic. Good lookers Ko Chen Tung and Michelle Chen take on the lead roles in this adolescent tale, and relatively unknown artistes are now stars in their own rights. Other unfamiliar but pleasant stars like Ao Chuan, Steven Hao (you may recognise him as the butt baring kid in many infamous Kung Fu slapstick movies from the yesteryears), Tsai Chang Hsien, Wan Wan and Yen Sheng Yu make up the ensemble cast. Complement the young actors' decent performances with a refreshing touch of humour (watch out for a hilarious scene which involves synchronised masturbation), eye pleasing cinematography, a soothing piano score and some recognisably retro songs. The emotionally fulfilling theme song "Na Xie Nian" (literal translation: "Those Years) performed by Hu Xia deserves a place in your music device. The film has earned several nominations at the 48thGolden Horse Awards, and this is further proof that viewers are lapping this shamelessly nostalgic movie up. Yes, this increasingly cynical columnist is a fan of this affectingly moving movie as well – simply because nostalgia's a feeling no one can shake off.

There has been a clamour for this Taiwanese coming-of-age film among Chinese youth ever since it opened at the Hong Kong Summer International Film Festival in August this year. Indeed, Giddens Ko's directorial debut is based on his semi-autobiographical novel, "The Girl We Chased Together in Those Years" (its Mandarin title), which was a best-seller among online readers. Needless to say, "Apple" reigned at the Taiwan box office for more than a month, landing at second place on the nation's chart of all-time box office hits. For viewers young and old, it is a nostalgia trip to their carefree school days when hormones rage and hope abounds. The narration, by Ko Chen-Tung who plays Giddens (or Ching-Teng), starts off in 2005 when protagonist Ching-Teng is dressing up for a wedding. Next, it takes us back 10 years earlier (1995) to Ching-Teng's school days when he and his buddies, Boner (Yen Sheng-yu), Cock, Groin (Tsai Chang-hsien) and A-Ho (Steven Hao) are students of Ching-Cheng High, a backwater school in Changhua in central Taiwan. All these boys admire ace student Shen Chia-Yi (Michelle Chen) and many of them even have a crush on her. However, Chia-Yi is closest to Ching-Teng because she has been instructed by a teacher to tutor Ching-Teng in his studies and help him stay out of trouble. The two gradually fall in love but have to separate when they go to college. Staying apart, the couple face many challenges and temptations which threaten to tear them from each other... The school pranks and events are seen from Ching-Teng's point-of-view and he pulls no punches to show us what it is like during those heady and crazy days. We see the boys masturbating, disturbing girls and handling heartbreak and separation. One college scene explains why the boys jerk off with their left hand while watching online porn - the right is needed to move the mouse. We see how the girls have to put up with these pranks and crass jokes and somehow manage to hold their own. The best part of Giddens' direction is that we can easily identify with the protagonist and the lead cast. In any co-ed class, there will always be a beautiful bookworm like Chia-Yi whom all the boys will admire and even try to court; and there will be the resident sex maniac, the fat slob, and other weirdos. All these characters are credibly developed although there are some sequences, like Ching-Teng and his dad going naked in his house, that are not satisfactorily explained or rationalised. Another is Ching-Teng's refrain from intimacy with Chia-Yi even at intimate moments. And just as the boys have a crush on Michele Chen's Chia-Yi, we too are charmed by her. Chen is such a natural that her Chia-Yi reminds us of the girl-next-door, captivating our hearts especially in the scene where she is summarily punished with the boys for being disrespectful of the teacher. This is one movie from which you will leave the cineplex with a smile on your face and feeling warm in your heart.