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Thursday, July 21, 2005
Costanilla: Pinoy Bland
By Sam Costanilla
Spotlight
ACTOR. When he came to town last week, I had a face-to-face interview with film comedian Vhong Navarro whose latest starrer D’ Anothers is slated for release on July 27. The actor told me that in this horror-comedy flick, he shows his best as lead star although he would not elaborate. He simply said it’s better to watch the movie than listen to convincing words about it. Vhong also told me that he is open to other film roles that come his way such as action, drama and musical - “except sexy roles.”
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IDOL. Vhong added that he watches Hollywood star Jim Carrey movies a lot. “I idolize him as a great comic star and he makes people laugh with his own distinct style of comedy,” the actor stressed. However, Vhong was quick to add that he does not intend to copy Jim’s comical portrayals onscreen. As for director Joyce Bernal, Vhong has praises for her handling of him and the rest of D’ Anothers stars from day one until the end of the shooting. According to Vhong, Joyce’s treatment of the horror-comedy plot was smooth and the result is clearly evident in the entire production. “See it to believe it,” he invited.
Now I know - D’ Anothers is both scary and funny ... or scarily funny ... and to watch it is the best option.
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PFFFT. Being a Peque Gallaga-Lore Reyes movie, I was expecting Pinoy Blonde to offer another wonderful cinematic experience like what they did in their past outings. However, the film ended without offering any impressive mark. In short, it went pffft! I thought Peque’s long absence from filmmaking had given him substantial time to come up with a more impressive project in tandem with Lore. Before buying my ticket to the movie, and precisely why I decided to watch Pinoy Blonde, I thought the two men were able to produce something thought-provoking - not for its mind-boggling sequences but for its in-depth analytical presentation of what their own plot really wants to convey. Obviously, Peque and Lore failed in this respect. They seem confused as to how to treat their own story.
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BLAND. In this film, Epy and Boy2 Quizon, son and grandson, respectively, of comedy king Dolphy, did their respective parts pretty well, in fairness to them.
However, it is in their assigned roles - not in their acting - where the two miserably failed, so let’s blame Peque for his lousy and poor directorial guidance. For instance, there’s this scene showing Boy2 enjoying a foot massage from one of the abductors. It’s a comedy film, yes, but such scene is simply un-believable. How about this: Eddie Garcia and Jaime Fabregas singing Sharon Cuneta hits before shooting each other. Can you take that? It’s ridiculous and pointless. Peque must have run out of fine ideas as to how a comedy film should be treated without being so slapstick. Must be his first comedy flick. It’s a miracle if you leave the cinema without blaming yourself for watching Pinoy Blonde. It’s bland.
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THEMES. I’ve been receiving a lot of queries as to the appropriate themes for entries to next year’s Cebu Popular Music Festival, to be staged on the 3rd Friday of January at the Cebu Coliseum. Let me clarify that any theme that a composer can think of will do. Ever since its staging, starting in 1980, the Cebu Pop did not set any particular theme for the entries. So if you are a composer and want to participate, come up with any theme for your entry/entries. And while you do that, bear in mind that the deadline for the submission of entries is July 31 and this date will no longer be extended. Entry forms are still available at the President’s Office of the University of the Visayas. Prizes? Let me keep you all excited about that for now.
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SCOLDING. Is it true that this local radio station manager had a severe scolding courtesy of his Manila boss? Reason: their Cebu station slid to a much lower ranking in the latest survey of broadcast outfits. (E-mail: samcost@yahoo.com or call/text 0915-4992844).
(July 21, 2005 issue)
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