 |
DVD Status: It’s Complicated!
 Run time: 110 min Rating: 5.3 Genres: Comedy | Romance Director: Chris Martinez Writers: Jose N. Carreon, Chris Martinez Stars: Eugene Domingo, Jake Cuenca, Maja Salvador |
| Storyline Manny and Jerry have been best buddies and housemates for a long time. Manny believes that love, just like sex, should be shared with as many partners as possible. On the other hand, Jerry thinks that he should wait it out for that special someone. They decide to swap lifestyles just to prove whose theory is right. Written by Keylogger24 |
|
| Plot Keywords: man in underwear, misunderstanding, birthday, drunk, hangover | |
| Details: Country: Philippines Release Date: 6 November 2013 (Philippines) |
|
previous post
2 comments
I get why this project was assigned to Chris Martinez. Regal films made Salawahan megged by Bernal in the 70's, who better else to remake this but Martinez? But then, why remake such a funny classic? I have to admit, while watching this on TV , I didn't know it was a remake, and the scenes were strangely familiar. In the restaurant scene when Domingo and Avelino left , I realized this was too much similarity to Salawahan. Boracay is a good choice as replacement for Baguio but all the others pale in comparison to the 1979 classic. Solenn is sexy and seemed to have done better than Sandy Andolong but the exchange of dialogue between Avelino and Solenn was …uncomfortable. Maybe because Avelino did such a bad job. One good thing is that (maybe) younger people will be interested to see what the original look like. So yes, go see the original, not this one.
STATUS: IT'S COMPLICATED is directed with flair and written wittily by Chris Martinez, that genius behind such campy comedies like HERE COMES THE BRIDE (2010) and TEMPTATION ISLAND (2011), and the musical extravaganza I DO BIDOO BIDOO (2012). (As a writer, Martinez has sharp observations and musings, seen in films he authored like BRIDAL SHOWER (2004), BIKINI OPEN (2005), SUKOB (2006), CAREGIVER (2008), 100 (2008) and KIMMY DORA: KAMBAL SA KIYEME (2009), and of course, the hilarious ANG BABAE SA SEPTIC TANK (2011) ).
Attractively cast (Maja Salvador, Jake Cuenca, Paulo Avelino, Solenn Heussaff and Ms Eugene Domingo), it's a collage of engaging performances, witty repartee and plush production design (Boracay is still breathtaking). However, Martinez' principals produce varied results: Domingo, apparently also his friend, mugs deliciously; Avelino tries to deadpan as a hunky ugly-duckling; Cuenca and Salvador try to outtalk each other, so their one-liners and kilometric dialogue have to be written with zing and panache (but sometimes it flounders); Solenn Heussaff proves she's more than eye candy for any movie (or TV soap). Distractions like insipid lines and face-the-camera-as-you-quip gimmicks mar the otherwise zany proceedings. One begins to get the point, about the battle of the sexes and the fallacy of double standards, but when the conversational streams get muddled, boredom sets in. Comical touches (like a self-absorbed, self-photographing patient in a clinic, officemates cheering Solenn and Paulo's torrid embrace from behind a glass window, "compromising positions" involving a drunken Cuenca) pepper the film, but the sermonizing generalizations of the three girls are too much and too meandering. When the switcheroo finally happens (for Jake Cuenca and Paulo Avelino to change places and lifestyles), the film has almost run out of steam, saved only by the last-minute cameo appearance by the classy Lovi Poe. Needless to say, Domingo steals all the scenes she's in. Nobody can debate the box-office potentials of her Metro Manila Film Fest (Christmas) entry, the third KIMMY DORA movie. Good supporting cast includes Madeleine Nicolas (as Paulo's yaya), Mark Topacio, Bea Saw, Angela Canapi, Clarence Delgado (the rather healthily plump boy who lives with the two male leads) and the outrageous Jelson Bay (a diminutive comedian that reminded me of Chokoleit, with impossible one-liners culled from his favorite Danny Zialcita-type movies). Overall, amusingly written and directed, wacky and pleasant to the eyes (and funny bone).