''Perfect Rivals'' ( zh, 美好冤家) is a 2011 Malaysian-Singaporean romantic comedy film directed by Han Yew Kwang, starring Ha Yu,

Irene Ang Irene Ang (born 1 September 1968) is a Singaporean actress, comedian, host and entrepreneur, best known for portraying Rosie Phua on the Singaporean sitcom '' Phua Chu Kang Pte Ltd'', as well as on the Malaysian sequel sitcom '' Phua Chu Kang ...

, Mindee Ong, Josh Lai, and

Pamelyn Chee Pamelyn Chee (born 13 March 1984) is a Singaporean actress and photographer. Early life Chee graduated from Victoria Junior College's theatre studies and drama programme. After completing her studies, she began a career in theatre and appea ...

Cast

* Ha Yu as Chen Hao ** Alaric Tay as young Chen Hao *

as Zhen Mei Mei ** Adele Wong as young Mei Mei * Mindee Ong as Zhen Yuan Yuan * Josh Lai as Xiao Hu * as Xiao Ma *

as Zhen Zhen Zhen * Crispian Chan as Pin Pin *

Marcus Chin Marcus Chin On Kang (born 22 September 1953) is a Singaporean host, actor, comedian, singer, radio DJ, and businessman. Career Chin joined the Singapore Broadcasting Corporation during the 1970s. During the 1990s, he was mainly known for star ...

as Bak Kwa Master * Alvin Wong as Mickey *

Michelle Yim Michelle Yim Wai-ling (; born September 2, 1955), better known by her stage name ''Mai Suet'' (), is a Hong Kong actress and elder sister of former actress Sidney Yim Wai-ming also known by stage name ''Suet Lei'' (). She graduated from and S ...

as Monica Cheng

Release

The film was initially set to open in theatres during

Chinese New Year Chinese New Year, or the Spring Festival (see also #Names, § Names), is a festival that celebrates the beginning of a New Year, new year on the traditional lunisolar calendar, lunisolar Chinese calendar. It is one of the most important holi ...

. However, the film's release was delayed till March as there were already three other local films opening during Chinese New Year. The film opened in theatres on 17 March 2011. It was a box office failure, grossing only $155,000.

Reception

Christopher Toh of ''

Today Today (archaically to-day) may refer to: * The current day and calendar date ** Today is between and , subject to the local time zone * Now, the time that is perceived directly, present * The current, present era Arts, entertainment and m ...

'' rated the film 3.5 stars out of 5 and wrote: "There are no blatant messages or high concepts here — just a nice family movie with a character we care for. And sometimes, this sort of simple pleasure works just fine." Genevieve Loh, also of ''Today'', gave the film a rating of "B-" and wrote that it "needs just that bit more meat and finesse for it to become the fully realised film it has the potential to be." Tan Kee Yun of ''

The New Paper ''The New Paper'' is a Singaporean newspaper. It was originally published in tabloid format as a "noon paper", then from 2016 as a freesheet in the morning from 7 a.m. onwards. In December 2021 the paper went to digital only. History Firs ...

'' rated the film 2.5 stars out of 5 and praised the performances of Ha and Ang, but wrote that they "do not make up for the uneven, cliched script and cringe-inducing acting by younger cast members such as Taiwanese Stanly Hsu and Malaysian Josh Lai." Boon Chan of ''

The Straits Times ''The Straits Times'' (also known informally by its abbreviation ''ST'') is a Singaporean daily English-language newspaper owned by the SPH Media Trust. Established on 15 July 1845, it is the most-widely circulated newspaper in the country and ...

'' rated the film 1.5 stars out of 5 and wrote that Han "tries unsuccessfully to mix heartwarming family drama, gross-out comedy and scattered social commentary", and that the result is "too tough to swallow."

References

External links

* {{Authority Control Malaysian romantic comedy films Singaporean romantic comedy films 2011 romantic comedy films