Singapore Dreaming 2006

Poh Huat is the patriarch of the Loh family, a lawyer’s clerk who navigates daily life with small bets and big hopes. He is married to Siew Luan, a practical housewife who keeps the family grounded with herbal tea and warm routines. Poh Huat clings to the dream of a luckier future, clipping and collecting articles about fancy cars and new condos, storing them away in a box in his room. The household includes two children: Seng and Mei. Despite Mei’s stronger academic record, the family consistently favors Seng, a dynamic that quietly strains relations at home. Seng, though initially seen as the brighter child, drops out of Secondary 3, yet the parents still fund his overseas polytechnic education, rather than continuing Mei’s schooling. He is due to return after two years at Dubois Polytechnical University (Idaho), and he even borrows extra money from his fiancée, Irene, who lives with his parents.

Mei works as a secretary and maintains a cordial rapport with her boss. She is counting down to her due date in two months and plans for maternity leave in a month. Her husband, Chin Keong, recently left the Singapore Armed Forces and now tries to sell insurance, though his efforts are not very successful. Despite financial constraints, the couple still visits condominium showrooms, drawn to a lifestyle they hope to attain.

Seng returns from the United States, and tensions rise at home as Mei and Seng clash over the family’s favoritism. He attends several job interviews, but the outcomes stay discouraging, leaving him to fabricate a rosier picture of his prospects to his family. In the middle of these pressures, Poh Huat’s luck shifts dramatically when he wins the Toto lottery, netting S$2 million, and the household erupts in elation. With the windfall, Seng envisions starting a business; his father grants him generous support, effectively funding his ambitions through a limitless credit card, and Seng even buys a car, all without Irene’s knowledge. The newfound financial elevation briefly elevates their social status, but it also adds strain as Irene discovers the unchecked spending.

The sudden death of Poh Huat—a heart attack at a country club during a membership interview—shakes the family to its core. Siew Luan is in shock, and at the funeral, Seng’s quarrel with Mei over the funeral expenses amplifies the underlying tensions. Mei vents her anger at Chin Keong, who responds with frustration of his own, throwing a carton of drinks and storming off. Mei is recalled to work later that day, still managing the funeral proceedings, and Chin Keong expresses his outrage at the unreasonable demand. Mei’s wary refrain—“Singapore is like that, everywhere is like that, do we have a choice?”—captures the claustrophobic vibe of the moment, and she resumes her duties at the office, where her boss’s impatience underscores the casual cruelty of everyday work life.

Meanwhile, at the wake, Mei notes that S$500 is missing from the pek kim and wrongly accuses Pinky, the Filipino maid, of theft. Chin Keong soon reveals that the money is actually in his possession. Pinky spits at Mei in indignation, and Chin Keong heads to a nearby coffee shop for a drink. A beer girl from China chats with him, and he opens up about his worries. She offers a blunt observation about life, saying, “You Singaporeans are always complaining. Do you think your life is tough?” The encounter underlines a lingering sense of disconnection between different generations and social strata.

During the funeral wake, Seng confesses that he did not graduate, a revelation that Irene overhears at the doorway. The disclosure leaves her deeply disappointed and she resolves to leave him, a turning point that foreshadows new directions for both of them.

A few months later, Chin Keong, Seng, and Mei—now with Mei’s newborn son—are summoned to a lawyer’s office. Poh Huat’s will, drafted long before any of them were born, designates all his assets to Siew Luan. Yet the family has a debt of S$800,000 tied to Seng’s overseas education. With Siew Luan absent from the meeting, the lawyer announces that of the remaining S$1,200,000, Mei will receive S$300,000 and Seng will receive S$1,000. In a final, quiet gesture of benevolence, Siew Luan hands some money to Poh Huat’s mistress and their illegitimate son, then leaves Seng behind. Irene decides to pursue a photography degree abroad, signaling a new chapter beyond the family’s immediate concerns.