Watched ONE NIGHT ONLY with Bru, Yaya and Bhorgina at Festival Mall last January 7. In all honestly, I laughed the hardest watching this movie.
The Chokoleit and Joross Gamboa and Alessandra and Paolo Contis bits were the most hilarious. I wasn't really convinced with the performance of Manilyn Reynes. Eugene (for Tanging Ina Nyong Lahat) should have won Best Supporting Actress instead. Manilyn as a "butch" didn't exactly click for me. Sana si Aiza na lang! She was 'screaming' the entire time (ganun siya magpakita ng angst-y character niya) and her moves were really exaggerated.
Katrina Halili was her usual slutty self. Valerie Concepcion's acting was so-so. The movie would survive with or without Jennylyn Mercado and Diana Zubiri. Jon Avila is hot! (hahaha)
The movie was quite short. Think it ran for an hour and 15 minutes only. The story ends at this motel, where all the characters stories are resolved. I liked it. The movie's pace was just right. No boring moments.
So in short, I only missed watching Desperadas 2, Dayo and Magkaibigan. But even if I get free passes for these three remaining movies, I would simply pass. Well, maybe Dayo.
Overall, I've seen better Festival movies. Looking forward to next year.
Monday, January 12, 2009
Friday, January 02, 2009
Metro Manila Film Festival 2009
DAY 1
ANG TANGING INA NYONG LAHAT
Ai Ai did say in her movie plugs that this should be the first movie people should see. Bespwen and I were obedient enough to do this. True to our yearly holiday tradition, we trooped to the Festival Mall Cinemas at about 11:00am of December 29 and bought tickets to the Filmfest's Top Grossing Film.
Eugene (Best Friend Rowena) upstaged Ai Ai, no doubt. Personally, I think she is the funniest bit in the movie, together with Alwin, Ai Ai's gay son. The story begins with Ai Ai trying very hard to impress her children and make them proud of her. Just like in "Tanging Ina", Ai Ai would go through some odd jobs like being Angel Locsin's stunt double in Lobo (but ending up being the lobo's stunt double instead). She ends up working at the Malacanang as a chambermaid, together with her best friend Rowena. In a simple twist of fate, she becomes the star witness to the killing of "Madam President" played by Gloria Diaz. It was the Vice President who actually plots the killing, and it is only Ai Ai who can prove this. The Vice President then challenges Ai Ai to a snap election. She wins. This was how she became President of the Republic of the Philippines.
The moment between Ai Ai and Gloria Diaz in the kitchen, when the President got hungry and it was Ai Ai who prepared some food for her was very touching. Ai Ai talked about her kids and how she would do anything to given them a good life. Her 'drama' scenes, to me, proved to be more effective than her comedy bits.
The Vice President was sent to jail and he instructs this one Senator to 'ruin' Ai Ai. This was not resolved in the end. Whatever happened to the Vice President was left hanging. There was no resolution to this and him killing Gloria Diaz.
Too bad Marvin was no longer there (physically, hehe). They should have just taken out Serena Dalrymple. She brings no value to the film. I liked the twins. They're first time actors and they are pretty good. I laughed out loud when comedian Flora Gasser took the twins to the police station (the twins ran away from home). She instructed the girls to hold on to her skirt and not let go whatever happens. By the time she reached the police station, her skirt was a goner. The police even had to ask if she was raped! LOL!
Overall, the movie was entertaining, but not spectacular. A good first movie to watch indeed. Now, on to the next...
BALER
This is my favorite movie out of the four we watched. I FORCED Bespwen to include this in our line-up, in exchange for her stooopid SHAKE, RATTLE and Roll X (which I will talk about later). I admit, there were some dragging parts, but I stayed glued to flick from start to finish.
Philip Salvador was so good in this movie. He played the father of Anne Curtis, whose sister got raped and killed by the Spaniards, and whose brother was tortured by the same. This was the reason why he abhored the Spaniards so much. The irony is that Anne falls in love with Jericho, who played half-Pinoy, half Spanish Celso.
Jericho was also very effective in the film. People around me kept saying it's weird that Jericho got casted as a Spanish soldier. HE IS NOT PURE SPANISH, OKAY? So drop it, people. =) He was good in this film. Pwedeng pang-Best Actor. However, I wouldn't be able to compare his performance with proclaimed Festival Best Actor Christopher de Leon since I have absolutely NO PLANS of watching Magkaibigan. Anything with Jinggoy Estrada on it is a waste of my time.
Aurora looked stunning in the film. The place is majestic! And the casting was really good. Hello, Jao Mapa! Hahaha! He played one of the four half-Spanish, half-Pinoy soldiers together with Mark Bautista (who was also impressive in the film). Bernard Palanca, Ryan Eigennman and Baron Geisler played heads of the Spanish troops that staked out in the church and surrendered to the Filipinos 388 (hope I got this right) days after.
Carlo Aquino was here again. He played Anne's brother.
Baler was an evident choice for Best Picture since the other films bordered more on the comedic side. Magkaibigan was their closest rival and I would absolutely die if this won Best Picture!
Bespwen and I ended the day feeling a bit depressed since Jericho died in the film. They did not end up together, sorry, folks. No happy ending here. The movie ends with Anne and her son 'Celso' seen walking around the church where the kid's father died. The entire story was narrated by Anne and Jericho's child.
DAY 2
ISKUL BUKOL, THE REUNION (20 YEARS AFTER)
Three words: WASTE OF MONEY. Kulang na lang si Pia Guanio, at Eat Bulaga the noontime show na ang kalalabasan. The Enteng series was way more entertaining that this attempt to bring back the glory days of TVJ. The Iskul Bukol regulars Tonette Macho, Richie d' Horsie and Bibeth Oropesa appeared for only about 20 minutes throughout the entire film. Where's the reunion there?
The movie mainly focused on the adventures of Vic Ungasis, now an archeologist. Parang Enteng Kabisote rin, but set in an Indiana Jones type of feel. I immediately texted Tatet and Cuz after the movie, telling them how lousy the film is. They exchanged their Iskul Bukol tickets for Tanging Ina. I saved them!!!
I won't waste my blog space talking about Iskul Bukol. Vic, stick to Enteng if you know what's good for you.
SHAKE, RATTLE AND ROLL X
If it weren't for the third episode (Nieves, the Engkanto Slayer -- Pinoy spin-off ng Buffy the Vampire Slayer), I would surely have nightmares since this was our last movie for the day. The second episode entitled "Class Picture" was extremely effective in scaring the living daylights out of me! Well, semi. Since I was so chicken shit about the whole "scary" thing, I was tucked under Bespwen's arms for the duration of Episode 2. I could just hear the whole thing and I peeped thru some scenes. Buti na lang the third episode starring Marian Rivera was a mix of comedy and fantasy. So okay na ako.
The first episode, Emergency, starred Wendell Ramos and Mylene Dizon as aswangs, Roxanne Guinoo as a doctor and JC de Vera as his nurse-love interest. Also in this episode were Denise Laurel (who also played a nurse), Janus del Prado (who is this episode's redeeming factor) as JC's best bud and Jon Lapus, a paranoid patient in the hospital.
The story revolves around Mylene and Wendell's quest for revenge after their child was pronounced dead at the emergency room of the hospital. The prosthethics were pathetic. It looked like the film was made during the 90s when costumes and make-up was still mediocre. It's unfortunate. I cringe thinking about it, honestly.
The second episode bags the gold in scaring everyone out of their seats. This episode starred Kim Chiu and Gerald Anderson, plus Nina Jose, Prince from Starstruck, IC Mendoza and some other Starstruck and Star Circle people. The mumu, a nun, was played by the ever-so-wagi Jean Garcia.
"Class Picture" was about a bunch a friends, a barkada, who stays overnight in the St. Scholastica's College Manila-looking school. Some of their girl friends start missing, starting with Nina Jose, who opens the film running away from someone or something. She then gets whip wounds on her body, and eventually dies.
Another girl in their barkada dies after looking at this class picture (which keeps popping up almost anywhere) and staring at Jean Garcia, an old nun-teacher in the school. Apparently, in Jean's class during the 1800's, three of her students have gone missing, and the school principal tells her that she can only come back and teach once again, after she "completes" her class. Everytime Jean takes away the life of one of the new girls, their faces appear on the old class picture.
The last target was Kim Chiu. However, she has some sort of third eye. So she's the special one who "saves the day". During her final encounter with Jean Garcia, she summons the spirits of Jean's three missing students, asking them for help to save her from the evil nun. This was how Jean Garcia was defeated.
It's scary! I remember my high school days in St. Scho when we would talk about ghost stories of floating nuns and souls in school. It was so close to home that's why it was extra scary for me and Bespwen.
The last episode was okay. Nieves is a palengkerang probinsyanang ghost slayer, much like how Marian Rivera is in real life. So her portrayal of Nieves seemed effortless. It was really MARIAN, the real person, up there on the big screen. Pecto plays the role of Adonis, her "super gwapong" husband. The head engkanto, played by Diana Zubiri fights for Pecto's love vs Nieves.
I can't really say much about this episode. It was, however, okay enough to take my mind off "Class Picture".
Here is my round up of this year's Filmfest adventure with Bespwen. We are still aiming to watch "One Night Only". Crossing my fingers that Bespwen and I still get to do this since I am leaving for Vigan already tomorrow with Cuz.
Anyway, until next year, folks!
ANG TANGING INA NYONG LAHAT
Ai Ai did say in her movie plugs that this should be the first movie people should see. Bespwen and I were obedient enough to do this. True to our yearly holiday tradition, we trooped to the Festival Mall Cinemas at about 11:00am of December 29 and bought tickets to the Filmfest's Top Grossing Film.
Eugene (Best Friend Rowena) upstaged Ai Ai, no doubt. Personally, I think she is the funniest bit in the movie, together with Alwin, Ai Ai's gay son. The story begins with Ai Ai trying very hard to impress her children and make them proud of her. Just like in "Tanging Ina", Ai Ai would go through some odd jobs like being Angel Locsin's stunt double in Lobo (but ending up being the lobo's stunt double instead). She ends up working at the Malacanang as a chambermaid, together with her best friend Rowena. In a simple twist of fate, she becomes the star witness to the killing of "Madam President" played by Gloria Diaz. It was the Vice President who actually plots the killing, and it is only Ai Ai who can prove this. The Vice President then challenges Ai Ai to a snap election. She wins. This was how she became President of the Republic of the Philippines.
The moment between Ai Ai and Gloria Diaz in the kitchen, when the President got hungry and it was Ai Ai who prepared some food for her was very touching. Ai Ai talked about her kids and how she would do anything to given them a good life. Her 'drama' scenes, to me, proved to be more effective than her comedy bits.
The Vice President was sent to jail and he instructs this one Senator to 'ruin' Ai Ai. This was not resolved in the end. Whatever happened to the Vice President was left hanging. There was no resolution to this and him killing Gloria Diaz.
Too bad Marvin was no longer there (physically, hehe). They should have just taken out Serena Dalrymple. She brings no value to the film. I liked the twins. They're first time actors and they are pretty good. I laughed out loud when comedian Flora Gasser took the twins to the police station (the twins ran away from home). She instructed the girls to hold on to her skirt and not let go whatever happens. By the time she reached the police station, her skirt was a goner. The police even had to ask if she was raped! LOL!
Overall, the movie was entertaining, but not spectacular. A good first movie to watch indeed. Now, on to the next...
BALER
This is my favorite movie out of the four we watched. I FORCED Bespwen to include this in our line-up, in exchange for her stooopid SHAKE, RATTLE and Roll X (which I will talk about later). I admit, there were some dragging parts, but I stayed glued to flick from start to finish.
Philip Salvador was so good in this movie. He played the father of Anne Curtis, whose sister got raped and killed by the Spaniards, and whose brother was tortured by the same. This was the reason why he abhored the Spaniards so much. The irony is that Anne falls in love with Jericho, who played half-Pinoy, half Spanish Celso.
Jericho was also very effective in the film. People around me kept saying it's weird that Jericho got casted as a Spanish soldier. HE IS NOT PURE SPANISH, OKAY? So drop it, people. =) He was good in this film. Pwedeng pang-Best Actor. However, I wouldn't be able to compare his performance with proclaimed Festival Best Actor Christopher de Leon since I have absolutely NO PLANS of watching Magkaibigan. Anything with Jinggoy Estrada on it is a waste of my time.
Aurora looked stunning in the film. The place is majestic! And the casting was really good. Hello, Jao Mapa! Hahaha! He played one of the four half-Spanish, half-Pinoy soldiers together with Mark Bautista (who was also impressive in the film). Bernard Palanca, Ryan Eigennman and Baron Geisler played heads of the Spanish troops that staked out in the church and surrendered to the Filipinos 388 (hope I got this right) days after.
Carlo Aquino was here again. He played Anne's brother.
Baler was an evident choice for Best Picture since the other films bordered more on the comedic side. Magkaibigan was their closest rival and I would absolutely die if this won Best Picture!
Bespwen and I ended the day feeling a bit depressed since Jericho died in the film. They did not end up together, sorry, folks. No happy ending here. The movie ends with Anne and her son 'Celso' seen walking around the church where the kid's father died. The entire story was narrated by Anne and Jericho's child.
DAY 2
ISKUL BUKOL, THE REUNION (20 YEARS AFTER)
Three words: WASTE OF MONEY. Kulang na lang si Pia Guanio, at Eat Bulaga the noontime show na ang kalalabasan. The Enteng series was way more entertaining that this attempt to bring back the glory days of TVJ. The Iskul Bukol regulars Tonette Macho, Richie d' Horsie and Bibeth Oropesa appeared for only about 20 minutes throughout the entire film. Where's the reunion there?
The movie mainly focused on the adventures of Vic Ungasis, now an archeologist. Parang Enteng Kabisote rin, but set in an Indiana Jones type of feel. I immediately texted Tatet and Cuz after the movie, telling them how lousy the film is. They exchanged their Iskul Bukol tickets for Tanging Ina. I saved them!!!
I won't waste my blog space talking about Iskul Bukol. Vic, stick to Enteng if you know what's good for you.
SHAKE, RATTLE AND ROLL X
If it weren't for the third episode (Nieves, the Engkanto Slayer -- Pinoy spin-off ng Buffy the Vampire Slayer), I would surely have nightmares since this was our last movie for the day. The second episode entitled "Class Picture" was extremely effective in scaring the living daylights out of me! Well, semi. Since I was so chicken shit about the whole "scary" thing, I was tucked under Bespwen's arms for the duration of Episode 2. I could just hear the whole thing and I peeped thru some scenes. Buti na lang the third episode starring Marian Rivera was a mix of comedy and fantasy. So okay na ako.
The first episode, Emergency, starred Wendell Ramos and Mylene Dizon as aswangs, Roxanne Guinoo as a doctor and JC de Vera as his nurse-love interest. Also in this episode were Denise Laurel (who also played a nurse), Janus del Prado (who is this episode's redeeming factor) as JC's best bud and Jon Lapus, a paranoid patient in the hospital.
The story revolves around Mylene and Wendell's quest for revenge after their child was pronounced dead at the emergency room of the hospital. The prosthethics were pathetic. It looked like the film was made during the 90s when costumes and make-up was still mediocre. It's unfortunate. I cringe thinking about it, honestly.
The second episode bags the gold in scaring everyone out of their seats. This episode starred Kim Chiu and Gerald Anderson, plus Nina Jose, Prince from Starstruck, IC Mendoza and some other Starstruck and Star Circle people. The mumu, a nun, was played by the ever-so-wagi Jean Garcia.
"Class Picture" was about a bunch a friends, a barkada, who stays overnight in the St. Scholastica's College Manila-looking school. Some of their girl friends start missing, starting with Nina Jose, who opens the film running away from someone or something. She then gets whip wounds on her body, and eventually dies.
Another girl in their barkada dies after looking at this class picture (which keeps popping up almost anywhere) and staring at Jean Garcia, an old nun-teacher in the school. Apparently, in Jean's class during the 1800's, three of her students have gone missing, and the school principal tells her that she can only come back and teach once again, after she "completes" her class. Everytime Jean takes away the life of one of the new girls, their faces appear on the old class picture.
The last target was Kim Chiu. However, she has some sort of third eye. So she's the special one who "saves the day". During her final encounter with Jean Garcia, she summons the spirits of Jean's three missing students, asking them for help to save her from the evil nun. This was how Jean Garcia was defeated.
It's scary! I remember my high school days in St. Scho when we would talk about ghost stories of floating nuns and souls in school. It was so close to home that's why it was extra scary for me and Bespwen.
The last episode was okay. Nieves is a palengkerang probinsyanang ghost slayer, much like how Marian Rivera is in real life. So her portrayal of Nieves seemed effortless. It was really MARIAN, the real person, up there on the big screen. Pecto plays the role of Adonis, her "super gwapong" husband. The head engkanto, played by Diana Zubiri fights for Pecto's love vs Nieves.
I can't really say much about this episode. It was, however, okay enough to take my mind off "Class Picture".
Here is my round up of this year's Filmfest adventure with Bespwen. We are still aiming to watch "One Night Only". Crossing my fingers that Bespwen and I still get to do this since I am leaving for Vigan already tomorrow with Cuz.
Anyway, until next year, folks!
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