MMFF 2018: Review of ONE GREAT LOVE: Serendipity or Stupidity?

December 31, 2018

This was not exactly the movie I wanted to see, but this was the one that exactly fit that limited window of time I had at the mall. Anyway, it did win 3rd Best Picture and Best Actor (Dennis Trillo won over sure lock Eddie Garcia!) for this festival, so it probably was not as cheesy a romance film as it looked. I did not expect that it would actually be even cheesier than what I was imagining it to be. 

Entrepreneur Zyra still could not move on after her pilot boyfriend Capt. Carl Mauricio simply disappeared from her life for four years without any communication. Meanwhile, her best friend, busy young cardiac surgeon Dr. Ian Arcano, had been her sympathetic ear and her shoulder to cry on whenever she got the blues. One day, Carl suddenly showed up asking for forgiveness, just when Ian was gathering up guts to tell Zyra his real feelings for her. Who will Zyra end up with?

Actually that first decision was not really the end of Zyra's story. Just when you thought she had already learned her lessons in life and love, there she goes on with her silly little cycle of self-pity and delusions of serendipity and then repeats the same mistake all over again. We hear her call herself stupid and pathetic. You know, Zyra, we the audience could not agree with you more, in the superlative degree on both counts. Watching you step on that toxic rusty nail of a relationship over and over was more painful for us than it was for you. 

I wish Kim Chiu had not been the one playing this annoyingly dense and masochistic character Zyra. She has got to be one of the most ill-conceived, moronically foolish movie characters that I had ever seen in a local dramatic movie.  I refuse to believe that there a real woman like this in this day and age. Not only is Zyra a monumental dummy, she is also a ruthlessly heartless Jezebel. Was this character written for us to feel sorry for her, or to hate her? Watching her do her imbecilic thing for almost two hours was cinematic torture. Kim Chiu deserves way better roles than this insultingly trashy character.

Dennis Trillo was supposed to be a hotshot cardiac surgeon Ian, but he did not really come across creditably as one. But the big question was, did he deserve to win that Best Actor prize over Eddie Garcia? Well, Trillo had more dramatic moments where he can show off his ability to cry on cue. But honestly, had he not done similar roles like this before in his other films and telenovelas? This role was right in his comfort zone. He did not need to stretch too much to nail the performance. It did not look like he was challenged at all.

JC de Vera was never subtle in portraying his character. He had this certain way of delivering his sleazy lines that immediately revealed his rascally intentions. Carl was so obviously pretentious and insincere, which made Zyra look all the more stupid than we already knew she was at that point. All he needed to do was flash that smile, prepare a beautiful bouquet of flowers and call himself a cute nickname like "the boy who hates to fly," and presto, he is back in Zyra's life! Effortless. Just like shooting fish in a pail. Disgusting.

Up to the end of this unbearably sappy mush directed by Enrico S. Quizon (who as Eric Quizon also played Zyra's bon viviant father), you do not really know who or what "one great love" the title is talking about. If this was the Third Best Picture of the 2018 MMFF, I dread to venture further to watch the rest of the other entries. I'd hate to follow Zyra's sorry example and spend more money to buy more hammers to bang my head in again. 2/10.