One Great Love propels love-hate feels with an amazing story played out by remarkable performances of Kim Chiu, Dennis Trillo, and JC De Vera.

‘One Great Love’ revolves around the story of Zyra Paez (Kim Chiu), whose relationship with Carl Mauricio (JC de Vera) has failed. She decides to give their relationship one more try but soon finds herself filled with doubt over her life choices. It then makes her life both happy and sad. The situation gets even more complex when her best friend Ian Arcano (Dennis Trillo), a heart doctor, who later becomes her confidante, leaves to decide if he indeed is ‘the one’ for her. It’s a story of how a relationship works and how to find the meaning of one great love.

The film intends to help the viewers understand what one is willing to do when it comes to love. It shows the struggles of characters who are willing to take risks just to be with the ones they consider as their great love. The story is mixed with a lot of twists and hugot, to which viewers can relate. It’s surprising to see unexpected turns which are not apparent in any of its trailers.

Supporting the three lead stars are are some notable characters. There’s Dante (Eric Quizon), Zyra’s father, who has never gotten over his one great love, but soon discovers a second chance in love through Annie (Niña Dolina), his second wife, who is also a firm believer that there is such a thing as ‘one great love.’ Jemi (Miles Ocampo) is Zyra’s practical-thinking sister who challenges the latter’s view on love. Then there’s Bryan Gomez (Marlo Mortel), a loving guy who falls in love with Jemi.

Writer Gina Marissa Tagasa and director Eric Quizon are able to collaborate in weaving an accessible love story geared to stir emotions from start to finish. There are many scenes filled with kilig feels and there are those that would make you switch on which of the two guys to root for—all of which are cleverly framed by the film’s director of photography, Mo Zee. Plus, its choice of theme song, “Dating Tayo” by TJ Monterde (which is personally handpicked by Kim Chiu herself), matches the overall atmosphere of the movie.

Kim, Dennis, and JC level up there acting skills as they relay believable performances.

Kim has gone a long way and has finally veered from her usual antics by having a more mature portrayal. She had a couple of love scenes with Dennis and JC respectively—something fans could look forward to watching out for. In an interview, Kim confessed that she found it very challenging to pull off these scenes. It’s good to see that the final product has shown her versatility as an actress.

Her screen partners have different approaches. Dennis leaves a solid impact amidst his minimalistic approach. He connects well with Kim and forms a remarkable chemistry with her on screen. On another hand, JC plays well as a ‘good’ looking guy, despite my uncomfortable feeling with the choices made by his character.

Regal Entertainment’s ‘One Great Love’ is easily an entertaining entry to this year’s Metro Manila Film Festival with its relatable stories of love and heartache.

4 out of 5 stars

One Great Love is produced and distributed by Regal Entertainment Inc. Starring Dennis Trillo, Kim Chiu, JC de Vera, Marlo Mortel, Miles Ocampo, Niña Dolina, and Eric Quizon. Written by Gina Marissa Tagasa. Directed by Eric Quizon.