paulo's dance with fame
(please click here for my previous post on the scorching paulo avelino.)
at last, i finally saw paulo avelino on the big screen. he is one of the lead stars in ang sayaw ng dalawang kaliwang paa, an entry to the recently-held cinemalaya film festival, and currently showing at glorieta four.
i like the film. it's sweet and short. with stunning visuals, music and poems. in just over an hour, it's just enough to make you want for more (especially of paulo) while at the same time it won't make you feel as if you've had enough of it.
i may not be objective because i like him, but paulo's a revelation in the movie. he is gorgeous, sexy in a wholesome way and registers well on screen. he can also act. he has those sad, expressive eyes just like reigning drama prince piolo pascual.
just like piolo, paulo is perfect for romantic leads.
**********
paulo plays marlon, a university student who takes dance lessons so he can be close to the object of his affection, his literature professor karen (played by the still fabulous jean garcia). karen also teaches at her own dance school, where marlon intends to enroll.
because paulo's character wants to impress karen, he asks his classmate dennis (played by rocco nacino), who also works as a part-time instructor in karen's school, to teach him how to dance before he enrolls at her class.
marlon tells dennis that he isn't doing well in karen's literature class, so he wants to make it up by excelling in her dance class. while marlon is secretly in love with karen, dennis has unspoken feelings for marlon too. oh, i so love movies about secret loves, especially if it's about the love of a third kind.
like marlon who is contented loving karen from a distance, dennis is happy just by being close to marlon, expressing his affection for him through dance and by being there for him always.
indeed, who needs words when action speaks louder, right?
*******
the movie, a poetry in motion because of its lush visuals, shows paulo and rocco dancing while poems by filipino poets about love, heartbreaks and sex are being read. this may sound pretentious and too intellectual and may turn off some viewers. in fact, some of those who have watched it during the cinemalaya fest said the movie is "boring" and "pretentious."
but i beg to disagree. i love the poems and the dances that give life to the feelings the poets are trying to express through words. my favourite is ophelia dimalanta's kontra punto, which is being recited while paulo and rocco are dancing. without saying anything, we could feel how they feel for each other. the dance sequence is so intense, so erotic, i wish i am the one dancing with paulo instead of rocco.
**********
i think most people found the movie boring because there is not much happening in the film. there is no other woman who is after somebody's husband. there are no memorable but trite bitchy lines, no cat fights, no pretentious and tacky signature items worn by characters pretending to be rich, no sex scenes. and definitely, there is no nudity.
the poems though are gorgeous such as these:
sabi mo, walang tinig ang pag-ibig
nakahimlay sa kailaliman, umuusok sa ibabang alon...
nilalakbay ko ang katawan mo, buwan akong umiikot sa yong sinukob
nilulukob kita hanggang panaginip, nilalagok ko ang yong tinig,
natitigmak ako hanggang buto, humahagod sa ligamgam ng yong hininga
so elegant, right? these lines make me long for those lazy summer evenings, under the moon, when i and my friends (one of them was my secret crush) would sit in a nipa hut, drink beer, talk until the wee hours of the morning. when one of us would strum his guitar and sing some beatles, bee gees and even bread songs. then when we were a bit tipsy, we would talk about love, our crushes, sex and dreams for the future. we were so alive then, so full of hopes for the future. what can i say, we were like fourteen or fifteen at that time. what did we know about the world? about the other, darker face of love?
ah, i miss the fourteen year old me. sadly, he is gone forever, replaced by this sad, jaded, fading beauty.
*******
ang sayaw is not a movie for the fans of those glossy teevee soap operas transported into the big screen. let me just be clear here, i have nothing against those commercial films. just not my cup of tea. anymore.
*******
the bigger revelation here is jean garcia.
like wine, jean's getting better as an actress as she ages. most of her memorable scenes are without dialogue, but she is able to express her character's pain and anguish. yes, teevee's favourite villainess, who is used to delivering those kilometric lines while over acting on the small screen, can very well play a complex character quietly with just her eyes talking. without much effort. i hope she gets more roles like this one.
&&&&&&&&&&&
as i have mentioned earlier, paulo's able to carry very well his role, a difficult one considering that he also has to dance. he passes both acting and dancing with flying colours. chos!
i also like the soundtrack. it's melancholic. in fact, this is the first time that the soundtrack of a filipino film blended so well with the scenes in the movie. even enhancing the tone of the scenes.
after watching the movie, i wanted to buy the books containing the filipino poems featured in the movie such as those by ruth elynia mabanglo (whose sensuous kinukumutan ka ng aking titig was made into a song and part of the soundtrack), rebecca anonuevo and ophelia dimalanta.
******
if you like a film that won't damage your eardrums, not insult your intelligence, but stimulates all your senses and brings a tear or two in your eyes, then this is the movie for you.
please watch. it's a new experience. i hope this will make some money so the producers, writers, and director will be encouraged to cum up with more brilliant, bold and daring films.
this is the type of film that should be celebrated at the box office.
(all pictures are taken from the internet. please don't sue me, no copyright infringement intended.)
*********
here is the trailer of ang sayaw:
**********
(all photos were taken from different web sites. no copyright infringements intended.)
at last, i finally saw paulo avelino on the big screen. he is one of the lead stars in ang sayaw ng dalawang kaliwang paa, an entry to the recently-held cinemalaya film festival, and currently showing at glorieta four.
i like the film. it's sweet and short. with stunning visuals, music and poems. in just over an hour, it's just enough to make you want for more (especially of paulo) while at the same time it won't make you feel as if you've had enough of it.
i may not be objective because i like him, but paulo's a revelation in the movie. he is gorgeous, sexy in a wholesome way and registers well on screen. he can also act. he has those sad, expressive eyes just like reigning drama prince piolo pascual.
just like piolo, paulo is perfect for romantic leads.
**********
paulo plays marlon, a university student who takes dance lessons so he can be close to the object of his affection, his literature professor karen (played by the still fabulous jean garcia). karen also teaches at her own dance school, where marlon intends to enroll.
because paulo's character wants to impress karen, he asks his classmate dennis (played by rocco nacino), who also works as a part-time instructor in karen's school, to teach him how to dance before he enrolls at her class.
marlon tells dennis that he isn't doing well in karen's literature class, so he wants to make it up by excelling in her dance class. while marlon is secretly in love with karen, dennis has unspoken feelings for marlon too. oh, i so love movies about secret loves, especially if it's about the love of a third kind.
like marlon who is contented loving karen from a distance, dennis is happy just by being close to marlon, expressing his affection for him through dance and by being there for him always.
indeed, who needs words when action speaks louder, right?
*******
the movie, a poetry in motion because of its lush visuals, shows paulo and rocco dancing while poems by filipino poets about love, heartbreaks and sex are being read. this may sound pretentious and too intellectual and may turn off some viewers. in fact, some of those who have watched it during the cinemalaya fest said the movie is "boring" and "pretentious."
but i beg to disagree. i love the poems and the dances that give life to the feelings the poets are trying to express through words. my favourite is ophelia dimalanta's kontra punto, which is being recited while paulo and rocco are dancing. without saying anything, we could feel how they feel for each other. the dance sequence is so intense, so erotic, i wish i am the one dancing with paulo instead of rocco.
i think most people found the movie boring because there is not much happening in the film. there is no other woman who is after somebody's husband. there are no memorable but trite bitchy lines, no cat fights, no pretentious and tacky signature items worn by characters pretending to be rich, no sex scenes. and definitely, there is no nudity.
the poems though are gorgeous such as these:
sabi mo, walang tinig ang pag-ibig
nakahimlay sa kailaliman, umuusok sa ibabang alon...
nilalakbay ko ang katawan mo, buwan akong umiikot sa yong sinukob
nilulukob kita hanggang panaginip, nilalagok ko ang yong tinig,
natitigmak ako hanggang buto, humahagod sa ligamgam ng yong hininga
so elegant, right? these lines make me long for those lazy summer evenings, under the moon, when i and my friends (one of them was my secret crush) would sit in a nipa hut, drink beer, talk until the wee hours of the morning. when one of us would strum his guitar and sing some beatles, bee gees and even bread songs. then when we were a bit tipsy, we would talk about love, our crushes, sex and dreams for the future. we were so alive then, so full of hopes for the future. what can i say, we were like fourteen or fifteen at that time. what did we know about the world? about the other, darker face of love?
ah, i miss the fourteen year old me. sadly, he is gone forever, replaced by this sad, jaded, fading beauty.
*******
ang sayaw is not a movie for the fans of those glossy teevee soap operas transported into the big screen. let me just be clear here, i have nothing against those commercial films. just not my cup of tea. anymore.
*******
the bigger revelation here is jean garcia.
like wine, jean's getting better as an actress as she ages. most of her memorable scenes are without dialogue, but she is able to express her character's pain and anguish. yes, teevee's favourite villainess, who is used to delivering those kilometric lines while over acting on the small screen, can very well play a complex character quietly with just her eyes talking. without much effort. i hope she gets more roles like this one.
&&&&&&&&&&&
as i have mentioned earlier, paulo's able to carry very well his role, a difficult one considering that he also has to dance. he passes both acting and dancing with flying colours. chos!
i also like the soundtrack. it's melancholic. in fact, this is the first time that the soundtrack of a filipino film blended so well with the scenes in the movie. even enhancing the tone of the scenes.
after watching the movie, i wanted to buy the books containing the filipino poems featured in the movie such as those by ruth elynia mabanglo (whose sensuous kinukumutan ka ng aking titig was made into a song and part of the soundtrack), rebecca anonuevo and ophelia dimalanta.
******
if you like a film that won't damage your eardrums, not insult your intelligence, but stimulates all your senses and brings a tear or two in your eyes, then this is the movie for you.
please watch. it's a new experience. i hope this will make some money so the producers, writers, and director will be encouraged to cum up with more brilliant, bold and daring films.
this is the type of film that should be celebrated at the box office.
(all pictures are taken from the internet. please don't sue me, no copyright infringement intended.)
*********
here is the trailer of ang sayaw:
**********
lastly, here are more paulo pics:
(all photos were taken from different web sites. no copyright infringements intended.)
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