SGIFF review - AH GIRL (2026)

SGIFF Review - AH GIRL (2026)

Written by: Jarrett Yang

One evening, as I was having dinner at home, my mum casually read a headline she came across on social media: “Ah Girl’s 9-year-old Ong Xuan Jing beats Ariel Lin and becomes youngest best actress winner” (translated from Chinese). My first reaction was: who? What film? That was back in late April this year (I believe), and oh boy, I had no idea what was waiting for me…

Crowned the Best Asian Feature Film at this year’s Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF), Ah Girl premiered in Singapore to a sold-out audience on 30 October. I attended the highly anticipated screening, which hosted a post-show Q&A with the filmmaker and several cast members, and I left thinking I might just have seen one of the best local films ever.

The Ah Girl team receiving their Best Asian Feature Film award at the 37th SGIFF’s Silver Screen Awards.

Image credit: Singapore International Film Festival

Written and directed by Ang Geck Geck Priscilla, this feature film debut follows Eileen Ang Swee Swee (“Ah Girl”). Played by the stunning Ong Xuan Jing in her feature film acting debut, the 7-year-old navigates complex family and school dynamics in 1994 Singapore alongside her younger sister “Ah Tian”, an indifferent grandmother, a charming but lazy father, a struggling mother, as well as other adults whom she finds “confused” and “confusing”.

As somebody with a clear bias for child or youth performances in film, Ong’s outing is phenomenal, and perhaps the best we’ve had since Megan Tay in Jack Neo’s Homerun (2003). Tay won the Best Newcomer prize at the 40th Golden Horse Awards (the equivalent of the “Oscars” in the Chinese-language movie arena); Ong is up for the same accolade this time, and I genuinely think she has a viable shot!

Still of Ong Xuan Jing in Ah Girl.

Credits: Aggregate Films Pte Ltd, Kusu Films and IFA Media

The film’s Chinese title - “泡泡糖女孩” - is, in my view, a more nuanced representation of the story. Ang opened the movie with an iconic moment in Singapore’s history - the ban of chewing gum (or bubble gum, the literal translation of “泡泡糖”) in the early nineties - any Singaporean who is born and raised here and who is adequately informed must know this. However, I believe the finest touch by Ang was to use this motif sparingly, to empower “Ah Girl” to challenge the world around her, becoming an allegory for rebellion, or even just a basic human desire to be understood, accepted and loved.

Ah Girl achieved an immaculate balance in portraying the hardships of a dysfunctional family, capturing the universal struggle of growing up, and conveying the loneliness of someone who felt perpetually isolated, all while maintaining a degree of lightheartedness throughout. If Ang’s vision was to convince viewers that children, despite their innocence, could understand what the adults in their lives go through but retain their optimism and innate ability to love, she has succeeded.

Still of Ong Xuan Jing in Ah Girl.

Credits: Aggregate Films Pte Ltd, Kusu Films and IFA Media

Like many filmmakers with their debut features, Ah Girl is Ang’s personal story. What sets hers apart, however, is the fact that this film is not overly ambitious or tries to be all-encompassing in the story or storytelling by incorporating other elements and themes to the point of distraction. Ah Girl focuses on the titular character’s journey and what we as the audience may derive from it. This film is simple but not simplistic, genuine but not too sentimental; it is relatable on many levels, and one need not be a child or a girl to resonate with the movie and be moved by it.

In hindsight, and if I wield the power, I would have chosen this film as Singapore’s entry in the Best International Feature Film category at the 99th Academy Awards.

Catch Ah Girl in cinemas across Singapore from 19 November onwards!

About the author: Jarrett has been a devoted cinephile for over half of his life. Apart from movies, coffee keeps him awake, and music keeps him alive. Having studied theatre and performed as an actor before, he's also a sucker for great performances.

Connect with Jarrett here: https://linktr.ee/jarrettandfilm