Reviews

Jeffrey Jeturian's first feature film was a critics' favorite two years ago, though it failed to hit the right notes at the box-office where it was shown on a "first-day and last-day" basis. Nida Blanca plays a mother who grieves over the death of her professor-husband (Chinggoy Alonzo), while ertswhile sexy actor Gerald Madrid plays the son who finds the love he's looking for in the hands of his father's concubine (model-turned-actress Angel Aquino), setting the plot for an old-fashioned melodrama. The acting is a mixture of the 50's and 90's style, and even the camerawork is a bit murky and dizzying especially in the scene wherein the two lead characters had a confrontation. But this independent film is still borderline watchable.

Lualhati Bautista's award-winning novel was adapted to the big-screen with brilliant results: the casting (specially Mayor Vilma Santos as the strong-willed Leah Bustamante) is perfect; Bautista's script is filled with comic and dramatic undertones. 8 year-old Serena Dalrymple provided most of the laughs as the innocent child who serves as Leah's mirror of her personality. Everything in the film is a labor of love and art, and it deserves to be a classic.

The Man in Her Life was supposed to be shown way back 1997, but it became a hot property at the censors that's why it was released a year after. It received good critical and box-office reception in our country, primarily because of Ricky Davao's award-worthy performance as the problem-plagued hero. Erstwhile sexy star Rosanna Roces proved that her attempts to make "serious movies" like this aren't no fluke; her Selya is believable. Even Ryan Cayabyab's musical score is touching. The only problem is the script, which doesn't have continuity. The story has problems in identifying Selya's true persona as to her relationships between Bobby and Ramon. The dialogue doesn't come out realistic. Most of all, the subject matter was treated in a melodramatic way that will turn off most moviegoers who want a more frank view of homosexuality. At any rate, the film is still watchable.