You have to admire Master Showman German Moreno’s dedication to the local film industry. I often hear him on his radio program promoting locally made films and the actors and actresses in these projects. Sometimes he would reminisce about the golden age of Philippine cinema and the superstars that gave the industry class.
I’m no fan of Mr. Moreno but I sure can admire his undying love for the movie industry. However I do feel that, as with his signature jackets, he sometimes goes overboard with his praise. I would sometimes hear him say things like, “ipagmalaki natin ang pelikulang Pilipino,” or “suportahan natin ang Pelikulang Pilipino.”
I don’t know about you, but whenever Mr. Moreno says such things I feel a bit of pity for him. Here he is a veteran who has seen the industry when it was still producing praise-worthy samples of cinematic art now forced to praise non-existent brilliance.
It cannot be denied that for the longest time now Philippine cinema has been producing nothing but garbage, recycled garbage even. Just consider the entries of the Metro Manila Film Festival in the past 5 years or so. They’re mostly the same movies with the same plot lines and characters, with the same titles even year in year out. Talk about creativity.
I can acknowledge that perhaps local movie producers stick to tried and tested formulas because of the pressure to make some money. What I don’t understand is why these producers still bother to make movies when they know there has been a steady decline in the patronage of locally made films. Are they doing this to keep the industry alive?
I will admit that I prefer foreign films over locally produced ones. I think I have a valid reason for that. I don’t find local movies interesting, exciting or even entertaining at all.
The last Filipino movie I watched in a theater was the Rene Requiestas-Kris Aquino starrer Pido Dida. It was a complete waste of time and money. I remember it was film festival week and there were no foreign movies playing. This is actually one of my criticisms of the Metro Manila Film festival. Why limit the choices of moviegoers to several local films the quality of which ranges from bad to really bad?
Senator Bong Revilla Jr., who happens to be one of the lead stars of one of this year’s MMFF entries, once authored a bill to push for a reduction in the amusement tax imposed on movie producers. I don’t know what has become of that bill but that was his way of helping the industry.
I don’t know if you notice a pattern. It seems there a lot of interventions going on in support of the industry. It’s not difficult to see why moves such as reducing taxes (Revilla’s bill) and taking out foreign competition (local movies only policy during MMFF week) are seen by insiders as the solution to the industry’s problems.
I, of course, disagree. I think there’s a better solution, one that would benefit everyone involved including moviegoers who are willing to pay good money for an enjoyable cinematic experience. The solution I propose — Make Better Movies.
Yes, it’s as simple as that.
So how should the industry go about creating better movies. Does it simply hire better directors, writers, actors, production people, etcetera? Obviously. However, I think the first step is to stop all this showbiz nonsense.
Industry insiders should be honest enough to call out a bad movie or a bad performance regardless of who was responsible for it. So what if the “offender” is the Mega-Super-Duper-Star-For-All-Occasions? One cannot improve if all he hears are praises for even his worst output.
Speaking of outputs, here are this year’s MMFF winners:
Best Actress – Ai Ai delas Alas (Ang Tanging Ina Mo, Last Na ‘To!)
Best Supporting Actress – Eugene Domingo (Ang Tanging Ina Mo, Last Na ‘To!)
Best Picture – Ang Tanging Ina Mo, Last Na ‘To!
Best Director – Wenn V. Deramas (Ang Tanging Ina Mo, Last Na ‘To!)
Best Child Performer – Xyriel Manabat (Ang Tanging Ina Mo, Last Na ‘To!)
Best Screenplay – Mel del Rosario (Ang Tanging Ina Mo, Last Na ‘To!)
Best Musical Score – Jesse Lasatem (Ang Tanging Ina Mo, Last Na ‘To!)
Gender Sensitive Award: Ang Tanging Ina Mo, Last Na ‘To!
Best Actor – Dolphy (Father Jejemon)
Best supporting Actor – Dolphy (Rosario)
2nd Best Picture – Rosario
Best Cinematography – Carlo Mendoza (Rosario)
Best Editing – John Wong (Rosario)
Best Production Design – Joel Luna and Miki Hahn (Rosario)
Gatpuno Antonio Villegas Cultural Award – Rosario
Best Float – Rosario
Best Dressed – Dennis Trillo and Jennylyn Mercado (Rosario)
3rd Best Picture – RPG Metanoia
Best Theme Song – “Kaya Ko” (RPG Metanoia)
Gender Sensitive Award: Special Citation for Animation – RPG Metanoia
Best Sound Recording – Ambient Media (RPG Metanoia) and Ditoy Aguila (Super Inday and the Golden Bibe)
Best Visual Effects – Rico Gutierrez and Co. (Si Agimat at si Enteng Kabisote)
Best Indie Film – Presa (Adolf Alix)
Faces of the Night – Senator Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. and Sam Pinto
Let’s ignore that troubling detail about having a Best Float, Best Dressed and Faces of the Night. Let’s focus on the top awards. Notice that those went to comedians and the comedy film “Ang Tanging Ina Mo Rin: Last Na ‘To.” Admittedly, I find this odd since I’m not used to the idea of comedy films being hailed as showcases of great acting and great stories, well, at least in this part of the world. But for “Tanging Ina” director Wenn Deramas, this victory is proof of a growing respect for comedies.
Well, to me this outcome is just funny, ridiculous even. But what else can we expect? Contrary to what it is making itself out to be, the MMFF is not exactly the best way to determine artistic or creative excellence in local conema. How can that be when its criteria for judging includes box-office earnings? It’s clear to me that the MMFF is nothing more than a popularity contest.
I really feel for the Master Showman. I can tell that he sincerely wants Philippine Cinema to regain its lost glory. I suspect he even knows the industry’s future depends on the quality of its output. It’s just too bad he is considered a showbiz luminary, an icon and as such he can’t just go around criticizing his colleagues. Actually, he can but that would be too un-showbiz.
Our Filipino Film Screenwriters are lacking in real talents and good sense. The story-lines of Filipino movies do not make sense. Bong Revilla’s Bill protects the sub-standard movie stories. It intends monopoly; instead of healthy competition. You have no choice, but, to see a nonsense movie…so, we remain not improving the standard of Filipino movies, patronized by captive Filipino audiences.
I have yet to see a good Filipino writen movie story…
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maybe u should watch the movie before you can say it wasnt any good. that’ll make ur analysis more credible
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bp Reply:
December 30th, 2010 at 7:01 pm
gabbyd,
which movie? i’ve seen enough local movies on TV re-runs. nothing’s changed. i can bet you it’s all bad. the trailers are enough for me.
i’m actually easy to please. all i want for a movie is that it be entertaining, that it would make it easy for me to suspend my disbelief and that it’s production values be excellent.
sa production value pa lang talo na. wanna bet?
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bp Reply:
December 30th, 2010 at 7:10 pm
there’s one movie though among the entries that i might watch. but then again i checked the reviews and they’re generally negative. the movie btw is rosario. one thing i like about it judging by its trailer is the production value that went into it.
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Hyden Toro Reply:
December 31st, 2010 at 9:40 am
Actors and Actresses became Politicians. They can pass laws to sell you movies that are not even your money’s worth. Ever heard of a legislated Highway Robbery?
GabbyD Reply:
January 1st, 2011 at 8:56 am
i’m just saying, to criticize something, u had to have seen it. otherwise, you are guessing.
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bp Reply:
January 1st, 2011 at 11:33 am
gabbyd,
yes you are right, but then if you read my post again you’ll see that i was not criticizing any specific movie. i wax criticizing the whole industry and its dismal output. i suppose you can understand that i need only recall all the past filipino movies i saw to be able to make a judgment of the general situation.
but do check out the reviews of this year’s mmff entries and tell me if i “guessed” wrong.
GabbyD Reply:
January 3rd, 2011 at 1:29 pm
“The last Filipino movie I watched in a theater was the Rene Requiestas-Kris Aquino starrer Pido Dida.”
this is more than 15 years ago. watch some new movies.
bp Reply:
January 3rd, 2011 at 1:41 pm
you’re not paying attention gabbyd. that’s the last movie i saw in a theatre. i have since seen more on tv reruns as i said. i was never able to finish any kasi nga they’re not entertaining and interesting at all.
@GabbyD
Hey Dude, I know you are one of the Yellow Horde Nazis. You seems to be ignorant on the advances of Antenae Reception Tecnology. NASA was able to send a Robot Videographer on the Planet Mars. The Antenae Reception Technology was so strong; it gives a very detailed picture here on Planet Earth; from the Mars Rover Equipment.
I happen to possess a strong Antenae, that can receive all TV Broadcasts, on all TV stations thruout the world.The Philippines, included. Even though, I live in the United States. I can watch some Filipino Films, on TV. Stories are mostly: (1) people quarreling, talking nonsense. Can these Filipino Screenwriters, write sensible dialogues? (2) Antagonist, and Protagonist running after one another, with guns, knives, etc…for idiotic reasons, or , for no reasons at all. (3) There are not even INCITING INCIDENTS, to define the premises of the stories. (4) The ending of the stories are confusing…
I don’t criticize, just to criticize the Filipino Film industry. I want it improved, at money’s worth for Filipino audiences.
Because Actors and Actresses became Politicians; or are “malakas” to those in power. They just want monopoly of the film industry. Making films, not even your money’s worth. Anyway, people have no choices…Bong Revilla, you can answer this Blog, if you want to…
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Have you watched the movies?
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bp Reply:
January 2nd, 2011 at 2:10 pm
observer,
what movie in particular? because if you read my post again you will see i am not referring to a specific entry in this year’s mmff. read my response to gabbyd.
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gabbyd,
better yet name me an excellent filipino movie that came out in recent years. i can name a few that, in my opinion were quite good but really boring in terms of execution or some other failing. jose rizal by marilou diaz abaya seemed ok but then again it must be just the topic itself. all in all it wasn’t as entertaining nor interesting. of course, everyone else at that time thought it was great. but ask them why they thought it was great and they won’t be able to cite one reason aside from the fact that it was about jose rizal.
what about that vilma santos-claudine barreto movie about ofw life? i forgot the title. now that i found more engaging in fact i watched it in full. unfortunately it had way too much hysterics for my taste.
you really should tell me why you seem to think philippine cinema is not as bad as i think it is instead of simply countering my views for the heck of it. that way you’d add something to the discussion.
if you’re up to it just answer this question: is philippine cinema’s output in the past ten years or so mostly good or mostly bad? the same question goes to you mr or miss observer.
i don’t really give a hoot if the movers of philippine cinema are satisfied with their output i just find it really annoying to hear a piece of crap being adjudged best movie or an actor/actress as wooden as kris aquino being honored as the best.
open your eyes. don’t you see the problem here?
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paul farol Reply:
January 5th, 2011 at 10:48 am
The Unitel Productions such as Crying Ladies, Anak, and Visa (movie where Robin Padilla plays a taxi driver who wants to go to the states) were pretty good in the sense that it entertained me and made me a little emotional (I laughed, cried, farted…)
All three films garnered some acclaim, despite a couple of obvious faults in editing (it felt as if there were some missing scenes and some were actually jarring) and some other snags.
I think part of the problem may be volume.
Take the US for example.
I am pretty sure they have a great number of really stupid films (I mean worse than Pauly Shore) and outright bombs, but they come out with dozens of really good films.
Let’s just say that the percentage of bad and mediocre films is about 90 percent vs 10 percent that are really good. So, if their entire film industry makes about a 1,000 movies a year, they end up with about 100 that are really good.
In the Philippines the number may be close to a few dozen and so, I guess, our chances of actually finding one or two really good films in a year is really slim.
Then again, I ask myself, what the fuck do I really know? I rarely, rarely watch Filipino Films and even the really good ones I watched have stretches that really don’t interest me at all. (There are stretches in Rizal that I don’t care for and that Film really got a lot of acclaim.)
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bp Reply:
January 5th, 2011 at 1:12 pm
paul,
yes that’s one way of looking at it.
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GabbyD Reply:
January 5th, 2011 at 5:03 pm
“Then again, I ask myself, what the fuck do I really know? I rarely, rarely watch Filipino Films and even the really good ones I watched have stretches that really don’t interest me at all. ”
exactly my point. if u dont watch the movies, and if u dont find them interesting, what do you really know?
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bp Reply:
January 5th, 2011 at 7:28 pm
gabbyd,
you’re just stretching it.
trust me i’ve seen enough filipino made movies from my childhood up to the present day for me to be able to have enough basis to criticize philippine cinema.
are you saying i should watch all filipino made movies to be able to do that?
allow me to ask you a question: would you say philippine cinema is great? if not, how would you describe it?
GabbyD Reply:
January 6th, 2011 at 3:52 am
i have never said it think its “great”. i have a personal opinion about some movies i’ve seen, some of it entertained me.
but of the few i’ve seen, i dont feel qualified to make any judgements.
but YOU do. and my point is simple and singular: if u wanna criticize a movies — watch them. its the LEAST we expect a reviewer to do.
as a start, at least know what the titles and the plots are. but thats just the start.
bp Reply:
January 6th, 2011 at 8:41 am
gabbyd,
and that is my point also. i was not reviewing a specific film, was i? what film did you think i was referring to anyway?
another thing, yes I do feel qualified to comment ON PHILIPPINE CINEMA/PHILIPPINE ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY IN GENERAL. why? because i’ve seen pido dida and many other filipino films via tv re-runs. i don’t think i need to see all the filipino films ever made to be able to make an observation. besides, in my article i was focused more on something else instead of a specific film.
GabbyD Reply:
January 6th, 2011 at 9:54 am
we are talking about the MMFF movies.
your point is (i ithink): i dont need 2 see the MMFF movies. i’ve seen filipino movies before — pido-dida in the theater back in the 90s(?) and some on TV. using this info, i have enough info to judge the MMFF movies. heck, not just the MMFF movies, BUT ALL MOVIES THAT WILL EVER BE PRODUCED IN THE FUTURE AS WELL.
my answer: you need to watch the movies first in order to judge if they are good or bad. you can GUESS, but thats just a guess.
clear?
bp Reply:
January 6th, 2011 at 10:07 am
gabbyd,
no that’s not my point. that’s what you make it out to be. my point is in the title “showbiz bad for local film industry.” what do i mean by that? here’s the excerpt that should explain it further:
The MMFF wasn’t even my main focus. it was just a sidebar. now in fairness to you i did say this:
don’t you think the mmff outcome is kinda funny? be honest now.
bp Reply:
January 6th, 2011 at 10:15 am
hey wait a minute. where did you get the idea that i’ve passed judgment on ALL MOVIES THAT WILL EVER BE PRODUCED IN THE FUTURE AS WELL? is it not clear that i am in fact challenging the industry to do better because once they do more people including myself will most likely start watching filipino movies again?
“where did you get the idea that i’ve passed judgment on ALL MOVIES THAT WILL EVER BE PRODUCED IN THE FUTURE AS WELL? i”
you said this:” …i suppose you can understand that i need only recall all the past filipino movies i saw to be able to make a judgment of the general situation.”
you said u can assess the “general situation” (which includes the future) coz uve, in the past, seen a few movies.
i guess you can believe that. BUT ITS NOT A CORRECT STATEMENT.
_________
NEXT: you said “make better movies”
that just proves my point –HOW CAN U TELL if the movies are better?
by WATCHING THEM.
clear?
“
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bp Reply:
January 6th, 2011 at 10:57 am
gabbyd,
wow man. you’re twisting my words. you yourself highlighted it. general situation is what i said. in my mind that doesn’t include FUTURE MOVIES for how can that be included in the CURRENT SITUATION. don’t set definitions for what i said.
about assessing the general situation. c’mon so you really are saying i have to be very very thorough to be able to come up with an assessment. hmmm. you know what the last filipino movie i watched? it’s the remake of working girls which i saw on cable because someone else was watching it. i saw it just a few days before christmas. so now i ask you. does that count or not?
about “make better movies” and your question “how can u tell?” of course i should watch so i can tell. now here’s one for you how do you decide if you will watch a movie or not? personally, i review the trailers. that’s how? now you might ask me “how can you tell if a movie is good or not by watching only the trailers?” well, i can. it’s a gift. no, seriously, i can because i know what i’m looking for and i already said it in the earlier comments.
let’s just focus on production values. when i view a trailer i check if the actors look like the characters they’re playing. example, if the role is a dirt poor person i don’t expect the actor to be looking all glamorous at all especially when the scene places them in the dumps. so as soon as i see that the costume of the character obviously looks newly bought i immediately know this movie’s production values is bad. if they can’t get that detail right how else can they get the bigger details such as production sets right.
have you seen movie goons using wooden sticks for their fight scenes? have you noticed how those supposedly wooden sticks bend like foam when they hit the lead character? well that happens because it is foam not wood. now as a viewer did i need to see that it was foam? hmmm. of course not. question, how can i suspend my disbelief if i constantly see such ridiculous bloopers on the movie? tell me please. will i be entertained if i cannot suspend my disbelief because the movie itself makes it hard for me to do so? i don’t know aboutn you but i certainly can’t.
there are other things of course that i look out for but to summarize, i know which films to watch by checking out the trailers. i also check out the reviews. don’t you do that.
now i can tell you straight that i haven’t seen that many trailers of filipino movies that convinced me to watch them in full. one exception, and i also said this in the earlier comments, rosario. i like the production value in that and in the trailer i can already see that the actors did a decent job. so i might go watch that, but probably on video. i did read though that it has some failings.
so you see, none of what you’re saying really goes against what i’ve written. really. you’re just nitpicking i think.
question:
IS IT CLEAR NOW?
[Reply]
“about “make better movies” and your question “how can u tell?” of course i should watch so i can tell.”
thank you. this is my point. my only point.
if you dont, you are guessing. it doesnt matter how you decide which movies to see — if you havent seen it, you cannot tell if its good or not.
to be clear: its ok to guess. but lets be equally clear — its ONLY a guess.
to be clear: its ok to use trailers. but you cannot judge a movie based on a trailer. the most u can say is: i dont think it’ll be good based on the trailer/i GUESS its not a good movie based on its trailer.
but to judge it as good or bad, u really do need to see it. there’s no escaping that fact.
that is my point.
_________
ok. this is funny. the “general case” is only the present? i guess you are right– but i’m working from the simple principle. the principle is this:
if u judge the present from the past, what will ever change in the future? the future is just the present that hasnt happened yet.
if u behave like this today, it is natural to expect that this behavior will happen in the future.
i.e. i tried a hotdog once. now, when i look at the “general situation” of a hotdog before me, i recall my past experience and not eat the hotdog. when tomorrow comes, i see another hotdog i will behave EXACTLY THE SAME AS YESTERDAY coz nothing changed.
how do we know the hotdog is yummy? eat it. there is no escaping that reality.
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bp Reply:
January 6th, 2011 at 11:28 am
gabbyd,
but then again, as i already said repeatedly, i wasn’t reviewing a particular film. the article wasn’t even about a film or any film. it was about a troubling phenomena, behaviour, culture or whatever that has been going on in the entertainment industry. i call it showbiz which for me means bolahan, too much back patting, you know what i mean.
as for the simple principle. whatever man. i may hate lechon because when i tasted it before i didn’t like it. it tasted bad. now my good friend paul is recommending that i try out sabroso lechon. will i try it or will i not? if i was so traumatized by the taste of the first lechon i ever had then i probably wont. but because i’m a sensible person — at least i think so — it’s very likely i will go and have a taste.
so you see the point you wish to assert doesn’t even matter really. it’s not as if i took the position that ALL FILIPINO MOVIES HENCEFORTH WILL BE BAD AND I WILL NOT WATCH ANY OF THEM.
again i say that i am actually challenging the industry to do better. is asking for this a bad thing?
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GabbyD Reply:
January 6th, 2011 at 2:18 pm
not to beat a dead horse, since we’ve agreed that “tasting” is the best way to determine if its good..
your example is an interesting way to prove my point : ” i may hate lechon because when i tasted it before i didn’t like it. it tasted bad. now my good friend paul is recommending that i try out sabroso lechon. ”
so, why did paul have the stones to recommend sabroso?
Answer: he’s tried it and liked it.
now, if paul recommends something he isnt sure is good, then your friend may not really be your friend (and may be an employee of sabroso)
its inescapable. to judge a product, u gotta try it.
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bp Reply:
January 6th, 2011 at 2:53 pm
gabbyd,
well you are actually beating a dead horse. because tasting/seeing etc was never my issue. and for accuracy’s sake i did not agree that “tasting” is the best way to determine if its good. you’re misunderstanding me again. i gave you the example about sabroso simply to tell you that i have no problems “tasting” even if i already a bad experience “tasting” a similar product. this was just a direct response to your repeated attempts to imply that i have judged all future filipino movies as bad and that i did so without even seeing them first.
now it seems you refuse to understand that trailers are like samples. when you view a trailer you can more or less say if the movie is bad or good. that’s just it. what do you think. oh nevermind i’m sure you’ll find another way to twist my words to suit your argument.
to move this forward it would be better if you stop forcing the point that “to judge a product, u gotta try it.” it’s a non-issue because by watching the trailers i am actually trying out the product.
and to remind you again for the nth time, the article is not a movie review. if you think it is tell me what movie did i review?
bp Reply:
January 6th, 2011 at 2:57 pm
gabbyd,
i think you need to go through all your arguments again. your statement are getting weirder and weirder, really. just read this one:
it doesn’t make sense. it’s faulty for the simple reason that it is a fact that paul is a friend of mine and that that fact will not change whether or not he is sure that what he is recommending is good.
bp Reply:
January 6th, 2011 at 3:01 pm
gabbyd,
let’s move this forward ok. you’re just stretching the discussion and for what for something that i did not even say or do. instead, just tell me am i wrong to say that there’s something wrong with the industry? do you think there’s nothing wrong? did i identify a wrong problem?
i’d really appreciate it more if you’d answer these questions.
GabbyD Reply:
January 6th, 2011 at 5:31 pm
i’m sorri about dragging paul into this. i was merely illustrating the general principle.
i do hope that when someone recommends something to you, that person knows what he’s doing and recommends with complete knowledge about the product.
sadly, a trailer isnt a sample. its advertising. movie reviewers dont watch the trailer and then rate the movie. (altho that would simplify their lives!)
you said: ” i did not agree that “tasting” is the best way to determine if its good. ”
huh? eh sabi mo watching is the best way to determine if its good. i used an analogy with the tasting the hotdog bit.
recall that you said: ““about “make better movies” and your question “how can u tell?” of course i should watch so i can tell.””
is there something wrong with the industry? maybe. probably. there’s stuff wrong with hollywood too. nothings perfect. i am not prepared to opine intelligently about it. i havent seen the latest films.
you can write another post about it, but pls be as specific as possible why its bad. your comment about missing production value might a good start. thats a valid reason, depending on the specific movie.
dont keep it in the comments tho, feel free to expound on as a complete blog post. i look forward 2 reading it.
speaking of good film criticism, watch plinkett’s “Star Wars, the phantom menace review”. its funny and very specific about why phantom menace is a horrible movie.
bp Reply:
January 6th, 2011 at 6:00 pm
gabbyd,
you quoted it so you should see the difference:
here’s what i said according to you (sorry i’m running late so i can’t review the comments right now).
and here’s what you said:
i certainly did not agree to the context you provided which included some qualitative degree (best). but you know this is a minor thing. i leave it to you to dissect further if you like.
i’m sorry too man but a trailer is a sample or if you prefer a sampling of the movie. yes, it is advertising. i hate to split hairs but what is being advertised? the movie. how is that done? by showing segments or clips from the movie. clips do not show the whole of the movie, true, but they do give you a glimpse, a taste test in a way. i’m sure you get what i mean so i won’t belabor this point anymore.
now thanks for the tips about writing a movie review, but again i ask did i write a movie review? no, so i don’t know why you’re fixated on the wrong notion that i did. do i plan to write one in the future? no plans as of the moment.
thanks also for answering my question about whether or not the industry has problems. i just noticed though how carefully you crafted your answer even introducing another subject, hollywood. i just nticed the following is rather weird and faulty:
clearly, by “it” you mean hollywood or maybe philippine cinema. i think it’s hollywood. question: if i ask you something about hollywood, you won’t be able to answer intelligently unless you see the latest film? what if the question is not even about the latest film or films? strange, man.
in any case, thanks for acknowledging that there is probably something wrong with philippine cinema. that’s the only real difference between us on this topic. you say probably, i say definitely.
bp Reply:
January 6th, 2011 at 6:38 pm
gabbyd,
on the trailer thing. you know i thought about it and i’ve come to the conclusion that the only aspect of the movie that you really cannot judge intelligently using the trailer alone is the story/script. but for other aspects you certainly can. let’s consider the transformers movies. just by seeing the trailers you can immediately tell that it has great cgi and other effects. you can also tell that there’s lots of action. are those enough for me to watch the movie? yes because i can see that more than likely i would be able to suspend my disbelief (because optimus prime looks real and believable) therefore i can concentrate on enjoying the movie without being distracted by stupid production design. i can also tell that i will be entertained because i enjoy action movies and it’s good enough for me that the actors as seen on the trailer are doing a fairly acceptable acting performance.
compare this to the trailer of “si agimat at si enteng.” you can see vic sotto and bong revilla hamming it up. you can also that little kid teasing bong revilla and saying “uuuuyyyyy.” you can also see the production design for encantadia which is not too different from a design one would have for a garden wedding. you can also see the fight scenes with bong revilla performing a jump but actually looking like his floating. you can also see that the blows are obviously being thrown at a considerable distance from the lead actors (kitang kitang hindi tumatama but they want you to think na tumatama). you can also see that the costumes are bad. benjie paras’ character is obviously wearing a mask. bong revilla’s costume is way too “clean” as in malinis mukhang bagong pantsa for his character. etcetera etcetera.
by the trailer alone i can already say that this is a stupid movie. now if it so happens it turns out that the script/story itself is excellent then good, but still that’s just one shining aspect out of many highly distracting booboos. will it entertain me? no way. i’d be so frustrated watching this.
did i just give you a movie review? i can say yes but you’d reject it because you’d say i haven’t seen the whole movie. does it matter to me that you think this is not a movie review? no, because reviewing the movie isn’t intention anyway. i just wanted to give you a “trailer”, a sampling, a sample, a glimpse of how i determine if a movie is worth watching.
i almost forgot i also check out the reviews first from various sources.
http://pinoydirek.blogspot.com/2011/01/earlier-i-opted-to-see-movies-that.html
http://pinoymovieblogger.blogspot.com/2011/01/si-agimat-at-si-enteng-kabisote-2010.html
http://www.pep.ph/guide-movies/7402/pep-review-si-agimat-si-enteng-kabisote-provides-a-visual-treat-for-the-entire-family
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Si_Agimat_at_si_Enteng_Kabisote
enjoy!
For me, Filipinos are easy to entertain so that is why, even ‘tanging ina’ would easily appreciate by the people. Not like other movies in other countries, they are hard to entertain and the audience in other countries have a high standard when it comes to movie and they have lots of budget. I think, it depends on the people who watch it. See, we are in the Philippines. Let us accept the reality we have and I think, that would never change forever. Let us just respect what the Filipinos want.
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janefrances Reply:
January 10th, 2011 at 3:07 pm
Then why don’t they clap heartily when they like what they see? Embarrassment? Timidity? I have more respect for the Filipino viewing public. I’ve observed that when it comes to media, they are actually very media literate thanks to piracy. Isn’t it obvious that our local film industry is declining? It’s because the pinoys know that most of our films are crap. And if they want to treat themselves to “kababawan” then they watch pinoy films.
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bp Reply:
January 10th, 2011 at 3:21 pm
janefrances,
thanks for pointing it out.
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Daniel Reply:
January 15th, 2011 at 1:40 am
“Kababawan” huh? How I wish you better live in other countries than here in the Philippines. I do not want to argue with you. Anyway, bye-bye (^_^)
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bp Reply:
January 15th, 2011 at 1:54 am
daniel,
yes kababawan.
Rosario was a film that made me say “finally someone out there wants to bring back respect to the Filipino film industry.” Even if the subject matter did not portray a strong woman, or the production design slipped on aging make-up, I would say the film is worth watching.
I hope the producer of Rosario (MVP) won’t mind shelling out personal funds again to make more worthy films. However I pray he will be guided with his superb business sense and not his preference for gender.
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Ang masasabi ko lang, kung gusto nilang makatulong sa pag-asenso ng Pilipinas at di lang kumita, they should create movies that would inspire the youth to finish their studies, to plan for their future, to go after their dreams, or movies that inspire them to discover their talents hinde yung puro movies about ligawan. Hinde kasi yun makakatulong sa mga kabataan eh. Sawang sawa na ko sa mga love stories, gusto ko naman mainspire ng isang pelikulang pilipino.. sana may gumawa ng inspiring na movie with a little bit of comedy para di boring. We should inspire the youth kasi sila ang future natin, anong mangyayari sa Pilipinas kung ang lahat ng kabataang babae ay maagang nabubuntis?
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