Andoy Ranay's "Diary ng Panget" - Shaking Heads and Slovenly Writing

Orphan girl Eya Rodriguez (Nadine Lustre), a self proclaimed “panget” (unsightly), finds herself employed as the personal maid of affluent Cross Sandford (James Reid), the goodlooking but bratty student council president of Willford, the prestigious college where Eya is a scholar. In a place populated by privileged half breeds and well heeled guys who can afford to buy P250,000 friendship rings for their crushes, Eya is an oddball. Popular cliques don’t even hide their aversion towards our pimple-ridden protagonist who seems oblivious to everyone’s antipathy. After all, she only has to deal with her employer’s (Gabby Concepcion) capricious son to earn the monthly P25,000. What’s better, they don’t have to like each other. He loathes her (or does he) as much as she dislikes him – and Cross can’t even “fire” her. 

But life gets easier when popular girl Lory (Yassi Pressman) takes Eya as her new best friend. Hasn’t this anything to do with the fact that Lory’s been harboring feelings for Cross since they were in kindergarten? (He once stood up for her against bullies.)

Plot thickens when popular jock Chad (Andre Paras) starts stalking Eya. What’s happening here? When Cross facetiously declares to everyone on campus that Eya is actually his girl friend, life gets more complicated for our heroine who now has to parry the blows against jealous school mates. Cross, on the other hand, requires her presence more and more. What to do?

Director Andoy Ranay’s film adaptation of this best-selling Filipino romance novel follows this director’s penchant for glossy, upper-middle class macrocosm (“Sosy Problems”, “When the Love is Gone”). Unfortunately, this acumen does nothing but highlight Ranay’s mediocre directorial vision. The first third of the narrative could have benefited with a snappy, tongue-in-cheek cadence. Mostly though, every cinematic artifice fell flat, you couldn't help but place Cross and Eya's catfights as inferior versions of Kathryn Bernardo and Daniel Padilla’s “Got 2 Believe” characters. The comparison is inevitable. But we don't think less of James Reid and Nadine Lustre’s charm quotient.

Reid and Lustre give it their best. By the film's middle part, they breach through the tedium of mediocrity and you actually start enjoying their earnest banter. How can you not fall in love with Reid’s dreamy gaze? If you’re a living-and-breathing female species, you won’t be immune to Reid’s cinematic punch. Why Star Cinema eventually let go of Reid, who is otherworldly gorgeous (and could sing like a prince), is beyond me. Andre Paras, on the other hand, suffers from pallid characterization. He seems too gimpy for a sports jock, you'd understand why girls would look elsewhere despite Paras' good looks and tall frame. Yassi Pressman meanwhile underwhelms. AJ Muhlach steals some misplaced scenes but his presence is nothing but random and disposable.

The story, feebly told in seeming episodes, is riddled with loopholes. In fact, the movie can't seem to make up its mind if the school's name(Willford) has a single or double "L". The individual issues likewise feel unsympathetic and fractured at best. What father would refer to his son as “half halimaw” to a stranger, even in jest? If Cross is really an irresponsible guy as we are made to believe, how did he get elected as the school’s student council president? Heck, he even moonlights as a model for Bench. In the scheme of things, jocks can be mean, but student council presidents are at least approachable and responsible. Cross is stand offish. Moreover, how can an employed maid go “fencing” with her employer? Why were her prickly acne conglobata appearing and disappearing from one scene to the next? Acnes the size of Neptune don't disappear overnight, not even with the world's most powerful concealers.

Andre Paras is Chad. Yassi Pressman is Lory (aka Lorraine Keet).

My main problem is the slovenly writing and the divergent narrative trajectory that eventually had me tsk-tsk’ing and shaking my head. Check out the masquerade ball. Wasn't that the most opprobriously choreographed musical number ever to have graced the silver screen in a long time? If you needed groovesome traction to underline youthful vibe or suspenseful foreboding, you’re better off finding that in TV5 talent Shalala’s ridiculously titled launching movie “Echoserang Frog” (also showing this week) than here. Why is Andoy Ranay mimicking Mac Alejandre’s humdrum film making skill? Hasn't years of theatre practice taught him narrative urgency or plotful congruity? The question is of course rhetorical because the answer is crystal.

When Eya finally shares her masquerade dance with the be-masked Cross, how can she not recognize him? It was baffling. She lived and worked closely (intimately, even) with Cross that she’d be half a nitwit not to recognize his physical form, smell, much less his voice! Yeah, yeah, he had colds - and you can tell that to the marines! Or was she really daft? And how can one desecrate Cinderella’s “lost shoe” chapter with a rather shoddy and absolutely egregious version? Did Eya suddenly turn into a magical teen queen that a dozen would show up to declare their love for her? Who owned that darn tattered, smelly-looking shoe? On their way to telling a story, someone got caught between vertigo and a daydream. It was embarrassing; it made me blush. 

James Reid

Nadine Lustre 

AJ Muhlach plays Ian, Cross' best friend and Eya's misplaced, err... fairy godfather.

Armando Reyes' Dorm Boys - When Youthful Charm Doesn't Suffice

Dorm life can be helter-skelter fun when you’re hanging out with a group of cool guys who shrug off their problems like disposable tissue. Tonton (Arron Villaflor) longs for the company and affection of his father (Bobby Yan) who has a family of his own. While his dad supports him financially, he is mostly dismissive of Tonton's preludes for camaraderie. After all, Tonton is the son out of wedlock, and he’s been kept a secret for the last 20 years of his life.

On his 5^th year in Engineering, Hector (Carlo Lazerna) is still a sophomore. Despite his hard work, he keeps failing his classes. All he desires is to shift to Fine Arts – his passion. Unfortunately, his father – a failed artist who now moonlights painting houses - wouldn't allow him to suffer similar fate. To make matters worse, Hector’s gay professor is pressuring him for a concupiscent rendezvous. This would solve his academic dilemma, but would Hector give in?

Iggi (Arvic Rivero) only dreams of making it to Canada alongside his ladylove Carla (Mayton), a housemate who barely looks his way. Carla, you see, is infatuated with Tonton. To make matters worse, Iggi isn't interested in studying so he mostly confronts his scholastic activities like child’s play. Ruben (Ryan Kevin) harbors a crush on Liezel who maybe mutually attracted to him. But the grapevine suggests that she maybe peddling flesh to dirty old men, or isn’t she? Richard (Renz Michael aka Michael Sy), privileged but neglected, clandestinely plays around with sexy girl friend Cynthia (Pamela Sue) who happens to be his teacher in college. But one day, he discovers that his girl friend is sleeping around with another guy (Kenneth Salva). These predicaments give our protagonists a full plate of predicaments to hurdle. 

Director Armando Reyes gathers a coterie of fresh faced and enthusiastic noobs oozing with good looks - and they may have a future in mainstream cinema. Arron Villaflor, star of Jason Laxamana’s “Astro Mayabang”, befittingly headlines this smorgasbord of stories. The only veteran among the young stars, Villaflor adequately anchors and pieces their disparate stories together. It takes a while for the vignettes to rankle into narrative life, what with five separate stories pushed into the fore. But the cast’s youthful verve and earnestness soon drive a sense of energy. Villaflor’s narrative thread is unitary, but it’s hobbled by a ridiculously brisk resolution that’s too implausible and too manipulated to believe. The other more developed story was that of Hector’s who’s forced into taking a course beyond his intellectual capability or disposition. Unfortunately, Lazerna occasionally resorts to predictable schmaltz. But this, in time, is remediable.

Arvic Rivero possesses a disarming charm that allows him to navigate his woeful story (he is eternally cash strapped, unable to pay off his rent on time so he resorts to selling library books) with a dash of glib and humor. Ryan Kelvin is easy on the eyes. His flirting scenes with his school crush (Nadine Luster) amuse us. But his story is also the flick's most underwritten. There’s hardly a back story to support or expand his character. Despite the youthful energy of the main cast, Armando Reyes’ cinematic exposition is cursory. This dearth of emotional depth disallows the audience to invest attention or sympathy on most of the characters.

Arron Villaflor’s part came close, but not quite. What I didn’t appreciate was how he conspired to “stalk” his father during Christmas – then eventually arranged to “out” his father to his family. Why would anyone consciously plot to expose his father’s past indiscretions to his present family? It was a mean, albeit irresponsible and thoughtless thing to do. Yet Bobby Yan suddenly changed tune and accepted him after his backhanded maneuver. Arron was clearly unwanted; he was rudely treated like one was swatting flies every time he came to see his father. Personally, I would never impose my presence on someone who doesn't want me.

Youth movies rarely come by these days, thus "Dorm Boys", despite its misgivings, is a welcome cinematic offering. We just wish it invested a little more on a character development and, more importantly, employing an intuitive director.   

Armando Reyes’ “Dorm Boys” is inspired by the short stories of Cesar Buendia’s “Morayta corner CM Recto” (“Dormitoryo 2" & "University Belt”). We find stories of our youth always compelling because we can relate to the roller coaster ride of emotions associated with puberty and growing up. The flick could have soared with a more insightful and focused story. Instead, it relied heavily on the young actors’ unadulterated moxie. Reyes recruited members from the all-boy dance group “Freshmyx” and the K-pop wannabe “XLR8”. Glimpses of their youthful charm get translated on screen. Fact is, charm doesn't a good movie make. The rest of the predictable story ultimately suffers from prosaic film making. Good thing we didn't expect a masterpiece.           

Arron Villaflor shares his thespic gravitas.

Renz Michael and Ryan Kevin

Renz Michael

Beautiful Pamela Sue plays teacher Cynthia and Richard's secret lover. 

Ryan Kevin, a member of the dance group "Freshmyx", he could be your next Teen Dream if given the right break (above and below).  He plays Ruben in "Dorm Boys". 

Ryan Kevin

Carlo Lacerna plays Hector, one of the film's most complex characters.

Lester Miramon may not have speaking parts but it's hard not to notice him (above and below).

Kenneth Paul Salva cameos as the teacher's latest boytoy.

Freshmyx

Note:

Please read our featured post on Cinema Bravo and why Web Criticism sometimes makes us nginig:
- http://makemeblush2.blogspot.com/2016/10/cinema-bravo-film-criticisms-execrable.html