Movie Review - Young & Fabulous

IT SEEMS that the Singaporean film industry has quite a thing for coming-of-age stories. But who can blame them, after the success of the Ah Boys to Men franchise, which is now a trilogy.
With Young & Fabulous though, the directors have chosen to use the growing trend of ­cosplaying as a vehicle to tell a story.
I personally liked this approach as it gives the general population a better ­understanding of the world of cosplay, and also why there's a growing community of people who put their hearts and souls into it.
But beneath the ­costumes and makeup, the movie is actually more about family values, ­friendships, and achieving one's dreams with perseverance and ­persistence.
The movie centres around three high-school students – Royston (Aloysius Pang), ­Violet (Joyce Chu) and Hao Ren (Joshua Tan) – who each has his/her own set of challenges in life such as living up to the parents' expectations, being neglected by busy parents, and also wanting to provide for the family.
I really liked how cosplaying is woven into the story and not just tacked on.
The movie also has its fair share of tear-­jerking moments, in ­particular pertaining to Royston's relationship with his well-meaning but ­overbearing mother. However, you will definitely be laughing ­during the majority of the movie.
In terms of performances, the chemistry was clearly there and with most of the cast being veterans of Singapore's movie and TV industry, they played their parts well – be it a serious, comedic or tearful.
Overall, Young & Fabulous shares many of the same tropes as movies under this category. It can get a little predictable, but there are a few twists here and there to spice things up.
I find it to be an entertaining movie, and definitely makes for a good choice during family movie days.
Watch the trailer here :