The bride and the lover

Cast:   Lovi Poe, Jennilyn Mercado, Paulo Avelino  Director: Joel Lamangan  Genre:  Sex, Drama-Comedy  Location: Philippines

Technical Assessment:  3

Moral Assessment: 2

CINEMA Rating:  V18

MTRCB Rating:  R-13

Umatras sa bonggang kasalan ang ‘bride’ na si Vivian (Lovi Poe) kasabay ng pagbubunyag niya ng iskandalo na kinasangkutan ng “groom” na si Philip (Paulo Avelino) at matalik na kaibigan na si Sheila (Jennilyn). Sa gitna ng sakit at kahihiyan ay hiwa-hiwalay na magbabyahe ang tatlo upang pansamantalang takasan ang sitwasyon at iiwanan sa kanilang pamilya at mga kaibigan ang pagharap sa publiko. Sa kanilang pagbabalik ay sisikapin nila na magpatuloy sa kani-kaniyang buhay ang tatlo. Maantala naman ng konti ang pagpapatuloy ni Philip dahil kinailangan niyang magpagaling ng  kanyang napilay na paa. Magpiprisinta si Sheila na alagaan si Philip at upang mabigyan na rin ng pagkakataon ang sarili na maipadama ng lubusan ang damdamin niya rito. Sa panahon ng pagpapagaling ni Philip sa piling ni Sheila ay tuluyan silang magsasama. Samantala nagulat ang lahat sa pagbabalik ni Vivian. Lubusang magbabago ang pagkatao nito—sa pananaw at pisikal na anyo. Mula sa simple ay magiging moderno at liberal sa pananalita at kilos na malayung-malayo sa dating Vivian na tumalikod sa kasal. Buong tapang niyang pananagutan ang mataas na posisyon sa kumpanya na pag-aari ng pamilya kasunod ng pagreretiro ng kanyang ama. Kasabay ng mga pangyayaring ito sa buhay ni Vivian ay kusa siyang makikipagbati kay Sheila sa pamamagitan ng pagtataguyod bilang sponsor sa magazine kung saan editor-in-chief ang matalik na kaibigan. Labis itong ikakatuwa ni Sheila sa kabila ng kundisyon ni Vivian na panatilihing lihim kay Philip ang pagbabati nila.  Sa parehong kundisyon na maglihim naman kay Sheila ay nakipagkasundo din si Vivian kay Philip. Sa kanilang pagbabati ay magpapahayag ng mga totoong damdamin at panghihinayang sa naputol na relasyon. Kasabay nito ay ang pagbibigay laya sa nararamdaman na pananabik sa isa’t isa. Hanggang saan naman kaya hahantong ang mga plano ni Vivian at ang pakikipagsabwatan nina Sheila at Philip na maglihiman tungkol sa nagbalik na ugnayan nila kay Vivian.

            Gasgas na kwento ng pag-aagawan sa lalaki ang pelikulang “The Bride and the Lover” na nilagyan ng magkahalong drama at pagpapatawa. Mahusay ang pag-arte ng mga nagsiganap lalo na si Poe at mga suportang artista.  Komportable sa mga eksena ng pagtatalik sina Poe, Mercado at Avelino. Gayundin ang nakakalibang na palitan ng mga linya lalo na ang voice over nina Poe at Mercado habang nagpapambuno bago matapos ang pelikula. Mainam ang ginawang motibasyon ng director sa pagpapalabas ng emosyon na hinihingi ng eksena. Naging maingat ang kuha ng camera sa madalas na mga maseselang eksena ng pagtatalik. Subalit kapuna-puna na may kahabaan ang mga eksenang sex na di naman kailangan. Maganda ang disenyo ng produksyon. Nakalilibang ang pagpapakita ng detalye ng mga okasyon tulad ng kasalan, mga tampok na parte at pag-aayos ng marangyang bahay, at mga tagpo sa mundo ng korporasyon. Tama lamang ang ginamit na ilaw at paglalapat ng tunog at musika. Nakatulong ito sa mga transisyon ng seryosong drama at patawa. Sa kabuuan ay kinakitaan ng pagsisikap ang produksyon na ayusin ang ibang teknikal na aspeto ng pelikula.

            Nakababahala ang mga isyung moral na tinalakay sa pelikula.  Ang seremonya ng kasal na sagrado at seryosong yugto sa buhay ng isang tao ay hindi iginalang. Kaydali itong talikuran, hilingin, iskandaluhin, muling talikuran na parang walang leksyon na natutunan. Pinakita sa pelikula na kung paano paglaruan ang mga damdamin. Parang mga walang isip na nakikipag-sex dahil gustong bigyang laya ang nararamdaman may pag-ibig man o wala. Kaswal lang ang paggamit ng droga o 'ecstasy' kahit alam nila ang dulot nito sa kanila na pwede silang mawala sa sarili. Sa kabila ng iskandalo ay parang balewala lang na magsama nang walang kasal ang mga kasangkot at di man lang kinumusta ang taong nasaktan nila.  Pawang mga propesyonal ang mga tauhan sa kuwento pero di ginamit ang mga isip para maging responsable sa mga kilos nila at itaas ang dignidad.  Kung yayakapin ng isang tao ang pagbabago, mainam na tungo ito sa pagtutuwid at lalong pagbibigay dignidad sa sarili, pero sa kaso ng tauhan ni Vivian sa pelikula ay naging matatag nga siya sa pagharap sa buhay pero naging mapaghiganti, mapaglaro at higit sa lahat naging parang bayarang babae na nakikipag-sex sa sinumang matipuhan niya.  Naging napakahirap ang magpatawad sa mga nagkamali at halos mabalewala na ang paghingi ng tawad. Sa bandang huli ay mananaig ng tatag ng pagkakaibigan subalit saglit lamang ito at tila kailangan lang tapusin ang istorya sa ganitong tagpo. Ang mas mahabang bahagi ng pelikula ay nagpapakita ng kaswal na pakikipagtalik, droga, paglalaro ng damdamin, paglilihim, paghihiganti gamit ang negosyo, at may agaw-eksena pang pagnanasa ng bakla sa kapwa lalaki. May maliit na eksena ng pagbibigay payo ng magulang pero di naman sinusunod ng mga anak.  Kung may aral man na inihahain ang pelikula ito ay hinog na isipan lamang ang makakakita. 

Vamps

LEAD CAST:  Alicia Silverstone, Krysten Ritter, Sigourney Weaver, Dan Stevens, Wallace   SCREENWRITER:  Amy Heckerling  PRODUCER:  Lauren Versel, Molly Hassell, Stuart Cornfeld, Maria Teresa Arida, Adam Brightman  EDITOR:  Debra Chiate  MUSICAL DIRECTOR:  David Kitay  GENRE:  Comedy, Romance, Horror RUNNING TIME:  92 minutes  CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Tim Suhrstedt  DISTRIBUTOR:   Anchor Bay Films  LOCATION:  US

Technical assessment:  3

Moral assessment:  2.5

CINEMA rating:  V14

MTRCB rating:  R 13

The success of Twilight and other vampire films reveals our fascination with the undead and there is no sign of it stopping. The latest is simply called Vamps starring Alicia Silverstone (Goody) and Krysten Ritter (Stacy) as modern-day vampires in New York City. Goody and Stacy prefer to call themselves ELFs (Eternal Life Form) instead of vampires and have sworn off human blood with their ELF help group “Sanguines Anonymous” who survive on the blood of animals, particularly rodents.  The BFFs “are addicted to the night life, clubbing, and always looking for the next thrill, all the while keeping their big secret. But even with lifetimes of dating experience behind them, the duo realizes they still have a lot to learn about love.” Stacy falls in love with Joey (Dan Stevens), the son of a vampire hunter, Dr. Van Helsing (Wallace Shawn), and Goody runs into the man of her dreams, Danny (Richard Lewis), from the 60s. “With their destinies at stake, the girls are faced with a difficult choice; give up their eternal youth for a chance at love, or continue to live their uncomplicated fabulously single lives forever.”

Vamps reunites Alicia Silverstone with director Amy Heckerling both of Clueless fame and boasts of a finely assembled cast. You realize from the outset that this is not your usual vampire story of horror and drama. Neither is it just a chick flick or rom com movie. While most vampire movies main focus is on humans, Heckerling succeeds in presenting vampires as creatures who have supernatural powers and yet need to face the challenges of the 21^st century. There are funny and charming moments, and the film explores current issues like aging, keeping up with the times and trends, loneliness and dependence on technology. Through Goody, she chides us for using Facebook, Twitter, SMS and texting instead of talking to each other, but says it in a tone that shows the film is out of touch as the 19^th century vampire.

Though vampires remain eternally young, Vamps succumbs to the cult of youth and beauty. Goody hides her real age to Stacy to keep their friendship, and she also wants to appear young and attractive forever, revealing woman’s fear of old age. Heckerling tries to make it Vamps in the City (cute and charming) but doesn’t quite succeed, despite the lead actors and supporting cast. It sometimes appears as a TV sitcom with cheap sets and uninspired lines. In trying to appeal both to teenagers and Cher’s contemporaries in Clueless, Heckerling’s recent opus ends up an adequate but forgettable movie.

The violence here is mostly comical and there are some sexual references and strong language, plus some intimate scenes. Hence CINEMA gives this movie an V14 rating.

Spiders

Lead cast: William Hope, Christa Campbell, Patrick Muldoon, Sydney Sweeney; Direction: Tibor Takas; Screenplay: Joseph Farragia, Tibor Takas, Boaz Davidson; Running Time: 89 minutes; Location: New York; Genre: Sci-fi/thriller

Technical Assessment:  2.5

Moral Assessment:   3

CINEMA Rating:  V14

MTRCB Rating:  PG13

In a usual busy day in New York, a piece of Russian spacecraft crashes into the subway tunnel putting into halt the rush hour operations.  Transit supervisor Jason Cole (Patrick Muldoon) and his team work to put the train back on track until one of the transit employees mysteriously dies supposedly of electrocution. As Cole investigates further, the government teams up with a Russian scientist to recover the queen spider egg that came with the spacecraft. Apparently, the Russians developed a military weapon by cultivating mutant indestructible spiders that grow up to 60 feet long. Overnight, the spiders mutate and become giant creatures destroying the city while the US military unleash a deadly virus story to cover up their intentions of gaining control of the queen spider. While all of these are happening Jason and his estranged wife Rachel (Christa Campbell) fight their way to rescue their 12 year old daughter and rekindle their love for each other.                                                                                         

There are many things wrong with this movie. First, it starts off interestingly until the real plot unfolds and everything falls apart because audiences discover the very thin plot jammed between very poor performances. The storyline is too cliché and predictable. The protagonists are irritating with Muldoon's cardboard acting and Campbell's constant wailing. While the improved and modern effects give the movie a sense of realism and the surprisingly well-crafted scoring make viewers believe the film is engrossing, it still falls short of being entertaining after the first 10 minutes. Sadly, it tries to add drama and empathy to the father-daughter and husband-wife relationships but these are delivered too poorly to be appreciated.

The biggest saving grace of Spiders is its efforts to show how the worst of situations bring out the best in people. Jason and Rachel's love for their daughter and of each other taught them to set aside their professional and personal conflicts and work together to survive. There is a very subtle hint of keeping the marriage intact and valuing the family above everything. If only the movie was better presented then these messages could have had the desired impact. However, several scenes that are too violent, gory and unsuitable for very young children will be better remembered than the underlying message. Hence, CINEMA thinks Spiders is for older bored young adults.

Oblivion

Cast: Tom Cruise, Olga Kurylenko, Andrea Riseborough, Morgan Freeman, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Melissa Leo  Director: Joseph Kosinski  Screenplay: Joseph Kosinski and Karl Gajdusek and Michael Arndt  Cinematography: Claudio Miranda  Music:  Anthony Gonzalez, M.8.3  U. S. Distributor:  Universal Pictures  Genre: Science fiction/action  Running Length:  126 minutes

Technical assessment:  3.5

Moral assessment:  2.5

CINEMA rating:   V  18

MTRCB rating:  PG 13

It is Year 2077.   Sixty years ago, evil invaders called “Scavengers” destroyed the moon and attempted to capture Earth.   Mankind fought off the aggressors but Earth was left uninhabitable due to the moon’s fragmentation and worldwide combat.  Now humans are still being evacuated to Titan, one of Saturn’s moons, and they await their turn to depart while on board a spacecraft that hovers just above Earth’s atmosphere.   Trained technician Jack (Tom Cruise) and a navigator, Victoria (Andrea Riseborough) have been dispatched to supervise the operations of the machines that continue to harvest what is left of Earth’s natural resources, particularly the water from its oceans, for use of the people living on Titan.  Jack and Victoria are professionally and romantically linked, but Jack is disturbed by the image of a beautiful woman recurring in his dreams.  The couple’s idyllic partnership is given an unexpected twist when the beautiful woman in Jack’s dreams turns up to be a real person, Julia (Olga Kurylenko), whom Jack finds in a hypersleep chamber crash-landing from an unknown spaceship.

Sweeping vistas of outer space, fabulous machines and dwellings that could only exist in one’s fantasies seem to be the strongest attractions of Oblivion.  Through this impeccably created eye candy the viewer’s mind is teased into suspending disbelief to get carried away by the plot.  But, alas, the plot lacks the viscosity to sustain the viewer’s interest, much less to mesmerize him into embracing Oblivion as a probability in the not-so-distant future.   Oblivion’s ambitious story telling, evocative of Cloud Atlas though not as grand, is supported by the strong presence of Morgan Freeman as Beech, the chief of the guerilla freedom fighters.  Freeman, as usual, delivers, and Cruise seems to sincerely believe in his character; that’s just about the nicest thing to be said about the acting.  Other technical aspects are as “okay” as “okay” goes.

Oblivion attempts to delve into the question of identity (the relationship between physical and spiritual identities in particular) but abandons the question to pose some more—much like a toddler who, growing impatient with a toy, distracts himself with other toys.  Pursuing this analogy, Oblivion strikes the viewer as something like building a spaceship with Lego blocks.  Good sci-fi is coherent and logical despite a bold hypothesis; it connects its elements until they all click into place, revealing the creation, albeit a Lego spaceship, as a masterpiece.  Oblivion does not “click.”

The film offers enough to appeal to teenagers but because CINEMA believes movies are not just supposed to be eye candy or dubious entertainment, Oblivion is given a V 18 rating.  Due to the nature of the movie’s theme, mature viewers may still winnow something worth a thought from the loosely glued elements.

It takes a man and a woman

LEAD CAST:  John Lloyd Cruz, Sarah Geronimo, Isabelle Daza, Matet de Leon, Joross Gamboa, Guji Lorenzana, Rowell Santiago, Gio Alvarez  DIRECTOR:  Cathy Garcia-Molina  SCREENWRITER:  Carmi Raymundo  PRODUCER:  Charo Santos  GENRE:  Drama, Romance, Comedy RUNNING TIME:  120 minutes  DISTRIBUTOR:   Star Cinema & Viva Films  LOCATION:  Philippines

Technical Assessment: 3.5

Moral Assessment: 3.5

CINEMA rating: V 14

MTRCB rating: G

  

Malaki ang problema ni Miggy Montenegro (John Lloyd Cruz), isang publisher ng kilalang magazine na nanganganib na masakop ng ibang kumpanya kung hindi siya gagawa ng paraan.  Ang tanging solusyon ay hingin ang tulong ni Laida Magtalas (Sarah Geronimo), dati niyang kasintahan na ngayo’y isa nang sophisticated at mahusay na magazine editor sa New York. Maaari ba silang magtrabaho nang magkasama ngayong ang bagong katipan si Miggy na si Belle (Isabelle Diaz) ay makakasama din nila? Magtatagumpay ba silang pagtulungan ang pagsalba sa magazine ng mga Montenegro?

Ibinabalik ng It Takes a Man and a Woman ang tambalang Miggy Montenegro at Laida Magtalas na nagpakilig sa maraming manonood noong 2008 sa pelikulang A Very Special Love at ang kasunod nitong You Changed My Life noong 2009. Parehong box office hits ang naturang dalawang naunang pelikula at mukhang hindi pahuhuli ang final installment.  Pagpapatunay na maganda ang ikot ng kuwento, kapani-paniwala ang pagganap ng mga artista—lalu na ang mga kaibigan at kasama ni Laida sa trabaho na tinaguriang Zoila and friends, Hindi maitatatwa ang chemistry ng dalawang nasa lead roles at dahil mga characters na nakilala na ng mga manonood sa naunang dalawang pelikula, madaling makapasok sa daloy ng kuwento. Kuhang-kuha nila hindi lang ang kiliti ng manonood sa mga nakatutuwang eksena kundi pati na rin ang simpatiya ng mga ito sa mga eksenang magpapatulo ng luha. Mayroon ding mga one-liners na siguradong uulit-ulitin ng mga nakapanood. Maayos din at angkop ang musika, simple ang sinematograpiya, mahusay ang editing at comedic timing. Sayang nga lang at asiwa ang wig ni Laida at may ilang dialogo na hindi maayos ang daloy—parang pilit at masyadong masalita. Maari ding masabing may mga eksena na “corny” subalit ikinasiya naman ito ng ilan.

Ngunit higit sa mga teknikal na aspeto ng pelikula, ipinapakita ng It Takes a Man and a Woman na ang pagpapatawad ay susi sa mabuting samahan hindi lang ng magkasintahan kundi sa pamilya at sa trabaho din. Ito ang tunay na sukatan ng pagmamahalan. Ang dalawang magkasintahan na nagkalayo ay natutong maging mabuti at ganap dahil sa pag-ako sa pagkakamali, paghingi ng kapatawaran, at pagsisikap na magbago.

Kapuri-puri din ang pelikula dahil nagtagumpay itong ipakita ang pagmamahalan ni Miggy at Laida nang hindi ginagamit ang pre-marital sex. Naipakita rin nito ang tunay na sukatan ng tagumpay sa buhay.  Dahil sa tema ng pelikula (na sa titulo pa lang ay halata na) iminumungkahi ng CINEMA ang pelikula para sa mga manonood na may edad 14-taon pataas.