I love you to death

DIRECTOR: Miko Livelo  LEAD CAST: Kiray Celis, Enchong Dee, Janice De Belen, Betong Sumaya, Michelle Vito, Devon Seron, Trina Legaspi, Shine Kuk, Paolo Gumabao, Jon Lucas, Christian Bables, Nico Nicolas, Dino Pastrano, Gilbert Orsini  SCREENWRITER: Ash Malanum  EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Lily Monteverde, Roselle Monteverde  MUSIC BY: Francis Concio  FILM EDITOR: Carlo Francisco Manatad  GENRE: Romantic Horror Comedy  CINEMATOGRAPHER: Moises Zee

PRODUCTION DESIGNER: Vanessa Uriarte  PRODUCTON COMPANY: Regal Entertainment, Inc.  DISTRIBUTED BY: Regal Entertainment, Inc.  COUNTRY: Philippines  LANGUAGE: Pilipino  RUNNING TIME: 104 minutes

Technical Assessment: 2.5

Moral Assessment: 2

Cinema Rating: V18

MTRCB Rating: PG

Noong sila’y mga musmos pa lamang, nagsumpaan sina Tonton (Enchong Dee) at Gwen (Kiray Celis) na magpapakasal pagdating ng tamang panahon at magmamahalan hanggang kamatayan.  Ngunit nang dahil sa tila panunukso ng mga kaibigan ni Gwen kay Tonton, nagkahiwalay sila ng landas at si Tonton ay labis na naghinanakit at isinumpang si Gwen ay papangit.  Makalipas ang sampung taon, makikitang pawang nagkatotoo ang sumpang ito ni Tonton kay Gwen.  Kung kaya’t sa kanyang kaarawan, hiniling ni Gwen na sana’y dumating na sa buhay niya ang isang lalaking magiging “patay na patay” sa kanya.  At tila isang kasagutan sa kanyang hiling, nagbalik si Tonton sa buhay niya at niyaya siya agad nito na magpakasal.  Mamamangha si Gwen sa matipuno at guwapong si Tonton, agad niyang tatanggapin ang alok nito na magpakasal.  Ngunit tila may hindi maipaliwanag na misteryo sa pagkatao ni Tonton.  Simula rin nang magbalik ito sa buhay ni Gwen, tila nagkakasunod-sunod ang pagkamatay ng kanyang mga kaibigan.  Siya pa rin kaya ang Tonton na matagal nang hinintay ni Gwen?  

Nagsubok ang I Love You To Death na maghain ng bagong putahe ng romantic-horror-comedy sa pagkakaraon ng bidang babae na ang kasikatan ay natamo sa pagkakaroon ng “kakaibang-uri” ng kagandahang panlabas.  Bagama’t mahusay si Celis, tila malabis ang pagtataya ng pelikula sa kanyang hitsura para laging gamitin itong tulay upang maitawid ang katatawanan sa pelikula.  Isa itong makalumang paraan ng komedya.  Sa isang banda, nakakabilib na sana ang pelikula sa mapanglibak nitong paglalarawan ng lipunang umiikot sa materyal na bagay at pagpapahalaga sa panlabas na anyo.  Nakakatawang panoorin ang magbabarkadang babae at lalaki na talagang tipikal na samahan ng mga kabataan sa ngayon—lalo na sa mga nanggaling sa may-kayang angkan.  Nagsubok din ang I Love You To Death na magpamalas ng mga nakagugulat na special effects at make-up.  Matagumpay ito sa ilang eksena, ngunit palaging problemado ang pelikula pagdating sa kabuuan ng pagsasalaysay nito—maraming mga eksenang tila hindi maramdaman at hindi malaman ng manononood ang pinanggagalingan.  Mahina ang hagod ng emosyon—marahil ito’y dahil sa hindi kapani-paniwala ang pagkakalahad ng kwento.  Kitang may malalim na sining at talinong pinangagalingan ang pelikula ngunit sadyang maraming kulang upang masabing epektibo ito bagama’t itoý tunay na napapanahon.

Problemado rin ang pelikula pagdating sa aral at asal na nais nitong iparating. Sa isang banda, kapuri-puri ang pelikula sa pagtalakay nito ng problemang “bullying” o pag-aalipusta. Tila ito ang naging sentro ng pinanggagalingan ng mga bida sa pelikula—ang sugat na dulot nito tila mahirp mapaghilom. Tumatanim ang sakit ng pag-aalipusta hanggang kamatayan.  Natabunan ng malabis na galit at paghihiganti ang dapat sana’y magandang mensahe ng pelikula. Nariyan pa ang kaguluhan kung ano ba talaga ang totoong motibo ni Tonton? Tunay ba ang kanyang pag-ibig kay Gwen o hindi? Paanong ang mga musmos na tulad nila ay nagkaroon ng kakayahan at kaalaman ukol sa wagas na pag-ibig? Bagama’t ang pagmamahal ay walang pinipiling edad o estado, ang mga batang tulad nila ay hindi dapat pinagmumulan ng malisya. Hindi dapat maging instrumento ang sining ng pelikula upang palabasin na ang malisya ay nagsisimula sa pagkabata. Ito’y isang kasinungalingang pilit nilang idinidiin maya’t-maya dahil lamang sa ito’y “cute” tingnan. Ang nakakabahala dito’y nagkakaroon ng tila malabong kahulugan ang pagmamahal sa mga musmos na gaya nila. Isa pang malabis na nakakabahala sa I Love You To Death ay ang mga kahindik-hindik na eksena at larawan ng malabis na katatakutan—mga bahagi ng katawan na binabali, sinusunog, pinuputol, pinahihirapan.  Anuman ang nais nitong sabihin, kalabisan na ito para sa mga batang manonood—maaari itong magdulot ng bangungot sa kanila. Kita rin sa pelikula na walang pagpapahalaga ang Pilipino sa pakikipag-kapwa—pawang nabubuhay sila para sa kanilang pansariling interes lamang. Tama bang tanggihan ng upuan sa dyip ang isang nakasuot-pangkasal at hayaan pa itong sumabit sa dyipni?  Dahil dito at sa marami pang ibang dahilan, minamarapat ng CINEMA na ang I Love You to Death ay para lamang sa manonood na may 18 taong gulang pataas. 

The young Messiah

DIRECTOR: Cyrus Nowrasteh  LEAD CAST:  Adam Greaves-Neal, Sean Bean, David Bradley, Lee Boardman, Jonathan Bailey, David Burke  SCREENWRITER:  Cyrus Nowrasteh, Betsy Giffin Nowrasteh   PRODUCER:  Michael Barnathan, Chris Columbus, Tracy K. Price, Mark Radcliffe, Mark Shaw   EDITOR:  Geoffrey Rowland  MUSICAL DIRECTOR:  John Debney  GENRE:  Drama  CINEMATOGRAPHER: Joel Ransom  DISTRIBUTOR:  Focus features  LOCATION:  United States  RUNNING TIME: 111 minutes

Technical assessment:  3

Moral assessment:  3

CINEMA rating:  V13  (Viewers 13 years old and below, with parental guidance) 
This engaging dramatization remains faithful to the underlying message of scripture even as it speculates about the childhood of Jesus (played here, age 7, by Adam Greaves-Neal), a topic on which the Gospels are virtually silent. As Joseph (Vincent Walsh) leads his family back from exile in Egypt, he and Mary (Sara Lazzaro) struggle to understand and guide their unique son, whose supernatural identity is at least partially known to his relatives—including his uncle Cleopas (Christian McKay) and cousin James (Finn McLeod Ireland)—and whose miraculous powers are already apparent. Danger pursues the extended clan in the person of a Roman centurion (Sean Bean) who has orders from King Herod (Jonathan Bailey) to find and kill the boy and in the figure of Satan (Rory Keenan) whose presence only Jesus can sense. Director and co-writer Cyrus Nowrasteh's screen version of Anne Rice's 2005 novel "Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt" sensitively explores the mystery of the Incarnation in a way that will both intrigue and entertain viewers of most ages. (Capsule review courtesy of Catholic News Service)

Independence Day: Resurgence

DIRECTOR:  Roland Emmerich  LEAD CAST:  Liam Hemsworth, Jeff Goldblum, Bill Pulman, Maika Monroe, Travis Tope, William Fichtner, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Judd Hirsch, Jessie Usher, Brent Spiner,  Vivica A. Fox, Angelababy  SCREENWRITER:  Roland Emmerich, Dean Devlin, Nicholas Wright, James A. Woods, James Vanderbilt  PRODUCER:  Dean Devlin, Roland Emmerich, Harald Kloser  EDITOR:  Adam Wolfe  MUSICAL DIRECTOR:  Harald Kloser, Thomas Wanker  GENRE:  Science Fiction  CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Markus FÖrderer  DISTRIBUTOR:  20th Century Fox  LOCATION:  United States  RUNNING TIME: 120 minutes

Technical assessment: 3

Moral assessment: 3

Cinema rating: V14

MTRCB rating: PG

Twenty years after the events of alien invasion in 1996, it is seen that the Earth has rebuilt everything and is now using advanced alien technology for the betterment of the entire planet. But then, the vengeful alien invaders haven't given up yet, and it sends a massive ship with the alien queen, that quickly pushes through Earth's space defenses and destroys a big part of the civilized world. It lands in the Atlantic Ocean and starts drilling into the Earth. The Earth Space Defense Team consisting of scientists, political leaders, and soldiers must do everything they can to stop the aliens before they destroy the entire planet and put humanity in total extinction.

Independence Day: Resurgence is an attempt to bring back the glory and box-office hit it created 20 years ago. Although the effects and magnitude of this latest and updated sequel is much bigger and even bolder, still it lacks that necessary emotional tension for a compelling narrative. It is as if the core of the story is just the CGI (computer generated imagery) and not the characters. Beyond the visual treat of aliens, spaceships and laser beams, there really is no storyline to follow except for the seemingly obvious goal of defeating the aliens. Although there is an attempt to humanize the story, the movie is somehow too busy creating CGI that would destroy world landmarks and monuments for greater effect. The result is a poorly developed narrative creating underdeveloped characters and subplots that do not really work. If films are only for showcase of special effect and CGI’s, the film could be considered excellent but a film should be more than a visual feast, it should tell a story to uplift the human spirit—and in that respect,Independence Day: Resurgence is no more than a spectacle.

Looking closely into some scenes separately, the film tackles various webs of significant human relationships.  Family is at the top of the film’s priority—there is a father who sacrifices his life for the sake if his daughter. The same daughter gives up her career and ambition to take care of her sick father. There is a big sister that takes care of her younger siblings. Then there is a son who takes care of his father and another son who grieves for his parents who died many years ago from the same kind of incident. The world may end but relationships last until beyond lifetime. Friendships and romantic relationships come next in the hierarchy of relationships in the film. Here, friends and lovers are also given importance. After all, these are important relationships that really matter in one’s life. It is also seen in the film how world unity, teamwork and camaraderie can save the planet. However, dominance of men over women is still apparent. For more than one occasion, women are portrayed as someone who cannot finish a task, and the men are the ones who take over. Men of different colors, religion and creed are also present in the film—to add texture perhaps or maintain the global magnitude of the conflict—but then, they are shown as apparently inferior, if not mocked for being superior. There is cursing here and there and use of crass language in the film along with predominantly violent visuals so CINEMA deems Independence Day: Resurgence as appropriate only for audiences aged 14 and above.

The Achy Breaky Hearts

DIRECTOR:  Antoinette Jadaone  LEAD CAST:  Jodi Sta. Maria, Ian Veneracion & Richard Yap  SCREENWRITER: Yoshke Dimen & Antoinette Jadaone PRODUCER: Malou Santos and  Charo Santos-Concio  GENRE: Romantic Comedy  DISTRIBUTOR: Star Cinema  LOCATION: Philippines  RUNNING TIME: 120 minutes 

Technical assessment: 3

Moral assessment: 2.5

MTRCB rating: PG

CINEMA rating:  V14

Sa edad na 30 ay nababahala na si Chinggay (Jodi Sta. Maria) sa estado niyang single. Sumisidhi ang pressure sa kanyang sarili kapag tinatanong siya kung kalian siya mag-aasawa. Ito ay dahil wala siyang boyfriend sa nakalipas na pitong taon kung kailan iginugol niya ang panahon sa pagsuporta sa pag-aaral ng nakababatang kapatid. Kaya nang makatapos ito ay hayagan siyang maghahangad na magkaroon ng kasintahan. Tila sinagot naman ang hangad niya dahil magkukrus muli ang landas nila ng dating kasintahang si Frank (Richard Yap) at makikipagbalikan ito sa kanya. Kasabay nito ay mababaling sa kanya ang atensyon ng isang  broken hearted na customer at matagal na niyang crush na si Ryan (Ian Veneracion). Malilito si Chiggay kung sino ang pipiliin niya.

Mula sa matagumpay na tambalan sa telebisyon, dinala ng malikot ng imahinasyon ng Star Cinema sa isang pelikulang romcom (romance-comedy) sina Sta. Maria, Yap at Veneracion.  Katulad ng inaasahan nakapaghatid ng kilig sinuman kina Yap at Veneracion ang kaeksena ni Sta. Maria.  Ito ay kahit hindi naman sa love triangle ng tatlo nakasentro ang kwento ngAchy Breaky Hearts kundi sa pagtahak ng pangunahing tauhan na si Chinggay sa buhay bilang isang single na tila midamadali ng ibang tao na mag-asawa.  Kaabang-abang ang wakas dahil hindi predictable ang plot katulad ng mga karaniwang romcom.  Pero medyo nakakainip ang pelikula na parang pinahabang salaysay.  Ang linyang “kailan ka mag-aasawa” na maraming beses tinanong kay Chinggay sa simula pa lang samantalang pinapaliwanag na ng voice over , gayundin ang mga matagal at paulit-ulit close up shot  ng iba’t ibang pag-eemote ni  Chinggay. Marahil nakadagdag din sa pagkabagot ng manonood ang monotonous  na boses ng voice over. Mabuti na lang magaling sa punch line  ang mga paulit-ulit din na eksena sa kainan ang magkakaibigan. Parang tinipid sa make-up at tila si Sta. Maria lang ang maayos na meron nito.  Maganda naman ang disenyo ng produksyon, pati ang mg inilapat na ilaw at tunog.  May kabuluhan at tumatak ang isinaliw na musika. Sa kabuuan ay parang madalian ang produksyon at di masyadong napag-isipan ang materyal para pagbidahan ng tatlo.

Sa panahon ngayon ang pagiging single at pananatiling malaya sa responsibilidad ng pag-aasawa ay isa nang option  at dumarami na din ang pumipili nito. Wala namang masama sa pagiging single at hindi dapat itong ikabahala ng sinumang nasa ganitong estado lalo na kung kapaki-pakinabang naman ang mga pinagkakaabalahan, katulad ng pagtulong sa pamilya at pagpapalago ng sarili at karera.  Ngunit mahalaga na tanggap mo at nauunawaan ang sitwasyon kung dumating man ang totoong pag-ibig.  Batid kaya ni Chinggay ang makakabuti sa kanya habang naghihintay pa siya kay Mr. Right?  Malamang ay hindi, kung ibabatay sa mga kabuluhang itinutro ng Simbahang Katoliko ang kanyang mga ikinikilos. Bago pa naman nagkaroon ng ganitong realization ang bida ng pelikula na si Chinggay ay hinayaan niyang mangibabaw ang kahinaan sa kanyang sarili—katulad ng pakikipagsiping sa dalawang lalaki kahit na wala pang linaw kung ano ang mga namamagitan sa kanila. Sinadya rin niya na pahirapan ang dating kasintahang si Frank nang nakikipagbalikan ito sa kanya upang makaganti sa pang-iiwan sa kanya nito noong nakaraan. Binigyang-katwiran niya at hinangaan pa ang kapatid na nabuntis ng boyfriend na walang trabaho at sumuong sa pag-aasawa nang hindi handa.  Bilang isang propesyonal at manager ng isang business, kahit na crush mo pa, hindi akma na samahan mo hanggang sa kwarto ng motel ang isang customer na gusto mong suportahan, o hayaang isubo ang daliri para matanggal ang singsing gayung bilang nagtatrabaho sa jewelry store ay alam mo dapat ang mga paraan kung paano ito matatanggal.  Hindi rin kailangan sumisigaw kapag tinatawag ang waiter lalo na sa isang fine dining restaurant.  Maaaring akalain ng manonood na katanggap-tanggap na ang mga gawing ito, at tularan pa ng mga kabataan.  Maaaring walang eksenang sex ang pelikula pero para sa mature viewers ang kabuuang tema at presentasyon nito ng pelikula. 

Me before you

DIRECTOR: Thea Sharrock  LEAD CAST:  Emilia Clarke, Sam Claflin, Janet McTeer, Charles Dance & Brendan Coyle  SCREENWRITER: Jojo Moyes  PRODUCER:  Alison Owen & Karen Rosenfelt  EDITOR: John Wilson  MUSICAL DIRECTOR:  Craig Armstrong  GENRE: Drama  CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Remi Adefarasin  DISTRIBUTOR: Warner Bros. Entertainment  LOCATION: United Kingdom  RUNNING TIME:  110 minutes

Technical assessment:  4

Moral assessment:  2.5

CINEMA rating:  V14

Me before you is about the relationship between Will Traynor (Sam Claflin), a rich, high living bachelor who gets paralyzed when hit by a motorcycle, and Louisa Clark (Emilia Clarke), a bubbly 26-year-old pastry shop waitress who has just been fired and is looking for a job, any job to help support her family.  As luck or fate would have it, the employment agency finds her the perfect job that requires no skills and pays “excellent money”.  Interviewing her, Will’s mother Camilla Traynor (Janet McTeer) hires the chatty but winsome Louisa on the spot, to be a caregiver-companion to Will.  Days into her new job, Louisa overhears Camilla and her husband, Will’s father Steven (Charles Dance), arguing over Will’s decision to end his life at the conclusion of a six-month waiting period he has promised his parents.  It is to be done at a facility for assisted suicide in Switzerland.  Steven fully supports Will’s determination; Camilla is against it.  The awkward adjustment period between the quirky Louisa and the depressed Will turns into acquaintance, and then friendship, and then something more.

There are two outstanding features of Me before you: impeccable performances and respect for the intelligence of the audience.  Given the theme—end-of-life issues—this drama could have easily slid into melodrama, and the romance could have been steered to titillate viewers looking for happily-ever-afters, but it does neither.  Instead of passing moral judgment on the idea of assisted suicide, it lays out the pros and cons of it through the characters’ viewpoints and interaction, leaving viewers free to think for themselves or to take sides to affirm their own convictions.  The romance part grows out of the breath of the protagonists whose performances make their characters alive and real, not like props that must keep the plot up until it reaches a Nicholas Sparks ending.  In this romance are a man paralyzed from the neck down but has an unbending will to die, and a woman believing her pledge of undying love can make him change his mind.  The biggest surprise in the cast is Clarke playing Clark, a complete and absolute U-turn from her role as the queenly Mother of Dragons in the HBO blockbuster Game of Thrones.  The girl can act.

Viewers tend to think the title “Me before you” smacks of selfishness.  But as the story unfolds “Me before you” takes on different colorations.  By her own admission, before she met Will Louisa was a nobody, especially as her family compared her with her younger sister, “the brains in the family.”  But having caused Will to talk, laugh, and eat again (to his mother’s delight), Louisa finds meaning in giving care and being needed, and is empowered to improve herself—for Will.  Before his accident, Will was the envy of his friends—there was nothing the sporty good-looker couldn’t do in any setting—land, snow, sea, and air.  Before he met Louisa, he was slumped in deep dejection, a condition aggravated by the subsequent affair between his girlfriend and his best friend, but the unsinkable Louisa let the sunshine in with her candor and total self-acceptance.  So—are they being selfish or selfless in the end? 

As for the issue of assisted suicide, pay very close attention to the dialogue.  Only one character wants it, another supports him; all the others are against it.  Take note, too, of where Will and Louisa are coming from—high society, working class—and compare the family dynamics in both backgrounds.  See how the consciousness of God’s presence and providence affects people’s dispositions.  CINEMA could have given Me before you a moral assessment score of 3 (Acceptable) for the film’s mature handling of the subject, but lest people mistake it as accepting of suicide, prudence dictates that the score be 2.5, which means guidance is imperative, whatever the age of the viewer.  Me before you makes for an excellent discussion in school, parish meetings, or at family dinners.