U.S. DVD Release
According to Wikipedia, a Singapore Sling was a drink created in the early 1900’s by Mr. Ngiam Tong Boon for the Raffles Hotel in Singapore. Apparently, it fell out of favor and into a sort of drink purgatory where good drinks must be forced to sit and have conversations with Strawberry Quik. *shivers*
Anyhow, this sickeningly sweet drink also has the distinction of having a film named after it and I’ll be damned if it isn’t a sweet film as well. When I say sweet, naturally, I really mean “sleazier than a Columbian pimp turning out monkeys with wigs”. I guarantee this film will stick with you for days like cheap perfume on an aging burlesque dancer.
I was so thoroughly sickened and impressed with this film that I’ve added it to my “must have” list. It’s like nothing I have ever seen before nor am I likely to see again. To say one may be conflicted while watching this film is an understatement of monumental proportions. Singapore Sling is such amazingly beautiful film noir, highly reminiscent of German Expressionist cinema, that one almost forgets it was made in 1990.
All the classic elements of film noir are present but director Nikos Nikolaidis doesn’t just stop there, he tosses in some incest, torture, urolagnia, masturbation, emetophilia, rape and the most heinous sexual assault on a furry fruit I have ever seen.
When we’re first introduced to our protagonist, private dick Singapore Sling, he’s crawling through some underbrush during a down pour, bleeding badly from a gunshot wound. He decides to hole up and bed down for the night in a vehicle. Singapore has no plans of allowing this minor setback to keep him from Laura, a girl he’s been tracking for quite some time now. All evidence points to this house…Laura must be here.
Meanwhile, a bizarre Mother and Daughter duo are out in the garden burying the body of their limousine driver. Seems they’ve got this “thing” for murder and bodies make great fertilizer.
Hold up…wait…was that a ‘gina I just saw? She’s not wearing panties in the rain? ROCK ON!
Anyhow, during the middle of the night Singapore struggles to the home, rings the bell and collapses inside the home. He’s feverish and mumbling about Laura, a woman the dastardly duo knew all too well. Unfortunately for Singapore, neither woman is willing to help and both have very different plans for this wayward private detective.
A psychological war begins between Mother and Daughter with Singapore caught in the middle as well as on the receiving end of an electro shock therapy machine. Barely clinging to sanity, Singapore is forced to endure constant rape and devious mind games but just who will win? Who is that pit being dug in the garden for? Where has Daddy’s long knife gone? Will Laura ever surface?
What a sick, trippy, twisted ride on the noir side. This film is just about the strangest film to ever fall into my lap and those of you hungering for something “different” should definitely check this out when you get the opportunity.
By the way, anybody else wondering whether Andrew Kevin Walker, writer of Se7en, saw this film? Their dildo knife scenes are extremely similar.
The film is presented in widescreen (1.66) format and the transfer looks exceptional. Some may notice the occasional speckle and blemish pop up but that’s good as there is such a thing as “too clean”. I honestly felt the occasional flaw gave the film character. The blacks, which are extremely important to film noir, were all solid with no evidence of pixelation.
The English subs in this film have been readjusted by Synapse and work quite well. Apparently, the original subs weren’t up to par so they were spruced up. Synapse did a bang up job.
Now, the only real problem I had with this film was the sparse extras. I mean, there was no audio commentary from Niko Nikolaidis or cast, no “making of…” featurette, no featurette detailing the film’s journey from VHS to DVD…zip. Nadda. Zilch. We’re given a still gallery and a trailer and that’s that. I understand that not all films have extras to offer but there’s always a way to come up with something whether it’s an audio commentary track by a film noir historian or a featurette showing the process that went into reworking the subs. No sense griping now though, right?
Singapore Sling isn’t going to be for everybody. You’re either going to miss the point and dismiss this film as porn or you’re going to love it for being so original and creative. Either way, do yourself a favor and check it out first.
