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I’m sure
that rumormongers will doubt the reported first-day
figures of A Love Story, the last of which was in
the
province of
P50
million nationwide. How could that be possible when
there was a big storm ravaging our country at the time,
skeptics will no doubt ask.
Well,
like Tanging Ina some years back, when people saw
that the storm wasn’t bringing in too much rain, people
trooped to the mall to see a movie or two. I’m sure the
box-office returns for all the movies showing, even the
foreign ones, did great, since there were a lot of
people who killed time in the mall.
Someone
even texted me that in Gateway Cinema, as early as after
lunch, the 7:30 pm screening of A Love Story was
already sold out. I’m sure people were very curious with
the proposition the movie presented: What if your wife
becomes a mistress, and your mistress, a wife? People
were asking me who the real wife of Aga Muhlach’s
character is. Is it Maricel Soriano’s character or
Angelica’s? Well, you have to watch the movie to find
out!
Speaking
of Maricel, she was brilliant in the movie. That said,
Angelica held her own and well in the company of her
veteran costars. This is, indeed, a vehicle that
showcased what Angelica has to offer. And if this is a
sneak peek of what she can bring to a movie, I would
like to see the main show. Definitely, Angelica is one
of the most exciting actresses we have around.
****
A FEW
columns back, I expressed my excitement over Kamikazee
dominating the nominations in the Awit Awards, and I’m
thrilled to report that the band lorded over the awards
ceremony held recently.
Kamikazee went home with the Song of the Year honor for
the huge hit “Narda”, and Album of the Year for the rock
album Maharot. Aside from the top trophies,
Kamikazee scored other major citations: Best Performance
by a Group Recording Artist and Best Rock for “Narda”,
and Music Video of the Year for “Martyr Nyebera”.
“Salamat
sa lahat ng may tainga. Salamat sa lahat ng ng
Pilipino…at Pilipina,” half-joked Kamikazee front
man Jay Contreras, who delighted the crowd with his
stage antics during the band’s live performance.
Contreras rolled himself down the Awit stage and
showered beer taken from a member of Session Road while
performing before a mixed crowd of artists and music
fans.
Winning
Best Performance by a Female Recording Artist was Lani
Misalucha for “I Live for Your Love”, and Best
Performance by a Duet was Mon David and Bituin Escalante
for “Alone Together”. The Best Performance by a New
Female Recording Artist was a tie between Amber for “Manila”
and Sitti for “Para sa Akin”, while nabbing Best
Performance by a New Male Recording Artist was Gian
Magdangal for “Himala”. The Best Instrumental
Performance was Jerome Rico for “Agua De Beber”, Best
Rap was “Ngayon ang Tao” by Jungee Marcelo, Best Jazz
Recording was Skarlet’s eponymous single, while and
Reuben Laurente took home the Best R&B plum for “A
Single Soul”.
The
highlight of the evening was the band Juan dela Cruz,
honored with the Dangal ng Musikang Pilipino. Despite
the absence of Mike Hanopol, who was in Canada at the
time, Pepe Smith and Wally Gonzales performed “Ang Himig
Natin”. As the Awit committee put it, the Juan dela Cruz
band single-handedly bankrolled Pinoy rock in the ’70s.
“Dapat
matagal na ’to ha. Ba’t ngayon lang ’to?” Smith
said, apparently only half-jokingly. To that, we can
only say amen. |
