A Land Imagined (Chinese: 幻土) is a 2018 neo-noir mystery thriller film written and directed by Yeo Siew Hua. A Singapore-France-Netherlands co-production, the film tells the story of a police investigator who uncovers the truth behind the disappearance of a construction worker. (Wikipedia)
One might argue that Yeo Siew Hua’s critically acclaimed A Land Imagined takes place in an imaginary Singapore. One that exists in the dreams of twinned protagonists detective Lok (Peter Yu) and PRC construction worker, Wang (Liu Xiaoyi).
The narrative is a stream-of-consciousness procedural as Lok investigates the disappearance of Wang and his colleague Ajit (Ishtiaque Zico) in the dream-world of a construction work site.
The non-linear storytelling device keeps the viewer constantly unhinged, wondering whether we are seeing the present or the past as the events featuring Lok and Wang seem to mirror and slowly morph into a single unit.
Although the story set-up seems straight-forward, the film is anything but. The audience is left pondering constantly as to where the film is headed plot-wise, and at times it reminded me of a Philip K Dick premise and was almost expecting to find out that Wang and Lok were the same person! But I shall not say too much of the intriguing plot and will leave that for your own discovery.
If nothing else, A Land Imagined is worth the price of admission simply for Hideho Urata’s stunning cinematography! The visuals will take your breath away!!
Watch A Land Imagined on Netflix.
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