Cathy Garcia-Molina has fans and by that I don’t mean those people who don’t miss the movies of certain directors because they’re fans. Molina’s fans cheer and even bring their own streamers, as if the director is some much-hyped and much-photographed high-profile actor. I witnessed this myself during the recent premiere of My Only Ufrom Star Cinema.
Then again, such reaction shouldn’t be surprising. Cathy has been churning out fan-friendly films, from last year’s blockbuster One More Chance, which cemented John Lloyd Cruz’s rep as a bankable movie actor; and Close to You, which launched the movie career of Sam Milby; to, more recently, the widely popular A Very Special Love, which gave Sarah Geronimo movie-star bragging rights.
For her latest outing, My Only U, Cathy’s fans cheered her at the premiere of the comedy starring Vhong Navarro and Toni Gonzaga. The movie has been rated “B” by the Cinema Evaluation Board, allowing it to receive a 50-percent tax rebate.
The movie is a romantic comedy that tells the story of Winona (Gonzaga), a bitter person who has lost hope for the future—that is, until she meets Bong (Navarro). He has always had feelings for Winona but could never summon the courage to do anything about it. Until a ghost comes in to provide assistance. The movie packed with wild and wacky antics—and then, there’s the surprise ending which, of course, I won’t give away.
What I will say is that Vhong Navarro, as usual, is a comic genius. His comedy is very Pinoy—slapstick, very emotional, sprinkled with a bit of wit. He’s no Hugh Grant but Hugh is English and so while his movies will never muster lines at the box office of Starmall, Vhong’s will.
Vhong even shows a dramatic side in the movie and while that scene is filled with clichés, Vhong’s brilliant acting saves it—and according to Vhong, direk Cathy helped him fully understand his character. I won’t be surprised if Vhong brings his own streamer for Cathy at the premiere of her next project.
Meanwhile, another comedy I got to see recently is Pineapple Express (screened exclusively in Ayala Cinemas), from Judd Apatow and stars Seth Rogen and James Franco. It’s typical Apatow—nasty dialogue, scenes that are borderline obscene, but with a certain smartness informing the entire proceedings.
Pineapple Express is no different.
Denton (Rogen) is a mailman who spends his days delivering subpoeanas and buying dope from his trusted dealer Saul (Franco). The two try out the latest weed variety, called Pineapple Express, and then Dale witnesses a murder on his way from their pot session. Before long, the two are pursued by hitmen, cops and the whole world.
The movie zips along with abandon and it remains hilarious even if by the middle it gets loopier and disconnects with the plot. Apatow movies have never been about plot, after all. It has always been about witty dialogue, the sly ripostes between the characters. The movie is pointless but it’s so funny that you wouldn’t mind. There are a lot of laugh-out-loud scenes, such as the madcap car chase and an out-of-control ninja scene. But what is shocking is that, in some scenes, you’d even sympathize with the pothead characters.
What is also special about Pineapple Express is that it does what the three Spider-Man blockbusters failed to accomplish: make James Franco a star. Franco is a very talented but underrated young actor. He has always amazed me with his talent, but I’m now blown away by his range showing us his sterling comic skills in this movie.
There will be no Oscar nominations for this movie, I’m quite sure, but if you want to just laugh the days away, then watch Pineapple Express. You might be able to forget the horrors you’ve seen recently on TV...and I’m not talking about those lame Halloween specials over the weekend but the news about Bolante and de la Paz.
