Let’s start with a quick pandemic throwback. One of my early lockdown highlights happened in June 2020, when I immersed myself in We Are One. It was a joint effort between Tribeca Enterprises and YouTube, held in lieu of that … Continue reading Sessenta Horas em Macau, Part 1: Ponta e Horta After Dark
For the second straight year, I was asked to judge Miss Teen International Philippines by its pageant director, film and TV writer Charlotte Dianco. Once again, the contest was held in Tanghalang Pasigueño, with actor Lance Raymundo taking over as … Continue reading Notes from a Two-Time Miss Teen International Philippines Judge
From the get-go, there already was that unspoken kinship. And it’s not just because our respective school publications shared one room. In the first place, Timmy Potenciano was already hard to miss, much more ignore deliberately. Even before we started … Continue reading Tarot Tandem Turns Ten
I first wrote about St. Vincent in 2021. Specifically, that was when I acquired Daddy’s Home on vinyl. Such was my predilection for that album, I even paid to access her Down and Out Downtown concert online. Of course, as … Continue reading Applause for a Little Flea: St. Vincent in Manila
Creator Nick Park hinted that he was done with full length. In 2008, the British animator shared the challenges of making the first Wallace and Gromit feature, 2005’s The Curse of the Were-Rabbit. The most glaring, perhaps, was being told … Continue reading Stop Motion Vindication (A Review of “Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl”)
I always felt Paula Cole deserved more. And this goes beyond her once being called the next Kate Bush, or the Best New Artist Grammy she won in 1998, same year she also became the first female Producer of the … Continue reading My Monthly Dig: “This Fire” by Paula Cole
I wasn’t exactly the most immersed in MMFF (Metro Manila Film Festival) before. That changed in 2018, when I landed that social media manager stint in Solar Pictures. Two entries were under their distributorship then. There was the RC de … Continue reading My MMFF Re-Immersion (Part 1)
It’s not a remake of the 1972 John Boorman caper, as one might be led to believe, though it does aims to scare just the same. Yet apart from the gratuitous addition of the article “The”, there’s really a world … Continue reading The (Non-)Deliverance of Scares
It might as well be narrative; with how it poetically pinpoints every nuance and gently basks in the emotional highs and lows. We don’t always see this in documentaries. But rest assured, nobody’s acting. Everything you see here is real. … Continue reading Reunited Behind Bars: A Review of “Daughters”
Whenever I’m asked about my pageant obsession, I tend to answer the “when” and not the “why”. See, I always dreaded the thought of having to rationalize a passion. But if I were to indulge, it all began in the … Continue reading 30 Years a Pageant Geek
For the first time since its 2016 inception, Mr. Supranational preceded its female counterpart. It’s a departure from previous years, when the former would follow the latter after 24 hours. No clear explanation was provided regarding the switch, but, whatever … Continue reading Miss Supranational 2024: The Final Wishlist
Before we proceed with the last three groups, let’s take a look at two active participants who didn’t take part in the Supra-Chat Challenge: CHILE – Vaihere Domingo. This medicine student grew up in Tahiti, and her Supra-Talent submission hinted … Continue reading Miss Supranational 2024 Candidate Round-Up (Groups 8 to 10)
GROUP 5 – Australia, Botswana, Czech Republic, Sierra Leone, Spain AUSTRALIA – Janaya Reimers. The Land Down Under placed six consecutive years since its 2013 debut but went on hiatus after missing the cut in 2019. It’s nice to see … Continue reading Miss Supranational 2024 Candidate Round-Up (Groups 5 to 7)
GROUP 1 – Canada, Denmark, Haiti, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, US Virgin Islands CANADA – Rachel Murgel. Since Siera Bearchell’s 2015 First Runner-Up finish, Canadians have generally settled with ranking within the 25th to 35th range. This children’s literacy ambassador … Continue reading Miss Supranational 2024 Candidate Round-Up (Groups 1 to 4)
Build up for Miss Supranational 2024 pageant has been low-key special for Pinoy fans, as two titleholders visited the country over the past few months. It was late October when incumbent queen, Andrea Aguilera, graced the inaugural The Miss Philippines … Continue reading Miss Supranational 2024: A Prelude
VIEWING DATES: November 27 to December 1, 2023 #76 – CITY LIGHTS (1931)D: Charlie ChaplinS: Charlie Chaplin, Virginia Cherrill, Florence Lee, Harry Myers, Al Ernest Garcia Subtitled A Comedy Romance in Pantomime, Charlie Chaplin’s second entry is, therefore, the grandfather … Continue reading AFI Top 100 Revisited (#76 to #73)
VIEWING DATE: November 26, 2023 #77 – AMERICAN GRAFFITI (1973)D: George LucasS: Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard, Cindy Williams, Charles Martin Smith, Candy Clark, Paul Le Mat, Mackenzie Phillips, Harrison Ford, Suzanne Somers It’s not the film that comes to mind … Continue reading AFI Top 100 Revisited: #77 – “American Graffiti”
MARATHON DATES: November 20 to 25, 2023 #83 – PLATOON (1986)D: Oliver StoneS: Charlie Sheen, Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe After three decade-spanning directorial stints, Oliver Stone finally “arrived” with Platoon – his first of three Vietnam War movies. And in … Continue reading AFI Top 100 Revisited (#83 to #78)
VIEWING DATE: November 15, 2023 #84 – FARGO (1996) D: Joel and Ethan CoenS: Frances McDromand, William H. Macy, Steve Buscemi, Peter Stormare, Kristin Rudrud, John Carroll Lynch The tagline described it as a “homespun murder story”. But really, it’s … Continue reading AFI Top 100 Revisited: #84 – “Fargo”
VIEWING DATES: November 6 to 14, 2023 #93 – THE APARTMENT (1960)D: Billy WilderS: Jack Lemmon, Shirley MacLaine, Fred MacMurry Shortcuts up the corporate ladder often lead to graver hurdles. That’s the moral lesson at hand in this offbeat classic. … Continue reading AFI Top 100 Revisited (#93 to #85)
Planet Chuckie 