Money No Enough 2
| Money No Enough 2 | |
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 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Jack Neo |
| Screenplay by |
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| Story by |
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| Produced by |
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| Starring |
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| Cinematography | Ardy Lam |
| Edited by |
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| Music by | Benny Wong |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by | Golden Village |
Release date |
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Running time | 126 minutes[1] |
| Country | Singapore |
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| Box office | US$4.8 million[1] |
Money No Enough 2 (simplified Chinese: 钱不够用二; traditional Chinese: 錢不夠用二; pinyin: Qián bùgòu yòng èr) is a 2008 Singaporean comedy film written and directed by Jack Neo and produced by Neo Studios, Mediacorp Raintree Pictures and Scorpio East Pictures. It is a standalone sequel to the 1998 film Money No Enough, with Neo, Mark Lee and Henry Thia playing as three brothers in this film having to take care of their elderly mother Yang (Lai Meng).
A third standalone installment, titled Money No Enough 3, which was also directed by Neo and also stars Lee, Thia and Neo himself, was released during the Chinese New Year period on 1 February 2024.[2]
Plot
[edit]The film features three brothers: Yang Baohui, the eldest but poorest, Yang Baohuang, a regional supervisor for a health supplement trading company Caring Pollen and Yang Baoqiang, a successful businessman. Baohui, who has been working as a delivery man for 30 years, quits his job as he feels underappreciated for his long service. At a business conference, Baohuang offers Baohui to take a share of his company and become a manager; Baohui borrows S$10,000 from Mother Yang to do so. Meanwhile, Baoqiang takes on a large investment upon his estate agent's advice, despite his wife Lingling's qualms about the potential losses if unsuccessful.
Mother Yang is diagnosed with diabetes and lipoma. While Baohuang's wife Yanyan requests a medical scan, Baohuang opposes it due to the long waiting time. As a manager, Baohui manages to earn enough money in a few days to pay off Mother Yang and buy a panel van, pay television and tickets to the Singapore Grand Prix for his family. Baohuang is caught by police officers for speeding; Yanyan takes the blame. Their marriage is further strained when Baohuang visits a nightclub and gets drunk when returning home. Baohui, growing more arrogant in his new job, attempts to sue the parking attendant when issued a summon when he was parking at the white line parking lot on Sunday after 10p.m. which he thought it was season parking despite putting parking coupon; and ends up getting charged for contempt.
The news reports poisoning cases from Caring Pollen, which is declared unsafe for public consumption. Baohuang's business partner, Chen Guan Sai, reveals that he borrowed S$80,000 from loan sharks to initiate the business and demands S$100,000 from Baohuang. While unsure how to sell the remaining batch of supplements, Baohui and Baohuang try to reassure their employees to wait for the laboratory results. Meanwhile, Baoqiang tries to recoup money from a client who ran away as his property investments fail. Unable to pay their mortgage loan for the bungalow, the family ends up moving into a HDB flat, much to his daughter Stella's chagrin.
Mother Yang is approached by each of the three brothers and she gives up her life savings for them. Upon a friend's advice, she attempts to act as a beggar but is caught and the brothers have to bail her out. Mother Yang suddenly collapses but recovers in a private hospital. Yanyan gives Baohuang a S$100,000 cheque which he uses to pay off his debts. However, Yanyan is soon discovered to have embezzled her company's funds. Baohuang berates her for being foolish as she is taken away by officers of the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau.
Baohui and Baohuang begin new jobs as a cleaner and a taxi driver respectively. Baoqiang continues his en-bloc sales, while Lingling and Stella performs at getai concerts. Mother Yang is diagnosed with dementia and the brothers are overwhelmed taking care of her, so they decide to send her to a retirement home where she collapses in shock. Warded into the private hospital's intensive care unit. the brothers grow concerned about the daily medical bills, so they burn a talisman for their mother to pass on quickly. A frightened Baoqiang stops the burning as their mother's condition worsens. Meanwhile, Lingling, Stella and the singers are involved in a car accident; Stella is sent to the same hospital for her injuries. Stella needs blood but the only two O− blood bags available at the hospital are given to Mother Yang. Lingling races to Yang's ward for the blood bags and argues with Baoqiang about who to save. Mother Yang, who overhears the argument, pulls her life support.
After Yanyan is released from jail, the family gathers to pray to Mother Yang to repent for their misdeeds while thanking her for winning the first prize in a 4D lottery. At dinner, Baohuang introduces a new safely-tested supplement to Baohui and Baoqiang, and they become directors of this new business venture.
Mini-sequel
[edit]Following the events of this film, the three brothers paid a visit to Mother Yang during the Hungry Ghost Festival and began complaining about their poor finance performances and accusing that she was not assisting them supernaturally, before being haunted by her in multiple occasions.
Cast
[edit]- Henry Thia as Yang Baohui
The eldest brother of the Yang family who was a dedicated company worker for 30 years before working as a company introduced by Baohuang. Sometimes smart but also quirky solving issues. The last name Hui was based on the last name of Thia. - Mark Lee as Yang Baohuang
The youngest brother of the Yang family who is a company manager and owns a Mazda RX-8. Huang was arrogant and sleazy but care among the brothers the most, and an experienced sports car driver which he used to drive a Mazda RX-8 before selling it away due to not having enough money paying his loan and then eventually become a taxi driver driving a Hyundai Sonata. The last name Huang was based on the last name of Lee. - Jack Neo as Yang Baoqiang
The second brother of the Yang family who owns a luxurious BMW X3 and a bungalow, due to the large profits that he got from the resulting sales as an estate agent. Qiang was quick and decisive on solving questions especially handling money problems, notably after the time when he lives in a HDB flat. The last name Qiang was based on the last name of Neo. - Lai Meng as Mother Yang
The mother of the three brothers of Yang, who she have a record of diabetes and began displaying signs and symptoms throughout the course of the film. Yang was also much kindred to the three brothers on the actions and remain loyal. - Anna Lin Ruping as Lin Xiuyun
The wife of eldest brother Baohui, who sometimes care the most for Baohui and has three daughters. - Vivian Lai as Zhou Yanyan
The wife of youngest brother Baohuang and the caregiver of the house. Yanyan was also sometimes protective and truthful to Baohuang but their relationship find it hard to get a firm ground. - Choo Lingling as Zhang Lingling
The wife of second brother Baoqiang, who she was also a spendthrift but conservative, providing keen advices to Baoqiang whenever he need. - Natalli Ong Ai Wen as Stella Yang
The only daughter of Baoqiang who she was a passionate singer. She likes to live in a lap of luxury and dislikes adapting in a normal life once they settled in a HDB flat. - John Cheng as Chen Guan Sai
An employee worked under Baohuang and a former loan shark.
Additional cameos include then-Member of Parliament Michael Palmer, and future MP David Ong who appeared in a scene serving as members-of-parliament for Yang Baoqiang. Other actors also appearing the film include Wang Lei, Michelle Choo and Huang Bihua as singers in a Getai scene, and CK Cheong in another scene.
Sequel
[edit]In April 2020, an online live session between Neo and Lee hinted at a possible sequel for this film and are currently writing the script for the upcoming sequel titled Money No Enough 3. Filming was initially planned to begin in September 2020, but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore. Neo stated that the film concept in the third film series would be a departure from the prequel and this film as he implied that people’s perception and concept of money has been changed.[3]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Money No Enough II (2008)". Box Office Mojo. IMDB. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
- ^ "梁志强将开拍《钱不够用3》 2024年农历新年期间上映". 8world Entertainment Lifestyle (in Chinese (Singapore)). 3 October 2023. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
- ^ Lim, Bryan (21 April 2020). "Coming Soon: Money No Enough 3, says Jack Neo". AsiaOne. Retrieved 28 September 2020.