A Very Special Love (2008)

Too much of everything

One of my all time favorites.

Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

I have been away from the Philippines for 22 years. I hated watching Filipino films because they are too loud, the acting is non-existent, everybody talks at the same time, the soundtrack overwhelms the dialogues, the plot is just impossible. This movie happens to be one of those exceptions. Just as any romantic Filipino movie, this one is schmaltzy, cheesy and full of the kilig factor. Well, we're Filipinos, so what? But this one is well-made. The acting of everyone is not exaggerated. Sarah G is a delight to watch showing different range of emotions without going the OA route. John Lloyd's acting is restrained, multi-dimensional, which is a break from most Philippine actors. He also exudes a magnetic screen presence. It is one of those films that I did not fast-forward.I wish we can make lots of Filipino films like this one.

There should be a campaign to ask Star Cinema to at least, stop from making romantic- comedies for a while, though its the only genre making money, otherwise we might end up as diabetics with all these saccharine-filled, artificially and inorganic laden rom-com movies, seriously!I have to admit that the technical aspects of the film, camera/cinematography, editing, sound (at least some of the scenes doesn't feel canned), and production design (except for Sarah's wig) were noteworthy. But, still, the story and screenplay still needs a lot of work. To begin with, Miguel (John Lloyd) and Laida's (Sarah) love story is not believable. I'm not saying because he was rich and she was poor, but, it wasn't EARNED. Laida is almost without flaw and her cutesy/naive approach in life, which others might find endearing, is not a strong rationality for Miguel to fall in love in that span of three weeks. First, she's not that strikingly pretty, compared to his ex-gf, and we didn't get to see Miguel's relationship with his Brazilian ex-gf, except for a scene where he makes Laida deliver flowers to her. OK, so we get it that he has no time, but we still don't know how deep the relationship is. Which makes Laida's contrived arrival, being the new editorial assistant, suspicious. And what do we get? Forced "scenes" meant to generate shrieks and "ooohs, aaahs" from the audience. Enough of that!The sun dance? Where'd it come from? It is funny, but to use it out of the blue without planting it earlier on the movie diminishes its effect. I must say though that the revelation about Miguel's mom was good. At least, it gave some light as to why he's like that. Still, the story and screenplay feels lacking, and to top it off, we get back-to-back monologue, dramatic scenes between Miguel and his dad, Laida and her mom and the icing on the cake, that very cheesy, nauseating scene in the end where Miguel says sorry to Laida in the rain! All I want to do at that moment is vomit. I'm a romantic person, but there is no romance at all at that contrived, trite, artificial and inorganic moment.

TOP GROSSING FILIPINO FILM OF ALL TIME1. A VERY SPECIAL LOVE (Star Cinema/Viva,2008) 200M 2. Sukob (Star Cinema,2006) 186.41M 3. Ang Tanging Ina (Star Cinema,2003) 177.82M 4. Kasal,Kasali,Kasalo (Star Cinema,2006) 162.37M 5. One More Chance (Star Cinema,2007) 152.79M 6. Caregiver (Star cinema,2008) 140M 7. A Love story (Star Cinema,2007) 139.61M 8. Enteng Kabisote3 (Octoarts,2006) 128M 9. Sakal,Sakali,Saklolo (Star Cinema,2007) 122.90M 10. Isusumbong Kita sa Tatay Ko (Star Cinema,1997) 104M 11. My Bestfriend's Girlfriend (GMA/Reagal) 101.24MFengshui,Dubai and For the First Time all from Star Cinema may enter the top 10.I don't have yet their gross income.

Every local film pitched with a romantic theme will never escape this harsh pre-judgment; it is a copycat, 'baduy' or trashy. As the saying goes, "Don't judge a book by its cover." But in reality, not all of us are critics, who have a lot of time in their hands to check out this "chick flick" to reassure the relevance of this adage.A Very Special Love is a romantic comedy film produced by Star Cinema, directed by Cathy Garcia-Molina and written by Raz dela Torre. The story is about a moody Editor-in-chief Miggy Montenegro who is in the verge of losing his staff as well as his men's magazine, Bachelor. Laida, a naïve young girl, applies as an Editorial Assistant hoping to be close with the man she dreams of every night. The plot is fairly identifiable to the movie The Devil Wears Prada wherein a recent college graduate gets a job as an assistant to a powerful magazine editor. But this time, it is a love story. Although originality in the story is not a strong quality nevertheless the basic necessities of a Romantic Comedy were all addressed.Geronimo's performance in particular was quite a revelation. From her quirky antics, and humorous lines, to her on-screen charisma, the audience can't stop laughing and crying and giggling and laughing again, a metaphoric state just like the theme, Love. On the other note, Cruz's character was made complex and was wisely portrayed. He plays a not-so-likable character you will despise at first sight. But as the film thoroughly progress, you will sympathize with him and be captivated with his charisma. I don't want to elaborate any further as to how his character was layered as this might reveal the twists.The probably advantage in having Star Cinema produce a film is the technical quality will not be compromised. Although I have qualms in certain dialogue scenes that were dubbed and its live recording needs to be improved. Too much musical scoring is what I loath in most mainstream local films. Moderation might ultimately be the cure.Romantic comedy films are movies with light-hearted, humorous plot lines, centered on romantic ideals such as true love being able to surmount most obstacles. This is what this film offers. It is simple in definition, but hard to attain. It is a rare treat to watch a film in this genre and be able to say in the end, it was pleasing… and funny indeed.rating: 3.5/5 stars