Serangoon Road is a detective noir series set against the tumultuous backdrop of 1960s Singapore.Serangoon Road is a detective noir series set against the tumultuous backdrop of 1960s Singapore.Serangoon Road is a detective noir series set against the tumultuous backdrop of 1960s Singapore.
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6.8/10
657
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- 1 win & 5 nominations
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Storyline
It's 1964. The world is changing, the global balance of power is shifting, and Singapore is at a crossroads. British colonial rule has finally come to an end and independence is on the horizon. It's an exciting time in which the island state can finally forge its own identity. The nation's heartbeat stems from one main artery that runs through the island. Whether it is culture or crime, politics or patriotism, espionage or enterprise, all paths lead to Serangoon Road. This is the world of Sam Callaghan, Kang, Patricia Cheng, and the clients of the Cheng Detective Agency. Sam Callaghan agrees to help Patricia Cheng after her husband is killed while working on a case. Patricia might not be a detective, but she knows that her company needs a good investigator with contacts in the various local communities as well as among the ex-pats. Sam is all of that. But after a childhood in a POW camp and a checkered career in Military Intelligence during the Malay Emergency, he also carries so much baggage. The Cheng Detective Agency's cases range from the usual (straying spouses and petty fraudsters) to conspiracies and events with international implications. Sam's contacts from his military days are useful, but they drag him back into a dark world that he would prefer to leave behind. —HBO Asia
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Did you know
- TriviaSingapore gained independence in 1961 and all vice including brothels and gambling became illegal and was closed down...this is supposed to be 1964. Singapore joined Malaysia in 1963 and became fully independent in 1965. Vice was not cleared up overnight!
- GoofsMandarin wasn't very commonly used for day to day conversation in Singapore during the 1960s. Regional dialects like Hokkien (Min Nan) were way more common, even amongst expatriates that spoke local languages.
Top review
Not the Singapore I remember
I was looking forward to this series as I was living in Singapore round about the time the series was set. Not only that, I was living quite close to Serangoon Road so (ike reviewer 'pgmucha') I viewed the series with a hopeful sense of nostalgia. Why is the series called Serangoon Road? It is nothing like it. In reality it was/is a straight, wide street not a narrow winding lane, as depicted. One reviewer stated that it is 'not a documentary' but they should have tried to get the backdrop right at least. This was not the Serangoon Road I remember. The average temperature in Singapore is 25C with 70% humidity. However, our hero runs around and fights – but never raises a sweat . Just walking around in a climate where it is hot and humid all the time, has one dripping with sweat. People walked in the shade, not in the sun. Where are the Indians? Quite close to Serangoon Road is Little India but I could not see any Indians wandering about in this series. Geographical locations have been telescoped it seems. Bugis St is not just round the corner but a kilometer away. (I lived in a rooming house on the same floor as 4 of the 'boys' from Bugis St). Chinatown is at least 3 kilometers away. The acting is not Emmy (or even Logie) material. Joan Chen tries her best to be inscrutable. Her young female sidekick has a somewhat incongruous Oxbridge accent. The hero is suitably heroic, designer stubble and all. Does he ever change his shirt? His romantic interest however, is insipid and the epitome of 'wooden' - hardly the stuff of a a passionate love affair. The other characters are two dimensional at best. The bad guys are very bad. I don't think that in 1964 phrases such as 'pissed me off'and 'forensic accounting' were used. Overall, it was a very average production that barely held my interest A pity that it was not better researched. Yes, I know 'it was not a documentary' but it WAS a 'Hollywood generic' scenario aimed at viewers who have no idea what Singapore was/is like.
helpful•229
- chopendoz
- Nov 9, 2013
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