I’m no cinephile by any stretch of the word, but I do love watching films.

Movies are a fascinating blend of photography, writing, and music, coming together to create what I believe to be one of the greatest forms of art.

Which perfectly segues us to the subject of our discussion: Jack Neo films.

Neo has built a reputation over the years for directing local movies that don’t usually do well with critics – a privilege reserved for the likes of Royston Tan, Anthony Chen and Tan Pin Pin.

So, going into Jack Neo’s latest “Money No Enough 3”, I set aside my usual eye for film analysis and slipped on my fun glasses instead, fully expecting his usual comedic romp sprinkled with some relatable social commentary.

And that’s exactly what I got, but perhaps to a fault.

Here's the trailer:

The humour

I’m drawn to Jack Neo films for their ability to mirror our cultural identity as Singaporeans on the big screen, an experience that’s hard to come by in mainstream cinema.

Perhaps that’s why there’s a special warmth in watching characters crack jokes in Hokkien and use phrases from the dialect, like how my father usually would with his siblings.

However, some jokes were so deeply entrenched in Singlish lingo that it completely flew over my head – but that's probably just a Gen-Z problem.

While there were a handful of jokes that really made me laugh out loud, the majority of them primarily contributed to setting the overall tone and mood of the film.

The plot

Perhaps the biggest gripe I have with the movie is that it just doesn't add anything creative or new to the film scene in Singapore.

The plot is riddled with overused clichés audiences have grown familiar with – think loan sharks, health supplement scams, failed investments, and hospitalised family members.

There was also a subplot involving Christianity versus Buddhism that served no real purpose in progressing the story — at least, not to me — and felt out of place considering the large screen time invested in it.

The editing

For a comedic film like this, I’d usually say that the more outrageous the editing, the better – and it definitely delivers on that.

At one point, there was a scene where Ah Huang (Mark Lee) was surrounded by a green screen of a storm landscape, complete with dramatic sounding music.

However, the pacing of the movie was inconsistent, with some scenes dragging on longer than it should have, and others feeling rushed.

Additionally, the editing style gave the impression that it was tailored for something like TikTok with how some scenes appeared haphazardly connected.

Product placements

No surprises here, product placements are everywhere in this film.

This definitely contributed to the inconsistent pace as characters sometimes stopped to explain the selling points of a product, at times even presenting a brief instructional video-like segment.

Neo has acknowledged this issue in a 2023 interview with Mothership, explaining, "We try to suggest to some to make their product placement less blatant, but they say no. I'm the one who's always stuck in between."

It's a tough position to be in, so it's one I won't fault Neo for.

The verdict

Objectively speaking, "Money No Enough 3" falls short in many aspects, and it probably won’t be winning any Golden Horses any time soon — something that the cast and crew are acutely aware of.

But I don’t think that’s what Neo was aiming for anyway.

The film takes itself very lightly – it’s filled with jokes that are so corny you just have to laugh, and absurd plot lines so outlandish they’re almost unbelievable.

It’s designed to be light-hearted and fun, inviting viewers to poke fun and laugh along with it.

After all, the true charm of a movie like this is found in the shared, communal experience that’s meant to be enjoyed with family and friends in a crowded cinema, or rewatched in the living room of a relative during Chinese New Year.

But you didn't need me to tell you that.

"Money No Enough 3" is now showing in cinemas islandwide.