Boots Anson-Roa was in the house and had cast a spell on the Cinemalaya premiere night crowd last Friday. Hoots and howls erupted whenever Tita Boots, onscreen as a lonely widow, expressed (with a word, a touch, a sigh, a look) less-than-noble intentions for her young co-star Rome Mallari as a computer technician. Imagine how it went down when the two were shown in bed, presumably (and thank goodness for this) after the act.
The movie, picked to open the annual indie film fest, was ?Ganap na Babae.? It was lucky to have such a friendly and accepting audience, because it didn?t seem ganap na handa for screening. More than three times the movie stalled?and that was quite distracting.
Stifled sob
Saturday afternoon, we were back at the Cultural Center of the Philippines festival venue to catch ?Sampaguita,? by Francis Xavier E. Pasion. It was well worth the effort (even including the effort of the night before). Except, no English subtitles! We hope the producers are working on that. Non-Filipino-speaking viewers should be able to follow the narrative, heartbreaking in its simplicity and directness.
The film is a story/commentary about the sampaguita garland trade and underage sampaguita vendors. Some stories absolutely need no dramatizing. We watched the whole movie with a lump in our throat from start to finish. And that?s not just because the kids dart across busy streets like unknowing puppies, and sleep wherever their little bodies decide to shut down for the day. Or night.
Thank heavens for the unexpected comic relief. One of the children is asked what he dreams of becoming as an adult. The innocent reply: ?Pulis po...para makatulong sa magnanakaw.? Realizing the slip, he is properly contrite?a little scared, too? and quickly corrects himself.
Another boy cannot seem to grasp a future beyond the school level he last flunked. His one dream is to finish Grade 5. ?Para po matuwa na sa akin ang mga magulang ko.?
Another lump in the throat. Stifled sob.
?Sampaguita? will be screened 6:15 tonight at the CCP Main Theater.
Cherie as Callas
One of Philippine cinema?s most illustrious actresses, Cherie Gil, is portraying opera icon Maria Callas in the Philippine Opera Company?s production of the Tony Award-winning play, ?Master Class.?
Asked what possessed her to accept the role, Cherie replied: ?I still ask myself what I?ve gotten into. Maria Callas is larger than life...really big shoes to fill there. Perhaps I?m hoping to see my own art through her eyes, and find a fresh start to loving my craft all over again.?
The play opens July 29 at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza, Makati City. Call 892-8786 or 881-7168.
New home, ahoy!
SpongeBob Squarepants and Dora the Explorer, two of the world?s most loved and most popular animated characters are now officially Kapamilya!
ABS-CBN welcomes them beginning July 26 to boost its Team Animazing?s quality kid-friendly time via the all-new ?Nickelodeon Time.? Catch them weekday mornings, Dora at 8:30, SpongeBob at 9.
The network bagged the exclusive rights to air premium Nickelodeon titles across its platforms in an agreement signed recently with MTV Networks International.
ABS-CBN is also airing ?Avatar, The Legend of Aang,? ?Go Diego Go!,? ?The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron,? ?El Tigre,? ?Ni Hao, Kai-Lan,? and ?The Penguins of Madagascar.?
