The Mistress: A Review

I’m wary of movie promos where gushing fans scream into a roving reporter’s microphone and utter the same line: “maganda!!!! Ang ganda ng pelikula panoorin n’yo!!!” (beautiful!!!! Nice movie, watch it!!!). The more I see those teasers on TV the less inclination I have of seeing it. The Mistress is one such movie that gained hype through the station’s PR machinery. I wasn’t gonna see it… until a friend dragged me into the theater. She insisted on treating me. So reluctantly, I accompanied her. I’ve been railroaded to see a Tagalog movie… but this time… I actually didn’t mind!

image from PEP courtesy of Star Cinema

The Synopsis:

The story begins in a bookstore when an aloof girl, Sari (Bea Alonzo) is pursued by a cocky guy, JD (John Lloyd Cruz, no pun intended) and badgered into having coffee on a rainy afternoon. Sari turns him down saying “hindi lahat ng gusto mo, makukuha mo!” That’s perhaps the earliest foreboding of what’s to come in the ending. But that’s one of the things that make this movie different.

Needless to say, he sees her again when he is assigned as project head to renovate an atelier of  Emil (Tony Mabesa) who happens to be JD’s father’s adviser (Ronaldo Valdez as Federico). JD is determined to woo Sari, at first, out of sheer curiosity. Then his motive changes as his mother (Hilda Koronel) spills the beans on her husband’s infidelity... this time she has a name… Rosario Alfonso…

image from PEP courtesy of Star Cinema

Needless to say, JD’s initial reaction is to find out what sets Rosario apart from Federico’s constant womanizing, choosing to stay with this woman for five years and spending every single Thursday with her. Hilda’ character is peeved that someone below her station has managed to snag her husband’s attention despite her selfless sacrifice to save their marriage as she turns to alcohol to soothe her aching pride.

So as JD discovers what makes Sari special, he discovers his feelings turn into love and now he is more earnest in pursuing her. Noteworthy is the scene where JD has his measurements taken in the privacy of the fitting room. Hardly any words where spoken but it was imbued with lots of sensuality and restraint under the creative control of Director Olivia Lamasan.

Meanwhile in a fit of jealousy, Hilda Koronel makes a scene in a public confrontation where Sari is aghast at finding out that JD is actually her lover’s bastard son. Eventually, they reconcile as Sari has no choice but to accept JD’s offer to drive her to Cagayan to deliver an irate customer’s order.

image from PEP courtesy of Star Cinema

Federico becomes increasingly jealous, demanding and more controlling of Sari until all hell breaks loose when Federico discovers it is his erring half son who has conquered his kept woman’s heart. In a fit of rage Federico suffers a heart attack. Sari is humiliated in another confrontation when Mrs. Torres tells her bluntly to steer clear of her husband and son in her place of work… Sari leaves the love nest when Federico dies. She hands over the keys to the townhouse to JD and ends their connection forever… To Sari, it was never really about the money…

The following scenes should have been omitted:

a) a shirtless John Lloyd in boxers – to establish the fact that JD was a cad, there’s a short scene where JD practically dashes a woman’s amorous hopes by telling her they shouldn’t complicate things. Now you know why despite numerous endorsements, John Lloyd was never asked to do intimate apparel. The universe is fair! John Lloyd can turn on the charm at will, no doubt. But no one wants to see his half naked pudgy body, not me at least. Those huge eyes and wholesome smile should’ve been enough. Besides, his acting was good enough to convince viewers he was a carefree guy.

b) bed scene of Bea and Ronaldo Valdez – Come on, even at the early stages of  the movie the fact that Bea was the kept woman had been established. Do we really need to see a half naked Ronaldo Valdez in a swirl of bed sheets?

c) road trip scene to Cagayan – Loved the scenery  and Callao Caves… but it’s not a travelogue! The scene where John Lloyd drives his SUV could have been shortened at the very least.

d) the flashback in Callao Caves where JD and Sari envision how they were married to each other granting they were in a perfect world. That would’ve been “milking” it. We know they weren’t going to be together in the end, right?

I liked the movie. I never said it was perfect. Technically it was clean and polished. Shots were clear and crisp.  Bea Alonzo and John Lloyd Cruz’ close-ups  showed  off their best features. Both were glowing in their reaction scenes.  One scene that clung to mind was when they found Anita Linda (as Sari’s senile grandma) along the railroad tracks hailing a train. It was very poignant as grand daughter and grandma held each other in embrace. The happy scene punctuated by Anita Linda’s consistent under-acting. Hard to believe she can still do it at her age.   

The dialogue was witty and to the point. As I mentioned, any sort of foreboding was done early on in the movie. You didn’t expect a happy ending from a kept woman and her messed up affair with a family involved with her, do you? Father and son make up in the end. The matriarch is happy her son becomes CEO of the company founded by old money.  Sari moves on to become a shareholder in her atelier. And so her life goes on…

The cast gave an all around good performance. There was a fluidity in the continuity that sealed the answers to all the conflicts within the movie. Hilda Koronel’s performance was stunning. As the matriarch with the troubled married life, she essays the role with aplomb, less of the histrionics which is a constant in Pilipino movies. Even as she confronts her husband’s mistress, she maintains a veneer of superiority that only the moneyed can muster. She is regal as she commands Sari “layuan mo ang mag-ama ko!” No slapping. No hair pulling incidents…

Alonzo on her end delivers a sterling performance. She looked innocent as she tells Cruz “naipangako ko na sa iba ang mga Thursday ko.” She looked scorned as she forces John Lloyd to grope her chest and cries “hindi ako puta”… And you are moved by her when she realizes that the choices you make in life are what you become… She wails while being comforted by her OFW mother who cuckolded her father “Ako ‘to eh… Ako ang gumawa nito… And then she reluctantly smiles in the end when John Lloyd drives by to look longingly through glass panes of what they could have meant to each other in a perfect world.

Designing for Anting

It's been awhile since I've been able to blog. Thanks to a visit to the service provider's office, they reconfigured my wifi modem and finally, I'm up and running again. Finally!

I'm still quite on a high from designing Ballet Philippines' Neo-Filipino production of Anting. The contemporary ballet was done in four parts: Nang Wala Pang Mundo was choreographed by Ava Villanueva, Teeny Crame did Sinotris Gentilorum, Ang Cruz ng Alitagtag was done by Gerald Mercado and the finale, Haring Bakal was created by Paul Alexander Morales. The sets were designed by Zard Eguia. Lighting by Jon Villareal. My psychology professor Tony Perez created the libretto.

I've been quite fortunate to have had a long standing relationship with Ballet Philippines designing costumes for some of their noteworthy productions. Anting is of particular interest since it deals with the esoteric world of faith and amulets and how they have found a certain niche in the spiritual lives of modern day Filipinos. A touchy subject considering those in the lower echelons of society still readily approach herbolarios for their little ailments instead of trained physicians. Perhaps, thing unknown can only be approached on a psycho-spiritual level.

The entire production was completed in a matter of a month and a half. We worked really hard on the production and frantically as well. The CCP theater schedules wait for no one. It was all worth it , though. We got positive feedback from the Mayor of Alitagtag who came to watch the ballet on a rainy Saturday  afternoon. Kudos goes to the University of the East Chorale who rendered a spine chilling series of songs out of the verses from ancient latin prayers.

Designing the costumes was a bit tricky. It starts off prior to the creation of the world and ends in contemporary time. So conceptualizing the designs had to consider the time span of entire millenia. Besides, a lot of designers approach Ballet Philippines for the opportunity to design a ballet... and some fail miserably, at that. So I've embraced the fact that my being a dancer in the past helps with the final outcome of the designs.

Some designers approach costume design from the point of view of fashion. True, to a certain extent, costumes have to be visually appealing. But a designer for ballet has to remember that the artists have to dance in them. That's the prime consideration! A particular design might be visually stunning but if a dancer can not do their enchainements then the design is useless. Besides, ballet has a long history behind it and there are particular nuances that denote a character's traits within the storyline. Forget that or ignore it and purists will be all over your design. 

Happily everything ended on a positive note. Up until opening date, some costumes were being replaced and/or augmented. The changes were made inspite of a minimal budget which can drive anyone nuts. But we managed. So kudos to everyone involved in the production...