The Wheel and Axle

It’s funny how some people are now trying to defend “It’s Showtime” because it’s probably finally realized it’s been beaten. Or rather, finally admitted it… because the show and the network have been in a state of denial.

“Why are people bashing Showtime?” the pretending-to-be-oblivious rabid Showtime fans ask. (I say “rabid” as there surely are some fans who are level-headed, and I myself do not deny watching some of its old features, like Pogay.)

“Why can’t they leave Showtime alone?” these mouth-frothers whine. “Vice says they were never trying to beat Eat Bulaga.” As though they had not been on social media for the last few months and had not seen exactly what had happened.

(continue reading…)

I wanted to like the film Felix Manalo. I really did.

Yes, despite not being a fan of the INC, I am a fan of good films, especially good local ones, given that there has been a dearth of such in the past but where there has been hope in the last few years with the likes of Norte, Heneral Luna, On The Job, Ang Babae Sa Septic Tank, and several others. Moreover, ours is a history and culture rich in subject matters that can be mined to boost the local filmmaking industry and to provide quality entertainment at par with global standards.

(continue reading…)

… are definitely hotter.

Today at The Library Underground, I talk about the time I spent with Alexander Dreymon, star of the upcoming Blood Ransom with Anne Curtis and who also matched wits with Patti LuPone herself in last year’s American Horror Story: Coven.

He reads, and he can hold his own against an icon like Patti LuPone (until she shoves a pillow on his face, that is).

(continue reading…)

Recently, I watched Lav Diaz’s Norte, Hangganan ng Kasaysayan. Actually, I was able to watch it twice, the four-hour running time notwithstanding. It was a pretty amazing experience, a Filipino movie so good it’s rare. Very rare. It’s been chosen as our entry for the Oscars this year, and here’s hoping it makes it to the final list of nominees at least. It has won a lot of awards and rave reviews internationally, and the crowning glory would be a much-covered Academy Award.

(continue reading…)

Yes, I admit it. I am occasionally shallow, and I give in to bouts of teenybopperdom.

I actually watched Enrique Gil’s concert. He dances like the bastard son of Ricky Martin and Magic Mike; his singing is passable, if auto-tuned. I’ve seen his movies; he has acting potential.

(continue reading…)

Papa P. Up Close and Personal

So a couple of weeks back, a friend and I were sent by our mentor to cover the press launch for Piolo Pascual’s feature on E! News Asia.

No, we’re not press. We’re bloggers, and it seems other bloggers were also invited based on the guest list. I guess nowadays bloggers have as much potential clout as the press, and we probably do not have the same extensive filters in our brains that the press requires.

Making us perfect candidates to write about tell-all juicy documentaries about hot movie superstars.

(continue reading…)

When the TV contest I Am Pogay first came out, it must have been a curiosity to the Filipino masses who may still have little understanding of the modern gay paradigm. After all, the stereotype of the bakla as the swishy fairy is ingrained in our cultural consciousness – stemming, perhaps, from our own pre-Hispanic roots where notions of gender and sexuality were much more fluid and definitely more liberal than what the West brought to us throughout four centuries of colonial rule.

(continue reading…)

Some random non-spoilery thoughts about The Amazing Spider-Man 2:

1. This Electro has such a Dr. Manhattan slash Palpatine complex.

2. It looks like the Sinister Six may have a female in its ranks next movie. Good.

(continue reading…)

I recently watched Slumber Party, the Cinema One Originals / Origin8media / One Night Entertainment / Outpost film. Despite very minimal publicity, I was eagerly anticipating this comedy based on a viral trailer I saw on the internet. I also had high expectations because two of the studios have produced a lot of quality films in the past, including one of my favorite aswang movies (Yanggaw, Cinema One Originals) and one of the most hilarious movies in the history of ever (Zombadings: Patayin sa Shokot si Remington, Origin8media).

(continue reading…)

The FB page of “My Husband’s Lover” recently asked a simple yet ultimately (as the comments section showed) divisive question: “Kanino kayo pumapanig: sa babaeng pinakasalan, o sa lalaking unang inibig?”

My initial reaction, swooning over #tomden and typical of the “follow your heart trope,” was to say, “Eric!”

Then I realized: If we want to look at this in a healthy manner, then the answer is, “Neither.”

(continue reading…)