Universal Pictures’ monsters vs. robots epic adventure Pacific Rim Uprising arrived in Philippine cinemas at No.1 for the Easter Weekend. The highly awaited sequel scored a robust P47.2-M in box-office gross in two days, March 31 and April 1.
The crowd-pleasing movie is expected to generate further interest and increase sales, echoing its global trend. So far, Pacific Rim Uprising has made a smash $231.9 million worldwide.
John Boyega (Star Wars: The Last Jedi) stars as the rebellious Jake Pentecost, a once-promising Jaeger pilot whose legendary father gave his life to secure humanity’s victory against the monstrous “Kaiju.” Jake has since abandoned his training only to become caught up in a criminal underworld. But when an even more unstoppable threat is unleashed to tear through our cities and bring the world to its knees, he is given one last chance to live up to his father’s legacy by his estranged sister, Mako Mori (Rinko Kikuchi)—who is leading a brave new generation of pilots that have grown up in the shadow of war. As they seek justice for the fallen, their only hope is to unite together in a global uprising against the forces of extinction.
Jake is joined by gifted rival pilot Lambert (The Fate of the Furious’ Scott Eastwood) and 15-year-old Jaeger hacker Amara (newcomer Cailee Spaeny), as the heroes of the PPDC become the only family he has left. Rising up to become the most powerful defense force to ever walk the earth, they will set course for a spectacular all-new adventure on a towering scale.
Now playing in Philippine cinemas Pacific Rim Uprising is distributed in the Philippines by United International Pictures through Columbia Pictures. #JoinTheUprising #PacificRimUprising
Anne Curtis and Dingdong Dantes are paired as a love team in the romantic film ‘Sid & Aya: Not A Love Story,’ directed by Irene Villamor.
The first teaser for the much anticipated loveteam comeback has just been released by Viva Films and N2 Productions. It gives a glimpse of an insomniac Sid (Dantes) who hires Aya (Curtis) to accompany him through the long hours and sleepless nights. As they become closer to each other, she becomes his confidante, only for her to know that he is about to propose to someone else.
The video is teeming with eye-catching cinematography against the striking Anne-Dingdong tandem. Accompanied by this is a soothing cover of ‘Di Na Muli’ by Itchyworms.
Villamor’s most recent work is ‘Meet Me in St. Gallen,’ starring Bela Padilla and Carlo Aquino. She is also the director of ‘Camp Sawi’ and co-director of ‘Relaks, It’s Just Pag-ibig.’
Produced by Viva Films and N2 Productions, ‘Sid & Aya: Not A Love Story’ is opens May 30, 2018 in Philippine cinemas.
Antoinette Jadaone’s ‘Never Not Love You’ is her bravest and most nuanced work to date. It paints a realistic portrait of love – the euphoria, the sorrow and everything in between.
For the most part, Never Not Love You keeps its leads, Joanne and Gio, exchanging three magical words that we all know too well: “I love you.” Somehow, it never feels contrived nor redundant because those words have a growing definition at each phase of their relationship. The first time they said it could possibly mean “I really like where this is going” as opposed to saying it again after months or years of being together which could be somewhere from “You’re important to me” to “Life gets in the way, but we’ll work it out.” Well, I’m sure you get the point. Those three words essentially lay out the film’s framework. NNLY paints a realistic portrait of love – the euphoria, the sorrow and everything in between. It does not beg to be understood; it just plays out the way it should be in real life with viewers coming up with their own realizations. It makes your usual romcom look hyped and calculated.
By all means, NNLY is an “ordinary” romance drama that works. We are presented with a lovestruck couple in their early 20s: Joanne (Nadine Lustre), a hardworking aspiring brand manager and Gio (James Reid), a carefree graphic artist. The film initially captures the giddiness of young love but as soon as real-life tensions materialize, it loses the sugar rush and transcends into a more mature and interesting dynamic. It’s nice to have a whole life planned ahead of you, with your significant other in the picture. But what happens if you choose the wrong life and get stuck with it? This dilemma dawns on Joanne as she gives up her career to follow Gio in London. She’s afraid of losing him that she starts to lose herself in the process.
The central conflict might seem like a cliche case of pursuing self-growth versus maintaining a harmonious relationship but the film goes beyond that. Life changes us and the people we love and we may not be too accepting of each one’s new version. Gio points out that she misses the old Joanne, the wide-eyed girl whose world revolves around him but ironically, he’s also not the same person as before. Both have different life philosophies and as the film progresses they manage to re-shape each other’s perspective.
The subject of long-distance relationship has also been tackled and it is anything but rosy. If anything else, the story of Gio and Joanne resonates to the couples who try their best to find a reason to stay in a relationship despite having lost the “magic” of it. The film thrives best in the long stares and silences of its characters, as they go through their moments of introspection.
It sure helps a lot to have a popular real-life couple play the leads and at the same time, it is refreshing to see them in a different light, devoid of any usual antics that make their die-hard fans squeal with “kilig.” They reportedly improvised a lot of the dialogue, which explains why it sounds so natural. Reid works his bad boy charm and Lustre effectively displays an array of mixed emotions. Admittedly, this is the first JaDine film that I saw and from the looks of it, these breakout roles only serve as a prelude to the bolder and more unconventional roles to come.
Mycko David’s cinematography permeates with warmth especially on the scenes taken at the Squid Ink. Neon lights make everything look, dare I say it, sexy. As for director Antoinette Jadaone, this is her bravest and most nuanced work to date. The third act could have been compressed tighter and thereby end with a stronger finish but without spoiling anything, I am fine with the hint of ambiguity in its ending. If you look at the bigger picture, everything is actually in there.
Clocking-in for just almost 100 minutes, Never Not Love You comes out as a fully-fleshed love story of Gio and Joanne, an unpretentious take on young and reckless love, a raw experience on the joys and pains in committing to a relationship. Nothing worth having comes easy.
Never Not Love You is now showing on PH cinemas nationwide.
