COMBAT IN THE CITY

An eerie silence hung over Singapore's Central Business District (CBD).

Arriving at the scene in two Terrex Infantry Carrier Vehicles (ICVs), infantry soldiers from the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) were confronted with a disconcerting sight: Shenton Way was in shambles. Vehicles were overturned, and bodies were strewn across a debris-covered road as buildings nearby burned on.

As the troops moved out to survey and clear the area, they were met with enemy fire. A deafening explosion sounded as an enemy projectile hit a taxi the servicemen had been taking cover behind.

"And cut!" the director yelled, wrapping up one take during the filming of Ah Boys To Men, Jack Neo's latest production.

The film, to be aired in two instalments, centres on a young man's experience during Basic Military Training, and shows how National Service (NS) has evolved in the last 45 years.

It also includes this war scene, which was filmed on 19 Aug along Robinson Road in the CBD. This is the first time Robinson Road was closed for movie filming.

When asked about the significance of this scene in the movie, director Mr Neo replied: "We want to convey an important message: There are some people who may feel that NS is a waste of time, but if you were to witness a scene like this, and if we didn t have anyone to protect our country, what do you think would happen?"

He went on: "In the movie, you will see our armed forces battling the enemy. If we didn't have NS, we wouldn't even have the opportunity to fight. We can t possibly ask outsiders to help us fight our war."

The battle scene took J Team Productions about three months to prepare. While the live action will be complemented by CGI (Computer Generated Imagery), Mr Neo wanted everything to look as realistic as possible.

"We spent some time getting the proper permits from the relevant authorities and of course, safety was our first priority," he explained.

"It's a pretty big scene, involving armoured vehicles and servicemen, and (it was great) being able to film in the CBD, so I m grateful for all the support we received."

This war scene will appear in part one of the movie, which will hit the big screen come 8 Nov. The second instalment is scheduled for release during Chinese New Year in 2013.