MANILA, Philippines?When we recently watched Aga Muhlach?s latest starrer, ?When Love Begins,? we were initially thrown off by its relative lack of a strong storyline. Instead, a long time was spent establishing and developing the unusual relationship between its lead characters, an older man (Aga) rendered skittish about life and love, and a vibrant, young Fil-Am charmer (Anne Curtis) who valued freedom and lack of ?baggage,? and guilt in her dealings with others, her latest paramour included.

Nuances

After a while, we dealt with the absence of a strong plot by relating more to the ?impressionistic? approach that filmmaker Joey Reyes appeared to have chosen to take. So, instead of actual events, we paid more attention to the nuances of its leads? evolving characterizations. Soon, however, the appeal and interest value of this began to pall, as the lead characters started to repeat themselves.

After all, there?s just so many ways for a vivacious young woman to declare that she has to be true to herself, that she needs to live her own life and make her own choices, even if she is romantically involved with someone as hunky as Aga Muhlach. OK, enough already?now, can you tell a more interesting and evolving story?

The movie?s ?free? heroine appears to be leery of commitment?and, in a love relationship, that?s a bummer. Worse, Aga?s character turns out to be a patsy in her hands, curbing his own passionate, giving bent to make her commitment-free happy.

This, by far, is the strangest thing about this movie: In the usual Aga Muhlach starrer, the plot and conflict revolve around the popular actor?s character. In ?When Love Begins,? however, they are most often controlled by Anne?s character, and Aga is reduced to glumly following her lead.

Why did the more bankable actor agree to this? It really is a puzzlement, because it robs his portrayal of the dynamism and vigor it needs to sustain viewers? interest and arouse their empathetic concern.

Aga is a good actor, but when you?re pretty much reduced to reacting to what your costar says, does or wants to happen, there goes your thespic vitality!

Environmental concerns

It?s a good thing that other characters and events are soon brought in to thicken and spice up the brew. Environmental concerns are added to the mix, as are a host of Aga?s relatives. These additions are welcome, but can?t completely make up for the heaviness of the film?s central relationship.

The ?love with no strings attached? theme is initially interesting, and it can also be helpful, since it reminds us that, all too often, ?love? is used to possess and control somebody else, with negative consequences. But, love without commitment is similarly prone to mis-use and abuse, and the ?freed? loved one is left feeling like he?s holding a lovely, but empty box.

Statements

Given his character?s merely ?reactive? stance in ?When Love Begins,? Aga is unable to come up with a dynamic portrayal, so his thespic work here ends up as one of the weakest performances in his career. Anne does better and establishes herself as a young-adult star?but, the repetitiveness of her ?liberated? character?s statements and actuations prevents her portrayal from truly coming into its own.

What appears to be the key problem here is the fact that ?free love? appears to be an initially valid theme for a movie, but its limited and repetitive development eventually renders its liberating power moot and academic. When (free) love begins, it turns out, is not as instructive as when it ends.