GOLD (2024)

Genre: Drama/Sports
Director: Adrian Teh
Cast: Jack Tan, Farid Kamil, Fabian Loo, Wan Raja, Yasmin Hani
Runtime: 2 hr 6 mins
Rating: PG13 (Some Smoking Scenes)
Released By: Golden Village Pictures
Official Website: 

Opening Day: 18 July 2024

Synopsis: Cheah Liek Hou, a talented and determined badminton player, faced early challenges in life due to his disability – Erb’s Palsy. Despite this, he persevered and became an 11-time world champion. During his prime, badminton was not included in the Paralympics program, and age caught up with him after years of waiting. In 2018, his dream of winning gold reignited after learning that para-badminton would be included as a medal sport at the Paralympics. With the help of badminton legend Datuk Rashid Sidek, one of the heroes in the 1992 Thomas Cup, Cheah secured Malaysia’s first-ever Paralympic Gold medal in the badminton SU5 category, creating a historic moment for the country.

Movie Review:

You already know the ending of this Malaysian sports biography even before watching it. You know the protagonist is going to get a prestigious gold medal at the end of the movie, and there will be trials and tribulations along the way. Yet, you are willing to sit through the two hours of predictable drama because you know this will be a feel good movie about the strength of the human spirit. And this may just be the boost to keep you going.

The 124 minute movie chronicles Malaysian para badminton player Cheah Liek Hou’s journey to clinching the gold medal in the men’s singles SU5 event during the 2020 Summer Paralympics. This is a big deal for Malaysia, because Cheah is the first Malaysian athlete to win a medal in para-badminton, and also the first ever paralympic champion in para-badminton. You can imagine how proud Malaysia and its people when Cheah stood on the sports winner podium to receive his gold medal.

And this is just one of the victorious moments captured by Adrian Teh’s sincere and heartwarming work. Throughout the movie, you will see how Cheah was ostracised in school by a better badminton player, how his father wholeheartedly rooted for him, how his world almost fell apart when he was diagnosed with Erb’s palsy (a condition which causes his right hand to have less strength and stability), and how he trained to compete in both able bodied and para badminton tournaments.

It doesn’t stop there, because the movie will also show you how Cheah lost his father, how life circumstances led to him taking up on a corporate job, how a sedentary lifestyle made him put on weight (which obviously means he is in a bad shape to play badminton), and how he eventually got his groove back when the Paralympic Games announced the inclusion of badminton as a sport, giving him the determination to pick up the racket again.

Phew, that’s really quite a bit to cover in a two hour movie. But the story flows well, and much of the plot involving strong family support is relatable to viewers in this part of the world. The idea may sound cheesy, but seeing Cheah’s father (played adorably by Freddie Ng) give the “ok” hand gesture while saying “win this match for yourself” just works. There is also an especially touching scene where Cheah’s mother (played by Lynn Lim) gives her full support when he rushes home to announce that he is going to give up his full time job to train for the Paralympic Games.

But the biggest credit goes to Malaysian actor Jack Tan, who gives a passionate performance as Cheah to make this biographical drama work. Talk about method acting – he gained 20kg to portray an unfit Cheah, and while the results are not as dramatically drastic as Chinese actress Jia Ling who lost 50kg for her role in YOLO, it is still quite a feat to see him on screen from being fit to fat, then going through hellish training to become fit again.

It's not just about the body transformation for Tan, who was nominated in the Best Supporting Actor category at the 60^th Golden Horse Awards for his role in Abang Adik (2023). He delivers an endearing performance as Cheah, and the committed performance will have you cheering for Cheah from beginning to end. Complemented by a more serious performance by Farid Kamil who portrays Rashid Sidek (bronze medalist on 1996 Olympic Games in men singles category and Cheah’s coach in 2020 Paralympic Games), Tan’s The likeable boy next door vibe will remind you of the friend you want to wholeheartedly root for. We’re pretty certain Cheah himself would be proud.

Movie Rating:

(Jack Tan delivers a winning and wholehearted performance as Malaysian para-badminton player Cheah Liek Hou in this feel-good sports biography)

Review by John Li