Regret Is Always At The End

I have put off writing a review for this movie because, aside from that my account is still new, it is such a terrifying task to do. And a hard one because I don’t know if it’s possible to compile all of my thoughts on this movie into one review without making it too long for possible watchers to read.

I had the same experience with Rewind that I had with Just a Stranger which involved its trailer. I must really commend them since the trailer achieved what it set out to do! With news that Marian Rivera was set to star in the film with Dingdong Dantes, I was already tipping over since excuse me? Miss Marian Rivera and Dingdong Dantes? Hell yeah! What seriously convinced me was the trailer where Marian says the line “Minahal mo ba talaga ako?” (“Did you really love me?”) before the sound of a car crashing takes you by surprise. There were also the arguments and the amazing acting I immediately gleaned from the trailer alone. I knew then that I had to watch this movie.

Due to circumstances, I couldn’t watch the movie when it came out in cinemas for MMFF but I managed to watch it after a party right after I found out one of my best friends watched it. Boy, I just signed myself up for a rollercoaster of emotions with comical reactions.

I have nothing but praise for this film.

While others might say that this film has a familiar plot or that it concentrates on death and tragedy at the core, I say that all of it worked perfectly. Familiar plot? Maybe, but in my case, I don’t remember many films with a focus on trying to change the past. Like, it sounds familiar and I’d probably seen a myriad of films with that as their central theme but why can’t I remember any? We have that one movie, Click, sure, but it’s also comedy-heavy. The reason I love Rewind is the concentration on emotion. Focusing on emotions is the right decision for a film whose themes involve regret, cherishing what you have, and making it up to the people you love.

I saw that one of the comments says that the film focuses on death and tragedy. Yes, it does because it’s necessary to get their message across. It’s a heavy theme. This isn’t some badly written fantasy story that involves killing off characters for the shock factor. What happens in the film serves a purpose.

I have to stop myself from gushing about this film in all caps. I love everything in this film! From the lighting, the clothes, the camera angles, the acting, the characters, the plot, the arcs, the dialogue—absolutely everything!

Let me get this out of the way: Dingdong and Marian played these roles perfectly. Dingdong plays John Nuñez, the hotheaded, workaholic man whose priorities have shifted from his family to aspiring for a promotion. Marian plays Mary Nuñez, the housewife who was once a promising culinary student. Some part of me had small doubts about whether Marian could portray the housewife whose identity is marred by her role in the household. And while I like Dingdong, I am guilty of typecasting him since I assumed that all he was good at was action. I was proven wrong. Dingdong Dantes showed range and his breakdowns in the film broke my heart to the point that I wept with him. Marian Rivera, of course, made me feel pangs of sympathy with how she played Mary’s internal struggles. Their performances broke my heart and brought me to tears—no. Sobs. Full-on weeping.

Another thing I love about this film: its themes. The main theme of regrets and cherishing what you have before it’s too late resonates with me. It begs the age-old question, “What would you do if you could go back in time?” which I have nothing but love for because it’s a question you already know the answer to. To do right by those you love before it’s too late—isn’t that just painful?

Other themes include the plight of the housewives. I mentioned this before in my review of “The Love Affair” starring Richard Gomez, Dawn Zulueta, and Bea Alonzo. Let me reiterate: these wives are left behind while supporting their husbands, left behind to take care of the house, left behind to raise the children. Their identities are reduced to their role but what if they want more? What if they want to be known as more than ‘the wife’?

There’s this detail that I noticed throughout the film. Some might say that I’m looking too much into this but I’m going in this with the logic that everything in film serves a purpose and means something. The clothes that the characters wear. For example, Mary constantly wears white clothes which is a nod to funeral dress codes. You know, mourning. At one point, John wears black clothes during a dark time in his character’s arc and as the story progresses and so does his character arc, his clothes change from black to white.

With every watch, I just notice more and more minor details and look into what they represent like the lighting. I remember some shots having John’s face clouded by darkness before his character arc starts progressing. I remember Mary being constantly illuminated in every scene. I remember John being bathed in a blinding light towards the end of the film. I love that they used the lighting to show the character’s state of mind, in a way.

I also love the camera angles. Most of the time, it’s fixed. But, subtly—so subtle that I end up gaping like a fool when I realise—you notice that the camera tilts to show the character’s state of mind again. This is mostly used to show the character’s state of mind, again. When something within them shifts.

Another complaint people might have is that it’s preachy because it involves God. I would say that’s not really the case. Aside from God being a part of the film, it’s not really trying to convince you that their religion is good or anything, only that God is trying to help John right his wrongs. This is coming from someone who doesn’t practise the religion, by the way. I would say that putting God in the film is more of a medium for John to go back in time.

The bits of comedy that we do get provides us with some levity. A reprieve after all of the heavy things we have to watch. Some breathing room. And let me tell you, the comedy actually made me laugh.

I’ve never loved a director’s work more than I did Mae Cruz-Alviar’s. There’s a reason that, after three watches in a short amount of time, I still cried. The first time I watched this, I was an absolute, ugly, sobbing mess even while eating dinner. The second time I watched this, I wanted to drag my older sibling into this pool of pain so I subjected them to it. The third time I watched this, I joined my older sibling and their online friend in watching this. I was a mess both times. All of this happened in a week, I think, which is evidence of the film’s brilliance.

Oh, right, thanks, I guess, for making Sa Susunod Na Habang Buhay (In Our Next Lifetime) impossible to listen to without sobbing and remembering the film’s events.

Massive kudos to Mae Cruz-Alviar, Dingdong Dantes, and Marian Rivera for their phenomenal work and performances.

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And That’s The Thing About Illicit Affairs

Where to begin? Right after watching the film, I find that I’m left speechless for a number of reasons. I’m always iffy towards anything that involves cheating since that’s a touchy subject and a difficult one to tackle. What convinced me was the actors, shallow as it may be, and the confrontation scene between Kris Aquino and Claudine Barretto. Now, I’m glad to have watched this movie.

Real quick: this does include minor spoilers. They're nothing big, though.

The production of the film is great. Clearly. Everyone knew what they were doing: the casting, the shooting, the story—all of it was remarkable. It was a fun film to make. Plus, I loved the rules! The film made me want to get the book to read the source material. The direction and the film’s editing too made the experience so much better.

What made me rate this movie ten stars was the theme. We all know that cheating is morally wrong. It makes for a messy situation and a lot of people get hurt in the thick of it. People cheat for different reasons: they fell in love, they wanted sex, they wanted some fun, etc. Of course, that doesn’t make it right in society’s eyes. Nothing ever does because it is a breach of trust and it shatters love.

This movie tells the tales of five women who are all mistresses. Georgia Torres (Kris Aquino) is regarded as the perfect mistress because of her beliefs and rules. Chloe Zamora (Claudine Barretto) is Georgia’s opposite. Charley Mariquit (Cheena Crab) is the richest of the five women as her partner is a business magnate. Stella Garcia (Iza Calzado), the only one he truly loved (SIX reference, anyone?). And finally, Ina Del Prado, the youngest of the group.

I thought the film’s themes would boil down to: “It’s wrong, so leave when you can.” But it wasn’t just that. Like love, the themes represent a complex circumstance. On the one hand, Chloe will end up believing their affair partners will never love them and choose them. On the other, the antithesis of Chloe’s belief is Stella. Stella proves that it isn’t a linear path. The path is as messy as the lives they willingly chose. Stella and Ambet Villoria (Tirso Cruz III) prove that love can exist in such a clandestine relationship; that the partner can choose his mistress.

Love is beautiful and complex. We wouldn’t be chasing the thrill of it if it wasn’t.

The other wonderful theme they addressed was…well, to put it simply, to entirely love someone with all that you are and how it’s not a bad thing. Constantly, I’ve read about how women who want to become housewives are judged or loving someone ‘too much’ is bad. Too much in anything can sound bad but with love, it’s choosing to love someone past your capacity because it’s unconditional and limitless. There’s no shame in that. There’s no shame in loving even when your glass is overflowing.

Throughout the film, we see that some mistresses aren’t happy with being second best. They want more—they want to be chosen, they want to be number one. And that’s the thing about illicit affairs: unless you are one of the exceptions, you never will be chosen.

That’s what Rule #10 is for: If all else fails, leave them. That’s the other major theme that the film teaches the audience. People sign up for pain and loss when they enter an affair but it doesn’t always have to be that way. It tells you that even if it’s hard, if it doesn’t make you happy, leave. And I love that the film shows you that happiness and love wait at the end of every road.

This film probably got a ton of flak for what it was about. “It promotes cheating!” or whatever argument other people made. But if you peel back the layers, you’ll see a lesson that begs to be heard by those who need to hear it.

I suppose another thing the movie brings light to is the problem of the Philippines regarding annulment and divorce. I don’t mean to become political in a review but this is a significant problem. The marriages of the men in the film have failed. They have become trapped in the prison that their marriages had become. This wouldn’t be a problem if divorce was possible here.

This one, I’m certain of: Philippine society also faces the problem of its people being arrogant, of its people hating failure, of its people prioritising their family, of its people fulfilling a promise they made in front of God as their witness, so they choose to keep going even if it’s become poison to them. I won’t sit here and talk about how it’s right because even if it’s the values taught to us since childhood, the values can become a double-edged sword at the right moment. It can turn into a pointed blade that can slowly kill a person’s happiness and resolve.

I tip my hat to the cast and crew, to the director and executives of Etiquette for Mistresses. At a surface-level glance, it does look like it romanticises and glorifies the experience and life of a mistress. The truth is, it’s a commentary on society and for that, my praise is theirs.

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r/aita - Am I The Asshole For Cheating On My Cheating Wife?

What got me curious about this movie was a list of intense confrontations by ABS-CBN. The scene featured Dawn Zulueta and Bea Alonzo and what completely convinced me was the exchange which goes kind of like this:

“Bitch.”

“Bitch?” Dawn smiled, “Not yet. But I won’t be so nice next time.”

“Is that a threat?” asked Bea.

Dawn’s eyes narrowed. “Are you threatened?”

By the way, I don’t consider that a spoiler since you barely glean anything important from that alone. It’s just some badass dialogue that had great delivery by the actresses.

Now, see, I’m a sucker for scenes like this even if they may not be entirely realistic. Still, I enjoy them so I decided to watch the movie later that night.

The one thing I loved about this movie was how they narrated the events to us. The film smoothly weaves in the things of the past to tell us why the characters are who they are and why they did what they did. Before I knew it, I knew what drove the characters and the vital parts of their backstory that caused them to be where they were in this mess.

This leads me to the elephant in the room and the reason for my headline: everyone here made mistakes and hurt each other, be it intentional or not. Some mistakes were larger and, for some people, unforgivable. This then leads me to the question: “How much is too much and is it ever possible to forgive that much?” The film tackles mistakes, owning up to them, and forgiveness, among many other things, of course. While the themes are great, I also can’t quite find where I fall here since there are just some things you can forgive but have to abandon because they caused you too much pain. This just goes to show the Filipino values that are taught to us by our families. We are all taught to be compassionate, to a fault, and to prioritise our family over anything else which can become problematic.

The thing is, I love the movie for the message it’s sending. It represents Filipino values but I can’t also act like Filipino values are always right. You don’t always have to forgive someone for hurting you, you don’t always have to fight for something that hurt you immensely and destroyed you, and you don’t always have to go back to the one thing hurting you. I’m conflicted about how I feel about the message because I like it but I also can’t completely agree.

Another theme they tackled that I love is the plight of the housewives—the wives who are left pushing their husbands whom they put on a pedestal. What about them? What happens to them? Are their roles and identities reduced to being a wife who cleans the house, raises the children, and supports her breadwinner husband? We see that in Dawn’s character, Tricia, and that’s one of the reasons I can’t hate her for what she did.

Regardless of the characters’ mistakes, I can’t find myself hating one character completely. Why they made their mistakes is just completely human and I understand why they did it. Does that mean that I approve? No. Absolutely not. I don’t like what they did but I can’t get angry at them for it. It just means that I see where they’re coming from. I can judge, though.

The acting is so good but I never expected less from actors of this calibre. I mean, this is Richard Gomez, Dawn Zulueta, and Bea Alonzo we’re talking about. These are three acting powerhouses. I never expected less. The acting was one of the reasons I enjoyed watching this too.

The only other thing I struggle with that I can think of is that sometimes, it sounds like there's a voiceover for one character that just doesn't sound right. If it isn't a voiceover, then what the hell is that dialogue delivery? Another thing is the scene on the beach where there are just these cross-fades and the music that begins playing just comes off as cheesy. They're not so bad that it's unbearable but it was just the kind that makes my brow raise in near-secondhand-embarrassment. The rest of the movie is great and doesn't involve cheesy scenes and songs.

In the end, I loved the film. I loved watching it because I enjoyed the plot, the themes, and the character arcs. The problem here lies with me and my beliefs and values contradicting the theme of the movie which isn’t the movie’s fault. It’s more so myself. Still, it’s a good watch.

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A Portrayal of the Human Struggle and Looking for Happiness

I remember seeing the trailer for this movie back in 2019 where the line “We’re both going to pay for this” that Anne Curtis says as she and Marco Gumabao’s character kiss stuck with me, and it was only a day ago that I managed to watch it.

Filipino movies have this certain vibe that screams “Filipino-made”, which doesn’t necessarily make it bad but rather that it’s tailored specifically for a Filipino audience. Duh. But in this movie, it has this quality to it that I can’t quite place—in a good way. The cinematography, the background music, the ambience, the plot—all of it is so good that I can see it being viewed by an international audience.

The plot deviates from the usual story that involves an affair between two people in relationships of their own. You usually expect a catfight and those intense confrontation scenes that Filipinos have come to love because of their exchanges. However, this doesn’t involve any such confrontation. I would say it’s a tad bit realistic in this way and made me adore it because, while I love confrontation scenes, they feel like fantasies you play out in your head (we even see a similar fantasy play out in our protagonist’s head). While there are certainly tense confrontations where you get those savage lines, what mostly happens is existing in the mundane with a stiff upper lip.

Let me preface this paragraph by saying we know all of this beforehand. Mae, played by Anne Curtis, is the movie’s main character. She is the trophy wife of her older businessman husband, Phil Pimentel, played by the ever-intimidating Edu Manzano. Mae begins an affair in Portugal with nineteen-year-old Jericho, who is played by Marco Gumabao. What surprised me a little—and this may be a fault of mine—is Anne Curtis’ acting. I’m used to seeing her be comedic, so as a result, I probably stayed away from any of her works because I thought she just wouldn’t be suitable for these dramatic roles. Boy, I was proven so wrong! She was so phenomenal in this film that I honestly was baffled. I only know Marco from one of his works, Los Bastardos, and he was good there. If I remember right, he was twenty-five when they filmed this, but he portrayed the role of a nineteen-year-old so well.

Some fool in me thought everything would work out, like in one of those Filipino movies I saw. It was The Other Woman, where, in the end, they were all blissful after everything worked out in their favour. While I wanted that, I think that would not have been the correct ending for the film. The film did such a great job in making me attached to the characters to the degree that I didn’t even realise that when the ending happened, I was legitimately left speechless with my hand over my gaping mouth. Which only means that it achieved what it set out to do.

The themes it tackles are one of the reasons I ended up loving the movie as much as I did: A teenager's plight in standing his ground to his overbearing parents and a trophy wife's unhappiness because she is stuck in a loveless marriage. Teenagers struggle with pleasing themselves while also keeping their family's expectations met. Meanwhile, a good chunk of marriages nowadays involve lovelessness and looking for happiness elsewhere as a consequence. I would also consider this to be a commentary on the dangers of the less-than-stellar areas of the Philippines.

I love how the film swerves away from the blueprint of movies with a similar premise to this. I love how this film doesn’t feature a confrontation scene with those iconic lines since it focuses on the human struggle of biting your tongue and enduring it all because it is what it is. I love it whenever I find media that represents humanity for what we all are: beautifully flawed. The only reason that its rewatch value is at five is because I want to spare myself the pain, not because it's bad but because it hurts.

I would recommend this to anyone curious, and while I can’t guarantee that you’d love it the same way I did, I can at least hope you’d enjoy it.

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