Listology 2 : Movies I Like.

I have a tenuous grasp of reality. I tend to watch movies and television and take the occurrences on my screen as facts. You're probably inching away from your computer as you read this. I don't blame you. It really gets loopy.

See, a year ago as I was walking through Ortigas, I saw a man all decked-out in black, from his face mask to his shoes. 

And all I could think was, "I didn't know ninjas came out during the day time."

In hindsight, I probably shouldn't have been too concerned with the ninja's temporal displacement (so to speak) . I should have been more concerned that there WAS a ninja in Ortigas in the first place.

 But of course I looked back and realized that he was wearing one of those face masks that guys on motorcycles wore. And the color scheme probably meant he was fierce (like FEEYRS!) or goth. A fierce-or-goth delivery guy. NOT A NINJA.

That little anecdote has nothing to do with the list I'm posting. I just felt like sharing, that's all.

Commencing list posting in 5...4...3...2...1..

Movies I like.

Musical:
Everyone Says I Love You (Woody Allen)
Mary Poppins - Julie Andrews, Dick Van Dyke
Sound of Music - Julie Andrews
Seeing Double - S Club (yay!)
Spiceworld - The Spice Girls
Reefer Madness - Christian Campbell, Kristen Bell, Ana Gasteyer
Grease - John Travolta, Olivia Newton - John, Stockard Channing
Hello Dolly! - Babwa Stweisand
Rent
Bootmen (yeah, it's more of dancing movie but whatevs)






Comedy:
About a Boy - Hugh Grant, Toni Colette, Nicholas Hoult
Purple Rose of Cairo (Woody Allen)
High Fidelity – John Cusack, Iben Hjele(as a rule most Nick Hornby adaptations are ace)
The Royal Tenenbaums – Gene Hackman, Anjelica Huston, Bill Murray, Danny Glover, Luke Wilson, Owen Wilson, Gwyneth Paltrow  (Wes Anderson)
Clerks  (Kevin Smith)
Mallrats - Jeremy London, Jason Lee, Claire Forlani, Shannen Doherty, Kevin Smith, Jay (Kevin Smith)
Greedy - Michael J. Fox, Nancy Travis, Kirk Douglas
The Concierge/For Love or Money - Michael J. Fox, Gabrielle Anwar
Ferris Bueller's Day Off -  Matthew Broderick, Alan Ruck, Mia Sara
Roxanne - Steve Martin, Darryl Hannah
Father of the Bride - Steve Martin, Diane Keaton, Kimberley Williams, Martin Short and BD Wong ( !!! )
The Jerk - Steve Martin
The Man with Two Brains - Steve Martin
Hocus Pocus - Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kathy Najimy and Thora Birch
DEBS - Jordana Brewster, Sarah Foster
Clueless - Alicia Silverstone, Stacey Dash, Paul Rudd
Oscar - Sylvester Stallone, Marisa Tomei
There's Something About Mary - Cameron Diaz, Ben Stiller
Mighty Aphrodite - Woody Allen, Helena Bonham Carter, Mira Sorvino
Best in Show (Christopher Guest and starring the usual gang of rowdies)

A Mighty Wind (Christopher Guest and starring the usual gang of rowdies)
Mystery Men - Ben Stiller, Eddie Izzard, Greg Kinnear
The Associate - Whoopie Goldberg, the lady who plays Joaquin Phoenix' mom on Parenthood
Hollywood or Bust - Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis
Rat Race - John Cleese, Rowan Atkinson, Seth Green, Breckin Meyer, Cuba Gooding Jr.
Groundhog Day - Bill Murray, Andie Macdowell, Chris Elliot
Monty Python's The Meaning of Life - the Pythons
Monty Python's Life of Brian - the Pythons
Monty Python and the Quest for the Holy Grail - the Pythons
Fierce Creatures - Kevin Kline, Jamie Lee Curtis
The Road to Wellville – Anthony Hopkins, Dana Carvey, Matthew Broderick, Bridget Fonda

The Full Monty
To Wong Foo: Thanks for everything, Julie Newmar!- Patrick Swayze, John Leguizamo, Wesley Snipes

Fantasy/Suspense/Sci-fi/Horror:
Army of Darkness - Bruce Campbell
Tremors - Kevin Bacon, Fred Ward, Reba
Dracula - Gary Oldman, Winona Ryder
Labyrinth (Jim Henson)
The Dark Crystal (Jim Henson)
Dark City (Alex Proyas)
I, Robot (Alex Proyas)
Bicentennial Man (Spielberg)
The Others - Nicole Kidman
The Sixth Sense (M. Night Shyamalan)
Shaun of the Dead - Simon Pegg (dude! He's the Editor from Doctor Who! I never realized that till now)
Total Recall -Arnold Schwarzenegger
Independence Day - Will Smith, Bill Pullman, Mae Whitman
Mars Attacks (Tim Burton)
Deep Impact - Téa Leoni, Elijah Wood
Men In Black - Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones
Edward Scissorhands - Johnny Depp, Winona Ryder
The Frighteners - Michael J. Fox, Trini Alvarado
Beetlejuice - Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, Geena Davis, Alec Baldwin
The Star Wars movies (excluding the last 3)
The Bill and Ted Movies - Keanu Reeves, Alex Winter
The Matrix 1 & 3 - Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Hugo Weaving, Carrie- Anne Moss
Jurassic Park
The Batman Movies (yep, even the ultra- camp ones. Except the one with Batgirl.)
The Spiderman Movies
Silence of the Lambs
Cocoon
A Clockwork Orange (Stanley Kubrick)
Starship Troopers
The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (Terry Gilliam)
Blade
The LOTR trilogy (Peter Jackson)
The Princess Bride – Cary Elwes, Robin Wright

Zombieland – Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson
Avatar (on the basis of visuals)


Romance
Great Expectations (Cuaron)
Much Ado About Nothing (Branagh)
Chasing Amy (Kevin Smith)
Before Sunrise (Richard Linklater)
Before Sunset (Richard Linklater)
My Sassy Girl (Korean film)
Windstruck (Korean Film)
One Night Stand - Ming Na, Wesley Snipes, Robert Downey Jr.
Three of Hearts - Billy Baldwin, Kelly Lynch, Sherilyn Fenn
St. Elmo's Fire - Emilio Estevez, Demi Moore, Rob Lowe, Ally Sheedy
Little Manhattan - Josh Hutcherson, Charlie Ray, Bradley Whitford, Cynthia Nixon
Lost in Translation (Sophia Coppola)
The Incredibly True Adventures of Two Girls in Love - Laurel Holloman, Nicole Ari Parker (watch out for the cheeseball ending though.)
A Roman Holiday - Audrey Hepburn
Breakfast at Tiffany's - Audrey Hepburn
One Fine Day - George Clooney, Michelle Pfeiffer
Only You - Marisa Tomei, Robert Downey Jr.
Untamed Heart - Christian Slater, Marisa Tomei, Rosie Perez
Sleepless in Seattle- Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan
Keeping the Faith - Jenna Elfman, Ben Stiller, Edward Norton
Love Actually (written by the guy who made Vicar of Dibley, I think)
Reality Bites - Winona Ryder, Ethan Hawke, Ben Stiller, Janeane Garofalo
Down to You - Freddie Prinze Jr, Julia Stiles
Coyote Ugly - Piper Perabo, Adam Garcia
Amelie
Cinema Paradiso
Kissing Jessica Stein
While You Were Sleeping
A Little Romance
Far and Away
Hearts and Souls
A Love Affair
The Notebook (hee!)
A Walk to Remember (hee again!)
Splash
I Capture the Castle





Drama:
Todo Sobre Mi Madre (Almodovar)
Volver (Almodovar)
Me And You And Everyone We Know
Higher Learning - Laurence Fishburne, Omar Epps, Tyra Banks and the annoying guy from Boston Public.
The Joy Luck Club (adapted from the Amy Tan novel)
Boyz in the Hood - Ice Cube, Laurence Fishburne
Tortilla Soup (adapted from Ang Lee's Eat Drink Man Woman)
Garden State (Zach Braff)
Almost Famous (Cameron Crowe)
Jake's Women (Neil Simon) -- Alan Alda, Mira Sorvino
A League of their Own - Geena Davis, Lori Petty, Tom Hanks
In the Mood for Love (Wong Kar Wai)
Crooklyn- Alfre Woodard, Zelda Harris
Little Women - Trini Alvarado, Susan Sarandon, Winona Ryder, Claire Danes, Kirsten Dunst, Samantha Mathis
How to Make an American Quilt- Winona Ryder, Gena Rowlands
The Cure - Joseph Mazzello, Brad Renfro
In America
Trainspotting
The Crying Game
Amadeus
Interview with the Vampire
Mystic Pizza
With Honors
Jerry Maguire
The Truman Show
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
King of the Hill
Mermaids
Billy Elliot
Center Stage
American Beauty
Paradise
Do the Right Thing
Unbreakable

Gone Baby Gone

Eat Drink Man Woman (Ang Lee)




Animation
An American Tail (Bluth)
Spirited Away (Hayao Miyazaki)
Pom Poko (Hayao Miyazaki)
Waking Life (Richard Linklater)
Ratatouille (Brad Bird)
Aladdin
Beauty and the Beast
Mulan
The Lion King
The Little Mermaid
Triplets of Belleville
Tokyo Godfathers
A Goofy Movie
The Carebears Movie
Carebears : The New Generation
Carebears in Wonderland
Carebears in the Nutcracker
Whisper of the Heart (Miyazaki)
The Nightmare Before Christmas (Burton)
My Little Pony the Movie
Rainbow Brite and the Star Stealer

Ferngully

The Secret of NIMH

The Fantastic Mr. Fox





Children's:
The Little Princess (Alfonso Cuaron)
Bridge to Terabithia (Gabor Csupo) - Josh Hutcherson, AnnaSophia Robb
Jumanji - Robin Williams, Bonnie Hunt, Kirsten Dunst
The Mighty Ducks (all three of them) - Joshua Jackson, Marguerite Moreau, Mike Vitar, Emilio Estevez
Hook - Robin Williams, Dustin Hoffman
Matilda - Mara Wilson, Danny De Vito, Rhea Perlman
Paulie - Hallie Kate Eisenberg , Jay Mohr, Trini Alvarado
Witches - Anjelica Huston
Small Soldiers - Gregory Smith, Kirsten Dunst, Phil Hartman, Jay Mohr
Camp Nowhere -Jonathan Jackson, Andrew Keegan, Doc Brown, Melody Kaye
All I Want for Christmas - Ethan Randall, Thora Birch
Babysitters' Club - (without having to look this up... watch! And in order of club importance) Schuyler Fisk, Tricia Joe, Rachael Leigh Cook, Bre Blair, Larisa Oleynik, Zelda Harris, Stacey Linn Ramsower, Austin O' Brien
The Great Muppet Caper
Bugsy Malone
Disney's Annie (1999)
Alice in Wonderland (TV)
How the Grinch Stole Christmas
A Series of Unfortunate Events


Teen
Dazed and Confused
Clueless
Trojan War
Can't Hardly Wait
Now and Then
Adventures in Babysitting
The Night Before
Seven Minutes in Heaven
The Breakfast Club
American Pie
Loser
Orange County
Mean Girls



Action/War:
Hudson Hawk
Conspiracy Theory - Julia Roberts, Mel Gibson
Casualties of War - Michael J. Fox, Sean Penn, John C. Reilly
The Patriot - Steven Seagal, Camilla Belle, Whitney Yellow Robe
Sin City
Kill Bill
Dusk Til Dawn
If Looks Could Kill –Richard Grieco
Charlie's Angels
Con Air
Speed
Operation Condor ( I think that's the one...Jackie Chan movie where he went to Australia?)
The Fast and the Furious
Point Break
Reservoir Dogs
The Negotiator
The Long Kiss Goodnight

The Man with One Red Shoe

Speed


Old Favorites kicked off the list due to recent viewing but are listed out of "respect" and sentimentality:
Ernest Scared Stupid -Jim Varney (also count the OTHER Ernest movies I used to like as a kid)
The Last Unicorn - Mia Farrow
Class Act - Kid N' Play
House Party - Kid N' Play
Encino Man - Sean Astin, Pauly Shore*
Son in Law - Pauly Shore*
In The Army Now - Pauly Shore*
Bio Dome- Pauly Shore, Stephen Baldwin, Kylie Minogue *
Raggedy Ann and Andy: A Musical Adventure
Dumb and Dumber - Jim Carrey, Jeff Daniels, Lauren Holly, Karen Duffy
Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1 and 2)  - Jim Carrey, Courteney Cox
The Mask - Jim Carrey, Cameron Diaz
Pippi Longstocking
The Fantastic Adventures of Unico

The Felix the Cat Movie





Movies I remember liking but don't remember details of (some of them I'm not sure whether I would if I watched them again):
The TMNT movies
Revenge of the Nerds - Keith Carradine and the guy I only know as Booger.
Mac and Me
Mr. Destiny - James Belushi
The Lost Boys - the two Coreys
Goonies
Heathers - Christian Slater, Winona Ryder, Shannon Doherty
Stakeout - Richard Dreyfuss, Emilio Estevez, Rosie O' Donnell
3 Ninjas Kick Back (or whatever that one is where they went to Japan) - Max Elliot Slade
Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Helen Slater, Luke Perry
Calendar Girl - Jason Priestley, Jerry O' Connell
Hotshots
Ten Things I Hate About You
Major League
Doc Hollywood
The Godfather
Emma

WOWA!

I have to digress from movies today and rant.

If I hear Bendita say "Wowa" one more time, I'm going to cut someone.

That there is an artist's interpretation (me, obviously) of Bendita from ABS-CBN's Agua Bendita.

Actually, all things considered I would say ABS-CBN has the characterization of a gremlin child down pat. Not only is she annoying but, it seems that she has NOTHING to recommend her at all. She is primed for primetime villainy. I expect she will fake die in a flame later on.

And what in the world's wrong with her parents? They let their kid act like Cruella deVille because she's guilt-tripping them, it seems.Hello parents, this is a spine. You're usually born with a set. Use it. And maybe you should give Agua some too.

Oh but really, it's the wowa thing that really gets my goat. It is an execrable pet name for one's grandmother that can never, never be cute. Especially not when it's said as shrilly as Bendita recites it.

+

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the world there are children who are more delightful to pay attention to. I like witty kids. Actual witty mini humans are funny to observe. Give this kid a television show.

Movies to Watch (Whenever or However I Can)

I have a pretty expansive backlog of movies I need to watch during my lifetime. I guess the trouble with this is actually finding the time to do so and, of course when it comes to the older local films, procuring copies is the greatest challenge.

 Anyway, I keeping this list here so I don't forget what I have to or want to watch before I expire. Crossed-out items are the ones I've seen.

*

PAST RELEASES:

Animation/Puppets/Family
Emmett Otter's Jug Band Christmas - Jim Henson
The Christmas Toy - Jim Henson
The Great Muppet Caper - Jim Henson
The Cat Returns - Hayao Miyazaki
Nausicaa - Hayao Miyazaki
Fantasia
Wind in the Willows (2007) - Matt Lucas, Bob Hoskins
Wind in the Willows (1996) - (or "Mr. Toad's Wild Ride") The Pythons, Julia Sawalha, Stephen Fry
Blood Tea and Red String - Christine Cegavske

Drama
Fanny and Alexander - Ingmar Bergman
Tape - Richard Linklater
The Virgin Suicides - Sophia Coppola
Good Morning - Keiji Sada
Eat Drink Man Woman - Ang Lee
The Wedding Banquet - Ang Lee
Like Water for Chocolate - Alfonso Arau
Annie Hall - Woody Allen
Woman on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown - Pedro Almodovar
Tampopo
Babette's Feast
Big Night - Stanley Tucci, Minnie Driver
Tokyo Story - Yasujiro Ozu
Floating Weeds - Yasujiro Ozu
Water - Deepa Mehta
Fire - Deepa Mehta
The Hottest State - Ethan Hawke
The Crying Game -Neil Jordan
Seven Minutes in Heaven - Jennifer Connelly
Two for the Road - Audrey Hepburn
Collateral - Tom Cruise, Jamie Fox
Schindler's List - Steven Spielberg
Magnolia - Tom Cruise
Be With You - Nobuhiro Doi
Lolita - Stanley Kubrick
Carrington - Emma Thompson
The Remains of the Day - Emma Thompson
Spring Summer Fall Winter and Spring - Ki-Duk Kim
Yi Yi: A One A Two - Edward Yang
La Mala Educacion - Almodovar
Samsara
Mostly Martha -Sandra Nettelbeck
Three Times - Hsiao-hsien Hou
Summer of Sam - Spike Lee
DO the Right Thing - Spike Lee
Jungle Fever - Spike Lee
City of God
Moliere - Laurent Tirard
Avenue Montaigne - Danièle Thompson
The Godfather Trilogy - Francis Ford Coppola
Fucking Amal
Talk to Her (Hable con Ella) - Pedro Almodovar
Coal Miner's Daughter - Sissy Spacek
Say Anything - John Cusack, Ione Skye, the dad from Frasier
La Dolce Vita- Federico Fellini
The Bicycle Thief -Vittorio di Sica
The Namesake - Kal Penn
Beaches - Bette Midler, Mayim Bialik
Donsol -Sid Lucero, Angel Aquino
Dear Diary - Lea Salonga, Herbert Bautista, Michael de Mesa
Ploning -dir. Dante Nico Garcia, Judy Ann Santos
Saan Darating Ang Umaga? - dir. Maryo J. De Los Reyes, Nestor De Villa, Maricel Soriano, Nida Blanca, Jaypee De Guzman
Kung Mangarap Ka't Gumising - Christopher De Leon, Hilda Koronel
Oro Plata Mata - Peque Gallaga
Karnal - Marilous Diaz Abaya
Mumbaki - Raymart Santiago
Manila by Night - Ishmael Bernal
Maynila Sa Kuko ng Liwanag - Lino Brocka

Musical
Sunday in the Park with George - Mandy Patinkin, Sondheim
Kakabakaba Ka Ba? - Mike De Leon
Lagaan - Rachel Shelley
Singin' in the Rain - Gene Kelly, Debbi Reynolds
Love's Labours Lost -Kenneth Branagh
West Side Story - Natalie Wood
Camp
A Chorus Line
Wizard of Oz - Judy Garland

Comedy
Bottle Rocket - Wes Anderson
Match Point - Woody Allen
The Purple Rose of Cairo - Woody Allen
Manhattan - Woody Allen
Napoleon Dynamite
LA Story - Steve Martin
Two Days in Paris - Julie Delpy
Harold and Maude -Hal Ashby
Tootsie - Dustin Hoffmann
But I'm a Cheerleader! - Natasha Lyonne
Priscilla, Queen of the Desert - Hugo Weaving
Fever Pitch (US version)
Fever Pitch (UK version)
Peter's Friends - Stephen Fry, Emma Thompson, Hugh Laurie
The Dinner Game
Clue
Picnic - Iwai Shunji
Life is a Long Quiet River -Étienne Chatiliez
Lovely Rivals
Duck Soup
A Mighty Wind - Christopher Guest starring the usual assortment of goofs =) (This could be a musical, couldn't it?)
Moonstruck - Cher, Nicholas Cage
This is Spinal Tap -Fran Drescher

Sci-Fi/ Fantasy
10th Kingdom - Kimberley Williams
Delicatessen - Jean Pierre Jeunet
City of Lost Children - Jean Pierre Jeunet
Pan's Labyrinth - Guillermo Del Toro
Spy Kids - Robert Rodriguez
District 13 -Pierre Morel

Horror/Suspense
The Innocents - Deborah Kerr
Itim - Mike De Leon
Army of Darkness - Sam Raimi
The Host - Joon Ho Bong
Siquijor : Mystic Island - Sid Lucero

Action/War
Volcano High (Korean v)
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

Experimental
The Heart of the World
The World Sinks Except Japan- Minoru Kawasaki
Taste of Tea
The Science of Sleep
Funky Forest: First Contact - Ishii Katsuhito, Ishimine Hajime, Miki Shun'ichiro
Un Chien Andalou

Documentary
Supersize Me - Morgan Spurlock
Southern Comfort
The Cats of Mirikitani
Into Great Silence
Living Dolls
Long Way Round - Ewan Macgregor
Wigstock - RuPaul
The Dark Side of Porn
The Human Footprint - David Tennant
Slacker - Richard Linklater
Jesus Camp
Walking with Dinosaurs (documentary series)
The Cruise - Speed Levitch, Bennett Miller
Moolaade

Suspense/Noir
Brick- Joseph Gordon Levitt
Chinatown

Recent - near Future/ Coming Releases:
Knocked Up - Judd Apatow
Gone Baby Gone - Ben Affleck, Casey Affleck
30 Days of Night - Josh Hartnett, Ben Foster
The Darjeeling Limited - Wes Anderson
The Fantastic Mr. Fox - Wes Anderson
Into the Wild - Sean Penn
Horton Hears a Who
Be Kind, Rewind - Michel Gondry
Forgetting Sarah Marshall - Judd Apatow
Superbad - Judd Apatow
Where the Wild Things Are -- Spike Jonze
Kung Fu Panda
Cassandra's Dream - Woody Allen
Sweeney Todd - Tim Burton
The Martian Child - John Cusack, Amanda Peet
The Tale of Desperaux
The Spirit - Frank Miller, Will Eisner (writer)
Watchmen - Alan Moore (writer)
Grace is Gone - John Cusack
The Dark Knight
Juno - Ellen Page, Michael Cera
Lars and the Real Girl - Ryan Gosling

How to Train Your Dragon
Shrek 3D
Brendan and the Secret of Kells
The Red Shoes - Marvin Agustin, Nikki Gil
Emir
The Road

Now we take on BLOODLUST

A phenomenon identified by the overwhelming desire to shed (someone else's) blood.


*

I've always wondered why the mice in Looney Tunes cartoons are always fiendishly conspiring against the hapless cats who are just doing their jobs. It's always the cat that gets beaten up by the stupid bulldog. --The one who gets his tail tied onto a rope that runs through the chimney, the ladder, the fishbowl, the baby grand and any number of uncomfortable places as the rock it's connected to is rolled off the roof.

Why? Because the mice need a home and they've taken a shine to the kitty's estate. And never, never, never does the kitty get the chance to get one over those mean rats. And we're supposed to laugh at this?

I have a sense of humor but homicidal rodents are NOT funny. It's bad enough that rats and mice used to carry the plague but once they start to actively pursue ways of offing you... well crap. All bets are off.

And come on! The cat's only doing his job to protect his domain from the filthy vermin. So why is he the "villain" or the underdog cat? I'd understand it if the cat was antagonizing the mice in a blatantly unjustified manner like, say, if he went to Mappyland (copyright Namco/Midway games) and started snacking on them*. But the cat's always in his house, resting or minding his own business until the mice decide to make his life miserable in a violent, spine-shattering, traumatizing manner.

This is the sort of thing people don't laugh about. At this level you can't merely call it laughter, it's rubbing your hands together whilst maniacally and evilly cackling as you send your flying monkeys off to do your dirty work.


*.But the thing is IF a cat decides to make hors d'oeuvres of the little vermin when he does visit Mappyland or Disneyland, it can still be argued as justifiable. It's supported by the cat's innate biology/physiology and ancestral memory. RATS = LUNCH. Deal with it.

Rats = Murderous Creatures = Funny? I am unconvinced.

Pop! (Someone's been watching Pinoy Klasiks Rewind again)

(Here's another years-old post. I promise I'll get to the current stuff - Hero) 


Not that there's much point in doing this, but I thought it was time for another litany on aspects of popular culture. This time I'm focusing on local movies. It's in sections cause I'm not really into the whole "in summary" thing.

 (clockwise from bottom-center : Nino Muhlach, the Gorio and Tekla poster, the Hyatt Terraces Hotel, the poster for Diborsyada.)

1.       I saw a few minutes of a Nino Muhlach movie about a month ago and was reminded of how astute and precocious he was during his pre-ensyamada days. Maybe his role as a four year old pandesal vendor walking the streets staggers the imagination (how many cherubic, puffy-cheeked, healthy looking children are there actually roaming the streets plying their wares these days? Cherubic, puffy-cheeked AND healthy-looking, unfortunately, being the operative terms) but his performance was nothing less than delightful.

How can one fault a child who can believably churn out adult-like spiels like the best of them and still maintain an air of innocence about him? It wasn't an amazing performance, but it definitely wasn't cloying or forced either.
   
Unfortunately, it was also a Fernando Poe Jr. movie so I took my ten minutes of Nino Muhlach and changed channels. I’m not a  suntok -at-isa-pang-suntok kind of person.

Among the current crop of child performers, I'd say Sharlene San Pedro is the one who reminds me most of Nino. She carries a relaxed wit about her that, if ever it is a practiced keenness, seems natural enough to convince me that she was taken from her mother's womb bathed in it.

Her foil would have to be her colleague Nash Aguas, whose acting seems to have a more obviously calculated and strained effect to it. But then again with proper guidance and management, both actors can still get better in the years to come. 

2.       I may have mentioned this before but one reason I like watching local movies from the 60s until the 80s is because I like observing how much the landcape has changed.
       
A few years back one of my favorite movies (I can't remember the title) was one that starred a bunch of young actors including Janice de Belen and Nadia Montenegro and had Freddie Webb and Nova Villa among the supporting cast of adults.

For the most part it was one of your run-of-the-mill teen angst/prom movies, but I loved it because of the scene in the old amusement park inside the Greenhills Shopping Center. I couldn’t remember what the actors were doing there but I guess it was either a date or an excursion. All I cared about seeing was the park.

The park was a knock-off of Disneyland called Fantasyland and they weren’t exactly discreet about the copyright abuse with their obviously-Mickey Mouse statues and the like, but the again, what child notices those things? (I think I did, but I didn’t care.)

It had the Octopus, a mini Ferris Wheel, and a bunch of other rides. I don’t remember if I went on many rides (actually the clearest memory I have is of a jilted attempt to go on the Octopus) but it’s the thought that counts.

The thought, of course, is of when my parents and grandparents would take us out there on weekends to have fun with our cousins, and come home with a treat or two. A few years or so after that, because of my dad’s job our weekends and vacations would be spent in the province doing absolutely nothing. (We weren’t allowed outside there.)

I also reported about the old Baguio in an earlier post on the movie Diborsyada starring Gina Alajar, Michael de Mesa and Jimi Melendez. Lots of old movies showed Baguio owing to the fact that it was the destination at the time and pretty much until the 1990 earthquake.

Baguio had the cool climate (a welcome respite from the humid Manila), the scenic views, the parang-Isteyts amenities at Camp John Hay (random retardedness: back in the 80s when we spent our summer hols there, I met a candy bar vending machine and I was so psyched. Could you tell that I didn’t get out much?) and the exquisite Hyatt Hotel.

 Ah, the Hyatt Hotel, I have fond memories of running around in its corridors and watching people go up and down the glass escalator. Aside from being the primary location for Diborsyada, this gorgeous hotel was also featured in the movie Kung Mangarap Ka’t Magising starring Christopher De Leon and Hilda Koronel.

 Whenever I see the scene where Christopher de Leon and his older lover are hiding from a girl in the lobby cafe, I am reminded of how clever the hotel’s design was. I loved the circular booths which (if I remember correctly) sort of blended into the split- level floor of the lobby and allowed you proper intimacy. Why, I wouldn’t be surprised if the cafe wasn’t the scene for many clandestine meetings just like the one in the movie.

 If only the earthquake never happened, for more reasons than this of course, I think the Hyatt would be quite the landmark. I don’t think the architecture would have been dated at all, the passing of time would have made it rustic and luxurious at the same time. I think it’s called a paradox. Don’t quote me on that, I haven’t had my brain juice today.

*

Just yesterday I saw a movie called Jack n’ Jill the Third Kind with Nora Aunor as Dolphy’s tomboyish sister (oh you know she’ll be “cured.” Every mainstream actor who plays gay in the movies is freakin’ cured.) and I was awestruck by a little scene where Nora was driving her little jeepney which had a Cubao –somewhere route.

From both sides of the jeepney you could see vast expanses of land and an uncluttered skyline and I thought, no way was that Cubao. Of course, it could also mean that their production designer was a lazy heifer and he didn’t give much thought to the painted route signage on the jeep.

 But still, this was the 1970s (1979, to be exact) and at that time Manila wasn’t as filled up as it is now.

 A little over a decade ago here in Commonwealth Avenue, Ever Gotesco wasn’t standing. There were huge empty tracts of land covered with wild grass and, it was supposedly perilous for commuters to pass through here because of bandits. But these days the streets are crowded with jeepneys, buses, and a never-ending supply of people walking and running, even where they’re not supposed to.

So it’s nice to see a Manila that’s a little bit more pristine than what I’m used to but not exactly completely alien either. I cherish the idea that even if that Old Manila is long gone, I was still a part. –Even if the only way I’ll ever see it again is through old films.

 

*I looked through IMDB and it’s apparently called Tender Age but for some reason Janice isn’t listed. I don’t even remember ol’ Greta being in there but Carmi Martin definitely was.

3.       I’ve finally discovered the title of that Gabby Concepcion- Maricel Soriano starrer I’ve been looking for. It’s called Pepe en Pilar. :squeals like a girl:

Now all I need is a working copy of that, Mike de Leon’s Itim (which I’ve read has excellent production design. --I’m thinking of following Sir Hernando’s footsteps so I have to see this.) and the Lea Salonga movie Dear Diary which has an episode starring Michael de Mesa that has shades of Psycho in the story. (Actually, come to that, wasn’t de Mesa’s psychosis blatantly liberated from  Norman Bates? He even had the dead mom?) Either way, I loved the spookiness of the episode.

4.       I know it’s camp comedy  and I SHOULD be able to laugh about this but Gorio en Tekla (starring Roderick Paulate and Maricel Soriano) seems kind of politically incorrect. For some reason they showed Roderick’s character, an effeminate Igorot, hanging from the trees at the beginning ala Tarzan.

I guess I’m offended because it kind of reminds me of the incorrect perception that Filipinos live in trees. Or if not the whole of us, just the indigenous people. I’m almost certain that the Igorot aren’t tree dwelling. (And I’ve hardly heard of any local tribe as being so.)

But I suppose I shouldn’t be so critical. For the most part they’re exaggerated, uncategorized, fictional tribal people and they did outsmart the bad guys. Maybe I’m just bored and looking for a fight.

Wanna have a go?

5.      If Jack en Jill the Third Kind is good enough reference to go on, sward speak or, salitang bading hasn’t changed so much since the 70s. -Which means that this culture is virtually indefatigable and practically timeless.

Awesome.

And hey, + 10 points to the film for Dolphy’s excellent portrayal of a gay man which is eons away from the current crop’s tiresome performances of gay men which can confusingly described as straight-guys-playing-gay-guys-while trying- to- look- strained- so- that- nobody- will- ever- confuse- them- as- gay in- real- life. Or briefly, “closet queen” acting.

+20 points for a non-villain role for Paquito Diaz. He played a macho guy who turns into a dandy. Not exactly great acting but unlike Polo Ravales (for example, in Manay Po), the expert villain is giving his all as a Joe who is converted into a beauty queen.

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Unrelated: I met a few Film students last year in my copywriting class who had this special language of their own. Well, two words in place of two NORMAL words.  If they liked something they said "check," and if they didn't, they said "ex" like in "x."

I was totally awed by how they could express themselves by calling out symbols you normally use to grade a test paper. How ingenious.

Nagpapatawa, hindi naman kalbo!

(NOTE: This is a two-year old post and I've learned so many things since then. - Hero)

The other day I happened to catch the last quarter hour of Diborsyada, a 1960s (or early 70s) film starring Gina Alajar and Michael de Mesa. There was one scene where Gina (Gina Alajar's character. How serendipitous!) told Michael (Michael de Mesa's character. How fortuitous!) said the line in the blog title.

And I went "Are you crazy? That's Michael de Mesa. He is bald!” Or balding, in any case. The fact that he was so hairy at the time that it was as if growing hair was his mutant power (apologies to Tom Beland, author/artist of the comic series True Story, Swear To God...) notwithstanding.

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Truthfully, the movie didn't do much for me. It wasn't bakya, that's the term I save for Joyce Bernal's recent comedies. Sorry, fans. (Save for Kimmy Dora which was truly fun - Hero.). However, it was badly edited. The jump cuts were frequent and detracted from the momentum. The script was also a little overlong when it came to the meaningful exchanges. --I guess what I mean is that the characters would pontificate unnaturally even though they're supposed to be wrought with emotion that a normal person shouldn't be able to speak so eloquently at the moment.

But I liked it even through the sloppy editing and forced writing. Gina Alajar is a great actress. I've always known that but I thought I'd mention it anyway. Kwago (Michael de Mesa's nickname from Batang Batang Batang Batang X! I love calling him that) was a great lech. And there was this other guy who played the second husband. He looked familiar but I can't remember where I've seen him before.

The best part, however, is Baguio. The movie was shot in Baguio back when the elegant Hyatt Hotel still stood. It looked cool, clean and beautiful. One of the main reasons I watch movies from the early 80s and 70s is to see how Manila and Baguio and its people looked like. At least those eras are similar in environment to the times of my childhood but without the trash and flash fashion of the Cyndi Lauper-New Wave-Bagets era.

Maaann. 1970’s Manila was pretty. (Or it looked pretty, based on the movies and photos I've seen. - Hero)

Wait! IMDB lists Gina Alajar's Japanese-speaking second husband in the movie as Jimi Melendez. Aiko's dad? I thought maybe it was Richard Bonnin.

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I'm looking to watch an old Gabby Concepcion and Maricel Soriano comedy that involves a tandem name title and a bottle of arsenic but I can't remember what it was. I also want to watch the old John en Marsha movies. I remember enjoying them but hopefully I won't find them as bad as I did Ernest Scared Stupid ten years after first seeing it.

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