Diane Ventura's "Mulat (Awaken)" - Eyes Wide Open

Despite her mother’s appeal, Samantha Manuel (Loren Burgos) will not be stopped from marching down the aisle with reluctant fiance Vincent (Ryan Eigenmann) who’s given an ultimatum to propose or risk losing her. When Vincent finally acquiesces, the struggling artist couldn’t contain her happiness. On their way to a prenuptial appointment, Sam is awakened by a disturbing dream that seemed so real. She realizes that hot-tempered Vincent is unfit as a husband, so she walks away. 

In the succeeding days after her breakup, jaded Sam meets charismatic and sensitive Jake Inigo (Jake Cuenca). Before long, the adorable couple start spending more time together. Whenever Jake asks about her past relationship, they end up arguing. But all is not well with Sam who develops recurring nightmares with visual and auditory hallucinations. Jake decides to take Sam to see a psychiatrist to address her concerns.

The story is told in two constantly shifting timelines: one that involves Vincent, the other Jake. Newcomer Burgos confidently plays the befuddled protagonist. But Cuenca runs away with his superior performance. He evokes empathy though almost nothing is revealed about his past.  

In mid-chapter, the script tends to dwell on rebarbative arguments that intermittently annoy. “What do you want from me?” asked Jake. A second later, you hear Sam ask the same. Most of these arguments are too petty to be life-changing for the characters. But just when you dismiss the whole caterwauling, a final twist will shake your consciousness.

One realizes that the mind has potentials that defy confinement or limitations. Reason, author Christopher John Murray argues, becomes the weaker concept when imagination takes over. Imagination is able to move beyond the limits of the natural, i.e. physical world. Murray adds, "The mind can make itself sensible of the sublimity of the sphere of its own being, even above nature."  This could explain how Sam tries to rectify a discordant situation in her life that somehow reaches over to Jake. It’s all inexplicably bizarre but if you open your mind, you can’t resist the possibilities. As psychological dramas go, Ventura’s “Mulat (Awaken)” is a gem that shouldn’t be missed.  

I want churros, implored Loren to annoyed Ryan.

Every Breath You Take - Into Disparate Paths

After a visit with her obstetrician, Majoy (Angelica Panganiban) realizes that she needs to fast track her romantic proclivities. Her only viable ovary is nearing expiration and needs to fulfill its physiologic raison d’etre. How urgent? “As in now na!” asserts the doctor. That is, if she wanted a child of her own. But sweet and gullible Majoy is hopelessly single. She, in fact, is a virgin who believes that a man out there is meant for her, and he will come with a few serendipitous signs – there would be roses; and rain; there would be bells ringing and angels singing. But Majoy’s only ardent suitor is the exceedingly enthusiastic Ji Soon (Ryan Bang). Unfortunately, Ji Soon doesn’t come with signs. Moreover, the Korean lothario doesn’t captivate her.

One day, she meets Leo (Piolo Pascual). And like a twist of fate, the signs come dashing like a clamorous parade. Leo, a cavalier realtor, is Majoy’s ultimate contradiction. He abhors rules, fawns over no ladies, and scoffs at emotional devoir. He parties hard, but works even harder. But little does Majoy know that her Casanova is a scarred soul who vowed never to be manipulated by the Machiavellian wiles of deceitful women – the way his father (Lito Legaspi) was deserted by his mother who left the family for another man. This doesn’t keep Leo from casual hook ups with frisky girls who couldn’t resist his boyish, devilish charm.

When Majoy sets her sights on Leo, she knew he was the one – and it isn’t beyond her to pursue him. Wouldn’t you if you believed he was “the one”? Wouldn’t you if, more importantly, he looked like Piolo Pascual? Duh! Let’s kick the self preservation bucket out of the window and lasso this abs-riddled gentleman – pronto! Majoy follows him to his gym, befriends his secretary, leaves him pastillas, tracks him to his favorite restaurants; heck, she even answers his secretary’s phone! Unfortunately, getting his attention isn’t as easy as dogging him around. Majoy’s romantic reconnaissance is hampered by several road blocks: Leo is at the brink of a promotion and his rival Mario (Ryan Eigenmann) is pulling all the stops to outdo our protagonist; Leo is being pursued by the relatives of a love-crazy fling Dianne (Wendy Valdez) who wants him standing before the altar beside her – by hook or by crook! Then there’s the salient detail of a familial history of heartbreak. What’s a girl to do?

Angelica Panganiban stars in her first romantic lead, a reliable indicator that a mainstream actor has “arrived”. After all, what is a “bida” who doesn’t fall in and out of love right before the eyes of a thrilled audience? Panganiban’s Majoy is deftly and richly limned into a full character: naïve but determined; shy but generous. Though these adjectives dispute each other, thanks to Panganiban’s nuanced interpretation, she makes Majoy fly with utter sincerity and pizzazz. It is hard not to empathize with her – even when (at times) the writing gets too manic.

Angelica enjoys several showcases like when she asks Leo, “Ano ba ang ibig sabihin ng gullible?”- or the scene at the police station when she tries to relay the events at the park with the masked gunman.  

Piolo Pascual effectively pulls out his charm offensive. He reminds us how he once won us as Vince in Joyce Bernal’s “Don’t Give Up On Us” (opposite the equally adorable Judy Anne Santos). He is made of masculine beauty that others can only dream of, regardless of his sexual preference. The sad thing is, Leo Dimalanta isn’t as intricately threshed out a character as Majoy’s. In fact, if he shunned women from the get-go, why does he date so many? He went out with loopy Dianne (Wendy Valdez) several times, yet he kept forgetting her name. Surely, you would remember that particularly clingy, obsessive girl, wouldn’t you? Or was he immune to her John Hinckley tendencies? (She threatened to jump off the roof, etc.)  

Ryan Bang plays Majoy’s passionate Korean suitor Ji Soon who wouldn’t give up his love for the willful Majoy who had set her sight on Leo; a proverbial “Mahal Kita, Mahal Mo Siya, Mahal Nya ay Iba” scenario (except that Leo more befittingly loved himself). Bang gets a more than decent screen time, thus he was able to showcase an unexpected knack for comedy. What’s with the Korean “Krung Krung  Syndrome” that has audiences fall for the likes of Sandara Park and, this time, Ryan Bang? Ryan successfully translates his small screen humor with dry wit, a precise comic timing and tongue in cheek delivery that had me laughing in stitches even as I write this. Like when he complained about Smokey Manaloto’s car (“Ang bagal ng kotse mo eh.”) – and then again when he calls the police for help (“Hello, pulis? Punta kayo kay Majoy. May papatay kay Leo!”) The lines don’t even tickle the funny bone when you think about it. It’s Ryan’s delivery that’s spot on. Maybe he got his comic cadence from his turns in “It’s Showtime” and “Banana Split”. Surely, he wasn’t this funny in “PBB Teen Edition”.  

While the first third of the movie is a compelling build up of characters (Majoy especially), the second third sluggishly meanders into contrived theatricals. At its last third, the movie shifts gears and turns into a protracted gag show. It’s easy to see they suddenly wanted a Wenn Deramas-finish. The situations arch over different players: jealous rival Mario (Ryan Eigenmann) chases after the wrong guy (Ketchup Eusebio); Dianne’s father (Manaloto) and her brothers (Carlos Agassi and Joross Gamboa) go berserk and hound Leo to get him to marry their hysterical sister Dianne at gunpoint; Majoy discerns her follies and gets her little heart broken. The uneasy divergent pathways lead into a muddled narrative whole that doesn’t quite sweep us off our feet as a romantic drama nor take us rolling down the floor with laughter. It’s a middling vehicle that has laid the ground work for a particular genre - romance - but inconveniently ended with a different one – comedy!

While this isn’t as bad as the last 6 Wenn Deramas films, Director Mae Czarina Cruz's vehicle isn’t all that good either. It hangs in mid-air acceptability and doesn’t quite land on its feet to provide solid entertainment.

Ryan Bang: Unexpectedly hilarious!

Angelica Panganiban and Piolo Pascual as Majoy and Leo

Angelica Panganiban: Easily shifts from drama to comedy!

Piolo Pascual as Leo

Piolo Pascual

Angelica Panganiban

Wendy Valdez

Ryan Bang and the Krung Krung Syndrome

In The Name of Love - Aga and Angel Scorch The Screen

Life has been a series of rotten apple harvests for Emman (Aga Muhlach). Middle age, for the former hosto (he used to dance with a group in Tokyo), isn't a flattering reality. Emman recently completed a shortened 7-year prison term for trafficking Yakuza money. With a pot belly and a dead end job as stevedore in a wet market, Emman has yielded to failure. His shoulders sag and flaunt his defeat. He is in dire need of dough to start a dance studio. More importantly, his son is migrating to Canada. One day, he tries out a gig as D.I. (dancing instructor) for a political clan. He finds Cedes (Angel Locsin), the gorgeous girl friend of Dylan Evelino (Jake Cuenca) who's being groomed by his influential political family to run for Vice Mayor. Despite Emman's enticing glances and terpsichorean acumen, Cedes seems aloof and ill at ease. Emman's services get rejected. Dylan intercedes - and rehires Emman who earlier saved Dylan from an attempted assassination. Thus starts Emman, Cedes and Dylans three-part flirtation with a contrived romance.

Though it initially seemed like Emman and Cedes were complete strangers, flashbacks would soon tell the bittersweet tale of romance in an era of foreign employments and long distance relationships. Emman and Cedes have indeed played out a sprawling romantic history.

The succeeding narrative is too convoluted to be discussed and relayed here without giving away a hundred and one spoilers so we'll dive in straight to our observations.

There is a punctilious attention to detail in piecing together a non-linear narrative, a tack that renders Olivia Lamasan's "In The Name of Love" ample cinematic meat to chew on. This isn't the proverbial spoon feeding we've grown accustomed from Tagalog flicks. Stringing together Emman and Cedes' story could have been simpler told, but in the able hands of Lamasan, their harrowing journey to finding each other becomes pertinent and contemporary without falling into the realm of a travelogue with drama as a sidebar.

But the real jewel in the film are the intuitive actors that populate this otherwise teleserye-styled ouvre. Aga Muhlach, as the suffering Emman, delivers a vanity-deficient performance replete with emotional baggage and character ascendancy rarely displayed in mainstream cinema. Muhlach is truly one of the most accomplished actors of this generation. My favorite scene would be his protracted scene with Angel Locsin when he finally decides to unravel his frustration; why he was eventually abandoned in prison when he gave away his life, his freedom and his child "in the name of love". That was quite arresting, a feat that would have easily watered down the gravitas had it been handled by a lesser actor. Nuf said.

Now. Angel Locsin. During the whole run of the film, we were frequently flirting with the idea of "what ifs". What could have Bea Alonzo done for this role? Bea, as if I need to remind everyone, is this generation's best actress. What about Angelica Panganiban, who excels in every role she's given - drama or comedy? The thought badgers. After all, Angel Locsin has only shown her thespic mettle since her big move to ABS CBN - "Love Me Again" (with Piolo Pascual), to be exact. Now that isn't a long time to build up a resume on as a respectable, albeit serious actress in contention.

But as heaven is my witness, Angel Locsin owned up Cedes like her alter ego. Angel's inherent sexuality is key to making Cedes' character work; a character that begs to be played onscreen since Angel's "Darna" days. She's the enchantress who doesn't alienate; the girl who has selflessly given up her love for something nobler than mere companionship. Sniff. Sniff. Locsin's sensitivity is painfully palpable; she has comfortably secured a seat among this year's best performances.

Aga Muhlach

SPOILERS AND QUIBBLES!

We do have a few quibbles about the film. And it would be burdensome to discuss this with people who haven't exactly seen the movie. But here it goes.

The political clan of the Evelinos are so powerful they even have direct connections with Japan's fearsome Yakuza. This enabled them to save Cedes from the clutches of white slavery (a prerogative she chose in order to help secure Emman's earlier release: he was pardoned on the 7th of his 13 year sentence). That is quite a far fetched idea, to be perfectly honest. Corollary to that, why did the Evelinos ask Cedes to forcibly murder a political rival? They have enough men in their very capable, gun-toting squad to do the dirty deed. Why soil the hand of a girl who would become Dylan's girl friend and possibly the Vice Mayor's wife? Why was there a need to videotape the "murder"? And why the exigence to further blackmail Cedes when she had nothing to offer them but her freedom and her own self?

During the governor's ball, when Cedes was supposed to get shot while the blame would easily be attributed to the clan's hundreds of enemies, why did the patriarch (a surprisingly scurrilousLeo Rialp) implicate himself by pulling out a gun to shoot Cedes himself - in public? They have already paid someone else to kill Cedes (she's not good enough for the clan's poster boy). This doesn't add up.

I am not too sure either why a dramatic undertaking would suddenly turn into an 80's Brocka-style narrative detour (corrupt politicians and concluding shoot outs). Besides, "Huling Sayaw" (the proposed initial title) could have been a catchier, more appropriate title than "In The Name of Love". They obviously cannot use its Tagalog translation either ("Sa Ngalan Ng Pag Ibig") because that has been used in a Maryo J. de Los Reyes film in 1995, that starred Christopher de Leon, Lorna Tolentino and Alma Concepcion. That's all water under the bridge (titling issue) since we watched the film on a dead hour - and on a week day - and we saw a good crowd inside the movie house.

Finally, something has to be said about the movie's conclusion. Despite the brilliance of the whole narrative structure - and its engrossing turn of events - the cinematic ending turned out to be anti-climactic! It felt like the story did not deserve a rather trite and unappealing ending. There has to be a better conclusion than just showing a vehicle (with Emman and Cedes inside) leaving town. They are, as expected, driving into the sunset, albeit in a lackluster finish that left a void among the audience. This felt like getting a 98% grade in each of the first three quarters, then finishing the last part with an unsatisfactory 75%.

On the whole, there is much to enjoy in Lamasan's latest. In a year where most of the local releases are peppered with amateur works and bottom-scraping pink films, "In The Name of Love" is a cinematic jewel.

Jake Cuenca: Finally proves his mettle as someone who can be taken seriously as an actor.