Still in the office… yeah i am. savoring the last days that i am spending in CDO.

2mrw i’m leaving for home, for the month-long break…sigh…

wala lng… just sad. i’ll be missing CDO for quite some time. pati yong office namin. pati yong streets na dinadaanan ko araw-araw. pati na mga tao na nakikita ko sa paligid kahit di ko kilala. been used to all those stuffs. pero di bali, time to grow up another level.

may be i won’t be able to update my blog for quite some time, pero di bali. keep you posted after the break. hehehe… for now, close muna ang BLOGags!@?#!…

but before that, just wanna greet everybody an ADVANCE MERRY CHRISTMAS and a HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

NOTE: January 1 - bday ko. everyone’s invited to eat our house. hehehe…

This is MuLaN temporarily signing off

                                          
                                                                                     - - - -

Yeah… some kinda doing a countdown. Well, no more. Today’s the last day of work before the (not so sure) one month break. After almost 9 months of working… almost 9 months of walking to-and-fro the same streets from the house to the office… after almost 9 months of being with my officemates… what can i say? Of course, i’LL be missing them. I will be missing those times that I got so busy with my work. I will be missing those times when I got so drained/stressed out. As of now, I am no longer used to just sitting down whole day without nothing to do. And I just can’t imagine my life without it (I mean my work).

Cguro, this is how life works. Done with the GSIN Corp. chapter… may be another chapter for me to live… another people for me to meet… another lessons for me to learn. The almost 9 months of stay in the company were one of those fruitful times I had in my life. They are memorable. Hahaha… i should have written in the title of this entry, MY FIRST JOB.

I can really be as sentimental as this sometimes. Makahilak mn sad ta. Huhuhu… (Joke!) Hehehe… But seriously, mingawon jud ko. Don’t certainly know where life will lead me. Hahaha… destiny na sad. Ugh! Oh no!!!

[Forwarded message from a friend: Don't believe in destiny. Dapat nyong isipin reality. Kung talagang mahal mo ang isang tao, ipaglaban mo coz destiny is just an excuse of LETTING things happen instead of MAKING things happen.]

The message isn’t really just applicable sa mga love2x chuva stuffs. I mean that’s how life should work. I can’t just allow "destiny" to rule over my life. I have my own head to use. But may be it’s the "butterfly effect" that is. Ambot… but I don’t wish to dwell on this topic.

Now playing on Mafe’s PC, My Immortal by Evanescence. Like this song. Senti kaayo. Hehehe…

Tomorrow’s gonna be a different day… a new day to ponder what to do… a new day to start a new life.

IVO LEVI, Prechell!!!

Pictures ko with my officemates (mga larag kaayo mi… took this pics sa DUKA BAY during our team building… now playing Hale’s Here Tonight by their brusko guitarist… unbelievable):

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

I’ve heard a lot about this "material." I read it from a newspaper before but I was not so interested then. There was a play performed before (i guess a couple of time) using the same material, with the same title or others had been modified.

Heard of Disney’s The Chronicles of NARNIA? Unlike Harry Potter though, there wasn’t a worldwide premier for this film. NARNIA is the "main" title for the same story [The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe]. Theaters in Manila showed it first (today ata ang premier dun). Jen, our editor/manager/supervisor, told us that the film was able to earn $65M (not so sure about the figure, iL ask her again) for just this weekend.

Well, thanks to Kuya Matt… we were able to watch it this afternoon [ssshhh... he downloaded the file from the Internet]. Hehehe.. so much for being "hardworking" employees… But anyway, it’s worth our time. Again, I don’t wish to spoil your excitement to see this movie. One thing’s for sure, it’s BRILLIANT! And I’d like to thank CS Lewis for that.

And oh… hehehe… cute kaau si Peter (the eldest among the four siblings who are the main characters of the story). GWAPO au!!! especially when he wore his armor and drew his sword like a real knight. My gid, kinilig ako. Hahaha… and I also like very much the little girl, Lucy, who got this strong character na kuha kaayo niya. Well, actually, they did well.

And the White Witch? I hate her. She looks like a walking mannequin (tama ba spelling nito?). And also, one of the most or I guess yong pinaka-nakatsada ani na movie is iyang animation. Not just an ordinary creation. You’ll see the LION (Asland), and other fictitious characters there na para talagang totoo.

Great job!!! Triple A for this film

=========================================================================

Overview: 

Narnia, a
captivating musical based on a story by C. S. Lewis, follows some curious
children through a magical wardrobe into a mystical land of Narnia, where they
learn valuable lessons in courage, unselfishness and wisdom.

http://www.narniaweb.com/content.asp?id=2

=========================================================================

This is actually one of those times me and Beh had a nice talk. Such a smart guy. A guy who is "as perennial as the grass."

(16:06:43) daniel_solo_123: do you believe in destiny?
(16:06:49) daniel_solo_123: or fate?

(16:07:14) Mulan: partly

(16:07:41) daniel_solo_123: why do you say that?

(16:10:04) Mulan: kasi, the other half of me believes that since it’s my life, ako lng pwd gumawa ng sarili kong daan. things wont happen w/o my permission
(16:10:36) Mulan: the other half believes in God, who’s more than anybody else is invisible
(16:11:09) Mulan: i believe of the so many factors tht cn affect my life

(16:11:12) daniel_solo_123: you’re right…..but the second will always prevail…..

(16:11:14) Mulan: and the way i live it
(16:11:34) Mulan: yeah, i think so to

(16:11:52) daniel_solo_123: destine/fate depends on Him…..

(16:12:00) Mulan: been living my life for 20 years now thinking he really do exist
(16:12:21) Mulan: *does
(16:13:29) Mulan: pero minsn naiisip ko, if that wud be the case.. yong buhay ko pala nakaplano na…(destiny ika nga), so what’s the use of giving me the right to choose what i want
(16:13:58) Mulan: what’s the use of giving me freedom kung un at un pa rin mangyayari sa buhay ko
(16:14:05) Mulan: it’s way too complicated
(16:14:14) Mulan: only He knows these things

(16:15:39) daniel_solo_123: yeah…..i think so too……but He’s so Good to grant what we request….what we ask…

(16:17:13) Mulan: have u ever tried questioning His existence?

(16:17:45) daniel_solo_123: no….i dont have the right ….

(16:17:48) Mulan: let’s deal w/ this as a matter of fact.. i wont brand u an atheist if u say yes
 (16:18:36) Mulan: we used to discuss this w/ my friends

(16:18:37) daniel_solo_123: i believe that i dont have the right to question His existence…..

(16:19:32) Mulan: isn’t it ironic? ur given all the freedom to do watever u want to, but then u cnt question that?

(16:19:54) daniel_solo_123: its already inculcated in my heart and mind……….
(16:20:11) daniel_solo_123: that i’m not worthy of doing so….

(16:20:16) Mulan: for me, doing so is more of knowing Him more

(16:20:54) daniel_solo_123: just looking around you will tell you about Him….
 
(16:28:18) Mulan: but thre so much more to know about him than jz looking around

(16:28:19) daniel_solo_123: that includes the suffering and pain that we see happening….

(16:28:36) Mulan: yeah those included
(16:29:10) Mulan: there are things science can explain.. well, now almost everything i guess
(16:30:16) Mulan: but when it comes to the point na wala na masabi kahit ang siyensya, people tend to rationalize it pa rin like saying God does exist. He made it all, He’s the reason why ganito ganyan

(16:31:09) daniel_solo_123: that’s a logical answer to it…

(16:31:34) Mulan: ang sa akin lng, there’s nothing wrong when one question His existence…
(16:31:53) Mulan: asking doesn’t necessarily mean u dont believe in it
(16:31:57) Mulan: in Him

(16:32:53) daniel_solo_123: could be…..but i have a different thing in mind…..

(16:33:08) Mulan: why wud i be afraid to ask that question, jz because of the thought that He might put me in hell? that’s what i call becoming a hyprocrite
(16:33:17) Mulan: so what’s on ur mind?
(16:33:30) Mulan: *hypocrite

(16:34:46) daniel_solo_123: it’s just that i believe i’m not worthy to question His existence……
(16:35:01) daniel_solo_123: but i’m not saying you’re wrong….
(16:35:19) daniel_solo_123: it’s just my perception and faith…..

Can’t tell u bwt something in particular right now. I’m still not over Hale yet. Hehehe… saw them drivin’ the gym like hell. Mga choi kaau na. And i wud also like to acknowledge K9 and Tyronne Caberte for their outstanding performance during the concert. They’re really great people/local talents who deserve to be recognized.

Bow ko sa inyo tanan mga bai… hehehe…

By the way, I got these pics from different links but i wasn’t able to insert them coz i just forgot. hehehe… but i hope u’d enjoy looking at the pics. Yeah i know, i don’t have to tell you how cute CHAMP is. He really is.

Insert ko lng din, see Champ’s photo with Jobee? Meron din ako nyan. Hehehe… Chuva lng!!!

Yeah, kinda excited to attend their concert but I was a bit disappointed coz i only got the Php100-ticket. Oh well, i should hv expected it since it’s only a Hale invite. Hope thing’s gonna be great tonight. Don’t have anybody to accompany me — as usual, solo flight na sad. Mura kog buang magkilig-kilig didto ako ra isa.

I guess everybody’s so busy with their own lives, eh? Got nobody to share the fun with. Busy ra kaau akong mga "friends" sa ilang life… hahaha… magpa-busy na lng pud ko.

Well, try ko lng… i’ve been recently watching movies sa Mall nga ako lang mag-isa (Dubai & Chicken Little), lingaw mn japon. May be malingaw ra japon ko sa concert. I’ve been planning this taud2x na pud so i won’t let any thing or any body (nobody at all) to keep me from going in there.

Cge, au2x sa akong self. Hope iL enjoy the concert.

<— By the way, si Champ ni. lead vocalist nila. Gotta see him there. Hehehe…

Profile

Full Name: Arthur Bernard D. Lui Pio
Nicknames: Champ, Champoy, Poy
Age: 23
Birth Date: February 8, 1982
Zodiac Sign: Aquarius
Best Mates: Brothers, Ron
Birthplace: Quezon City
Current Residence: Alabang area
Family: Mom and Dad, Cher, Chino and Cha
Pets: None at the moment
Hair: Gush!
Eyes: Brown
Height: 5′10"
Weight: 150 lbs.
Musical Influences: My Dad, John Mayer, Coldplay, Nirvana and Pearl Jam, Beatles, The Dave Clark Five
Group Role: spokesperson, lead vocalist, guitarist, moderator
Hobbies: Basketball, DVD’s, Going to the Beach
Crush: Amanda Griffin
Favorite Quote: I’m a lover, not a fighter.

Some of Champ’s Favorites

Fun Time: With friends and family
Movies: The Count of Monte Cristo, Odyssey
Singers: John Mayer and Chris Martin
Actor: Seth Cohen
Colors: White and Black
TV Show: The O.C.
Snack: Lahat!
Food: Lahat!
Sports: Basketball!
Athlete: Michael Jordan
Music: All
Holiday: His Birthday!
Hale Song: All 12 of them!

Got this from:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Champ_lui_pio 

Eduard Christoff Philippe Gérard Renaldi, Prince of Genovia:
Courage is not the absence of fear but rather the judgment that
something is more important than fear. The brave may not live forever
but the cautious do not live at all.

- from the movie, Princess Diaries I

Affirmative!!!

For so many years now [since i watched this movie], i’ve been trying to live such a fearless life. But let me say it again [before anybody would dare raise their eyebrows on me], i said i’ve been TRYING… not that i’ve lived it just the way you understood it.

Ewan… knowing who i am now… knowing what i am… i’ve realized dami pa ring kulang sa buhay ko. My wants are insatiable, and i fear that someday, it might just as well choke me to death. Creepy!!!

But, hey, tapos na Halloween so let me just make it a little bit… ummm… (unsa gani English sa dili kayo tantong hadlok?)

Bitaw, seriously… i’m no adventurer. Talawan kayo ko sa tinuod lang. Haven’t done a lap until now sa pool. I’ve mentioned in some of the entries na i’m taking swimming lessons right now with Mafe [and Roselle before].

Just recently, Mafe and I went into surveying how deep the deepest part of the pool is. well, fortunately, matungkad pa man nako. Pero ambot lang jud, talawan kaayo ko. I attempted once or i guess more than once to make it to the other end of the pool, pero dili jud kaya. I got to imagine a lot of stupid things underwater (to be exact, gihabol daw ko sa shark, or dili ko dapat motunob sa floor kay naay tuyom).

Weird isn’t it? It’s awful!!!

Most of the time, i’ve been cautious… very cautious that sometimes I gave up in the middle of the battle, thinking it’s better to give up than totally lose in the combat. Well, how would you like to differentiate a quitter from a loser? (sigh)

But know what? Sometimes, I can be very brave. Brave enough like Fa Mulan… there were those times that i went against the river’s flow. A non-conformist? A deviant entity? Not really, most of the time conformist man ko…talawan baya.

Hahaha… I’m trying to remember when i was really able to do that. Got hard time to recall. Murag wala man cguro or nakalimot lang ko. Hay buhay…

Ani na lang… this is actually a revelation (hehehe… mura jud unsa ba… kulba kaau ang term nga gigamit…) how far can i sacrifice just to get what i want? how much can i give up to win something in return? how far am i willing to go to achieve my dreams?

I can compromise some things… but never my family, myself and my heart.

how many challenges can i bravely suffer without those three — more importantly my heart? i don’t know just how many… i guess there would only be few. That’s why i put my heart inside a box that only i can open. Why? To shield it from all the hurtings/pains… for me to endure what it is to be endured. I don’t know how to mend a broken heart so better be cautious.

I may die a quitter later, but at least my heart’s still whole…

Am I a loser? 

Language of the Encantadians

The show features Enchanta, a fictional language, that was devised for the show. Although, it is not comprehensive as the languages of Middle-earth of J. R. R. Tolkien’s work or Star Trek’s Klingon language.

Words

• Ada — Mother (in particular, Cassiopeia used the term to her mother)
• Ado — Father (in particular, Cassiopeia used the term to her father)
• Aldo — uncle (Ybrahim used the term in regard to Raquim)
• Ashte — aunt (often used by a niece of a Sang’gre)
• corra — heart (related to e corre dieu)
• dayo — foreigner (dayuhan, Anthony and Manang Rosing, in particular, mentioned by Imaw
• Enchan (en-syan) — The alphabet of Encantadia. Somewhat similar to the Baybayin script.
• Emre — Bathala.
• Enchanta — the language of Encantadia.
• Enkantado / Enkantada — the denizens of Encantadia’s world.
• Ivi (or Ive) — someone or the equivalent of si in Tagalog. (Example: "Ivi Lira. Ivi Kahlil." This means "Lira and Kahlil")
• kantao — bracelet
• luntaie — saviour (tagapagligtas, Lira, in particular)
• more (mo-re, short o and e) — either man or woman
• musti — needed, need
• paneya — bread
• pashnea — animal (can be used as a term to a person who is unruly (hayop ka in Tagalog))
• Sang’gre — royalty.
• sanctre — death/dead
• Rehav/Rihav — prince (Example: "Rehav Ybrahim." This means "Prince Ybrahim")

Sentences

• Asnamon voyanazar — I’m a traveler, Asnamon tree (Encantadia’s version of open sesame. The whole command says: when entering - "Asnamon voyanazar. Papasukin mo ako sa mundo ng Encantadia/mga tao."
  [translation: I'm a traveler, Asnamon tree. Take me to the world of
  Encantadia/of mortals] ; when closing - "Asnamon voyanazar. Isarado mo ang lagusan" [translation: I'm a traveler, Asnamon tree. Close the portal.])
• Avisala — Greetings (their version of: How are you?)
• Maste lesnu (name of person) — Peace be with (name of person).
• Hasna lesnu Maste — And may God help me be the champion of peace
• Ssheda — Stop/Halt/Desist.
• Ssheda musti maste — We will not give them peace.
• Hasna verom gashne vo — If you do not give me that, I will kill you.
• Ssheda musni verom — I will not give this to you.
• E corre diu — I love you.
• Ivi sanctre — He’s dead.
• Emre eshne ashte emin? — Bathala, why didn’t you take care of my sister?
• Boia brinn Sang’gre Devas — Go to Devas peacefully Sang’gre.
• Ivi levi — He’s in the hand of evil.
• Eshne Sang’gre sanctre Sang’gre, eshne musti sanctre Sang’gre —
  Once a sang’gre kills another, the death of that Sang’gre is the
  payment.
• Ssheda dini luna — You must be killed.
• Ssheda luna ashte live Lireo — Defeat Lireo.
• Hasne Ivo Live — Happy Birthday
• Hasne duvin (name of person)? — What happened to you, (name of person)?
• Isne binn voyanazar — He’s approaching.
• Isne gusna luntaie ivi Lira? — Can the savior (of Encantadia), Lira, do anything?
• Gusna dune Sang’gre — Warning to all Sang’gres.
• Muste maste Lireo — Peace to Lireo (Kapayapaan sa Lireo!!)
• Avisala meiste — the reverse of Avisala, goodbye/farewell.
• Haste live (anything) — Long live (anything) (Mabuhay, Example: "Haste live Lireo". This means "Long live Lireo".)
• Neda-veda - He/she is not here.
• Ashte Mashte Lesnum (name of a place) — May peace be kept throughout (name of a place). Example: Ashte Mashte lesnum Encantadia. Translation: May peace be kept throughout Encantadia.
• Evi Eshvia (name of person) - You will pay for this (name of person)!!!

Numbers

• Iri — One
• Due — Two
• Kaskil — Three
• Pevis — Five
• Way Asni — Ninety-seven
• Way Ise — Ninety-eight
• Way Asno — Ninety-nine
• Avento — One Hundred

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Encantadia#The_Royal_Family_of_Lireo
http://www.igma.tv/article.php?articleid=3708

And if you’re interested to read more about the "fantaserye’s" episodes, I recommend you to go to this blogsite… choi kaau…

http://encantadia.blogspot.com/

Dec. 8, 2005
6:49 pm ET time (extra-terrestrial time zone)
sa akong table sa office

What’s on my table?

1. My PC (hell, of course…)
2. Tapos ko ng kainin na instant La Paz Batchoy (brought to me my Lucky Me!)
3. Isopropyl Alcohol (60ml)
4. my Fon…
5. DOF passport application form (pupunta na akong ng Japan…waaaahhahaaahaha…)
6. Nakalimutan ko, mouse at keyboard ng PC ko… (haler!!!)
7. Plastic yellow green na baso
8. At bag sa ibabaw ng Motherboard… (well, i’m talkin; bwt what’s on the table… gaga!)

- - - - -

Now playing on Killerbee 89.3, StickWiTU by Pussy Cat Dolls (talagang ganito spelling nito):

Nobody’s going to love me better
I’m going to stick with you Forever
Nobody’s going to take me higher
I’m going to stick with you
You know how to appreciate me
I’m going to stick with you
My baby
Nobody ever made me feel this way
I’m going to stick with you

And the No. 1 song:

Makita Kang Muli
Music and Lyrics by: Jimmy Antiporda
Sung by: Sugar Free

Chorus:

Ipaglalaban ko ang ating pagibig
Maghintay ka lamang ako’y darating
Pagkat sa isang taong mahal mo Ng buong puso
Lahat ay gagawin
Makita kang muli,
Makita kang muli,
Makita kang muli..

hehehehhe… just kidding… no way!!! I hate this song… sounds disgusting to me… JOLOGS!!! just posting it coz it had been rocking my mind like crazy kanina pang umaga while swimming sa Pelaez. My gulay, if not only because of Heart… naku… buti na lng…tsk tsk tsk…

ummm… by the way, I’d like to thank DJ Paula of Killerbee for giving me a Hale invite… hehehe… that would be on Saturday… bahala wala ko kauban tan-aw sa concert… to Hale i care… hehehe…

- - - - -

17 days before Xmas… and well, ehem! ehem! uhu-uhu (coughing!!!) … and 5 days before finally getting myself officially unemployed… hahahaha… waaaaaaaaaa…..

(Prechell, ako ang iyong konsensya… dami kasing reklamo sa trabaho, yan tuloy.. natuluyan beauty mo…)

You shut up, my conscience… coz i’m trying to fix pa my plans OK? (dah! taray!!!)

- - - - -

Quotes from Alice in Wonderland:

Alice:
If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would
be what it is because everything would be what it isn’t. And
contrary-wise; what it is it wouldn’t be, and what it wouldn’t be, it
would. You see?

Doorknob:
Read the directions and directly you will be directed in the right direction.

Alice:
It would be so nice if something would make sense for a change.

March Hare:
There’s only one way to stop a MAD WATCH.

March Hare:
I have an excellent idea, LETS CHANGE THE SUBJECT.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043274/quotes

- - - - -

ENJOY READING as always… (",)  

Hey, guys… got no time to write my own blog for this film review. But i really do like this movie. This is dedicated to my one and only baklang friend na si Ralph. Not kidding Ralph… pinaghirapan kong i-research ‘yong comment ni De Quiros para sa movie na ‘to.

Just read the article below:

There’s The Rub : Time out   

First posted 00:40am (Mla time) Aug 04, 2005

        By  Conrado      de Quiros
Inquirer News Service

       
        Editor’s Note:       Published on page A14 of the August 4, 2005 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer    

TIME
out to talk about more serious things. There’s a bit of good news amid
the squalor of bad news in this country, and that is the lease on life
digital and independent ("indie") films are giving the local movie
industry.

In case you still haven’t heard, the local movie
industry is virtually dead. You can hear its dying gasps from here to
Aparri. That industry, which used to produce close to 300 movies a
year, is now producing only 70 or so. And the survivors aren’t doing
all that well. Reputable directors and actors have turned to TV
instead, where work may not be vastly lucrative but it is at least
steady. Their talents though are being frittered away in productions –
"fantaseryes" [TV fantasy series], "telenovelas" [TV soap], and so on
– that cater to the least common denominator. These are hard times.

The
obvious way out seems to be for the industry to explore new avenues-new
stories, new faces, new ways of filmmaking-to lure back audiences. But
exploration or experimentation is the last thing producers want to do, given the high
cost of making movies, particularly star fees, and given the
not-so-sterling showing of movies that have done exactly that over the
years. Their instinct has been to rely on formula, which demonstrably
no longer works. It’s been a chicken-and-egg situation for some time,
one seemingly without resolution.

Digital
and Indie films, which are often one and the same, may just have found
the answer to it. They are relatively cheaper to make. And their makers
can afford to experiment the way the producers of commercial movies
cannot, or do not. They have lower costs-cheaper equipment, lower fees
(the better-known faces are going to them for the psychic income more
than the financial one)-and are in a better position to recover them
even with smaller audiences.

Ellen Ongkeko-Marfil, the director
of "Mga Pusang Gala" [Stray Cats], tells me she used digital cameras
that cost P3,000 a day. Their analog counterparts range from P15,000 to
P20,000 a day. Of course, the high-end digital cameras would have cost
P40,000 a day, but only George Lucas’ cousins in the Philippines would
contemplate renting that.

Nap Jamir, the cinematographer of "Ang
Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros," agrees and says the trick is using the
P3,000-a-day digital cameras creatively to overcome their limitations.
Lighting in particular can do wonders to hide the blemishes. Which he
shows in "Pagdadalaga": the graininess shows only in the daytime street
scenes, which look a bit overexposed.

If those two movies, "Mga
Pusa" and "Pagdadalaga," are anything to go by, Filipino movies are
more likely to recover faster than Filipino politics. Both represent
the wave of the future in terms of infusing local filmmaking with new
sensibilities. "Mga Pusa" makes the bigger gamble by aiming at a
middle-class audience, with its middle-class themes, middle-class
language (the dialogue is in English in many parts) and middle-class
attitudes. It adopts a self-conscious or self-mocking stance toward
this: One of its main characters is a romance novelist for a company
whose editor cannot appreciate writing stories for the middle class
because their audience is "masa" [masses]. In one scene, his editor
tells him no masa woman lives alone, his premise for a story is
implausible. His editor tries to corroborate this with his secretary
who promptly answers, "I do."

I can only hope the movie itself meets with a long queue in movie houses defying "wise-money" expectations.

"Mga
Pusa" tells of a gay man, Boyet (Ricky Davao), and his neighbor, a
single woman, Marta (Irma Adlawan), who are at the mercy of their
itinerant lovers. Its theme is (almost inevitably) that literal stray
cats are more worth caring for than their human counterparts. It goes
on to explore the relationships between Boyet and Irma and their lovers
with impressive richness and complexity. One may quibble about the tone
being a little uneven at times (it strives to maintain a tragicomic one
throughout, though not always successfully) and with some parts being a
little predictable, but those are nothing. They are more than offset by
the movie’s humongous virtues, not the least of them the acting and
directing. Ellen essays one very mature and confident directorial job
for a first outing, and the lead players are fantastic, Adlawan in
particular.

The movie’s many allures start off with its title,
which of course is richly ironic, the coming-of-age, or into
maidenhood, of a boy named Maximo. The curious title refers to a gay
boy living in the slums with his family of petty crooks who falls in
love with a cop, which divides his loyalties. That premise, while being
dramatic, also risks being contrived, and the movie teeters on the edge
of the latter in some parts. But it manages on the whole to walk the
tightrope, and ferociously gracefully. The movie is at its best in
exploring the relationships between the family members. It does a
magnificent job not just giving a face to people who proverbially live
on the knife’s edge but in demolishing the stereotypes about them,
which are really just two ways of saying the same thing. It gets a
trifle shaky in the dynamics between (the quite literal) cops and
robbers.

Michiko Yamamoto, the scriptwriter who also wrote
"Magnifico," gets to be a better storyteller by the day. The
performances are uniformly riveting, Ping Medina (Pen’s son) is a
revelation. But the plaudits easily go to Nathan Lopez (Maximo) who was
given a special citation by the Cinemalaya Awards. It is totally
deserved. That boy is going places, very far places.

What can I
say? It’s nice to know that art at least is flourishing in this country
even if morals are not. Never mind the local movie industry. Do
yourself a favor. Go watch these movies.

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Sana lang di ako nito mapunta ng city jail for copyright law violations. Hehehhehe… wag nyo na lng sabihin ke DeQuiros.

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Oooppsss… Teka, add ko lang ke Patricia Evangelista na review. Idol ko rin kasi tong isang to. Happy reading… Same topic lang din, about Maxima… oh I mean, Maximo.

Rebel without a clue : Not a girl, not yet a woman   

Dec 04, 2005   

Updated 04:19amam (Mla time)
   
Patricia Evangelista         

IT
was already eight o’clock when my friends and I landed in SM North
Edsa, my usual stomping ground, a P10-jeepney ride from UP Diliman. It
used to be that we’d go all the way to Robinson’s Metroeast to watch
flicks, but the recent renovations of the SM theaters, sans chewing
gum, sticky floors and cramped seating, proved that the monster mall
really has "got it all for you."

My karma being as it
is, we walked into the only theater that hadn’t been spruced up-which
explained sliding down the aisle with a cucumber slice stuck to the
bottom of my rubber slipper.

The movie we came to watch
is the story of an adolescent taking care of a criminal father (Soliman
Cruz) and two older brothers (Neal Ryan Sese and Ping Medina) living in
the slums. Twelve-year-old Maxi Oliveros quietly prepares dinner,
washes dishes, goes marketing, washes bloody shirts and generally acts
as the little mother to a family of rough and tumble males. It all
changes when Maxi falls in love with Victor (JR Valentin), a
straight-as-an-arrow policeman, who joins the community and
investigates a murder committed by an Oliveros brother. The choice is
clear: love or family.

"Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo
Oliveros" (The Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros) is made all the more
poignant by the fact that Maxi, or Maximo, is a young boy. His
queerness is not considered an anomaly, but just another fact of life.
There are moments of sheer humor that made the theater’s unusually
large late-night crowd scream with laughter.

In one
scene, after Maxi (Nathan Lopez) serves his father rice, the father
comments that the older boys should learn from Maxi’s thoughtfulness.
Then he pulls out a roll of bills and hands Maxi a twenty as reward.
Then he winks.

"’Yan Maxi, pambili mo ng napkin (Here Maxi, for buying your napkins)."

Maxi’s brother Bogs refuses to be left behind.

"Ako rin ‘Tay, akin naman may wings (Me too, ‘Tay, mine [napkin] has wings)."

The father good-naturedly knocks Bogs in the head, and Maxi watches them with amused pleasure.

It’s
a beautiful coming-of-age story by the same writer (Michiko Yamamoto)
who made me cry thrice in the three times I watched "Magnifico."

The
movie is linked together with little scenes of affection in the
Oliveros family. Maximo is treated much like a favored daughter living
in an environment of crime and day-to-day struggle. If Maximo really
were a girl, the plot of the story would have been exactly the same.

"Ang
Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros" is simply that, a story of an
adolescent’s awakening to and through love. Though pagdadalaga (or a
girl’s blossoming) is a gendered word for women, attaching it to a
non-gendered process like growing up makes for an interesting approach
in a gay film-if it can even be called that. As my friend Nicolo said,
while other films problematize being gay, this one normalizes it, and
more effectively slashes at stereotypes.

There are no
good or bad guys in the story, just complex people who try to survive.
True, the squalor, the crime and the filth are painted expertly, but
the despair is refreshingly absent. There is warmth and laughter and
the distinctly Pinoy way of finding joy in the smallest of ways. Maxi
and his barkada of other little gay kids stage their own private
fashion show under the eye of an amused dressmaker, while in another
scene, Maxi (wearing his signature flower hairclips) strolls out of a
dark stairway into the sunlight and sees a toddler poking at a manhole.
He takes the squirming little boy back into the house, strips him
daintily, and them gives him an impromptu bath. The boy’s mother picks
up the smiling, towel-wrapped child later on and calls out a thank you
to Maxi.

My personal favorite is Maxi’s brother Bogs
(Ping Medina), a teasing, pony-tailed charmer studded with tattoos, who
sits playing video games while Maxi braids his brother’s long hair. The
protective older brother vibe is very present-very similar to that of
the caveman in boxer shorts who lives two rooms away from my bedroom at
home.

At one time, Maxi, rejected by Victor, walks
blindly into Bogs. After one look, Bogs hustles him into an empty jeep
and drags out the truth: that Maxi is still pursuing Victor, who is out
to bring one of the brothers to jail. Torn between anger and sympathy,
Bogs puts an arm around Maxi and says the same thing every big brother
around the world must have said to teary-eyed little sisters since the
beginning of time.

"Tama na iyak, di ko ‘to paaabutin sa bahay, pero kung gawin mo ‘to sa kanya ulit, magagalit ako

(Stop crying, I won’t let them find out at home, but if you do it again, I’ll be very angry)."

Then Maxi leans his head on Bogs’ sweaty T-shirt and cries.

Soliman
Cruz and Neal Ryan Sese also give an equally engaging father-and-son
performance, while talented theater and TV performer Bodjie Pascua do
not disappoint his hordes or loyal fans (including me). It’s impossible
to praise every single member of the cast, so I’ll summarize it thus:
they are all brilliant.

The movie is far from perfect,
even to the amateur eye. Some scenes are so under-lighted that they’re
jarring. The audio is sometimes hard to follow, and the transitions can
be abrupt. But as with sticky floors and chewing gums, everything else
is forgotten in the whole glorious scope of the film.

"Ang
Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros," directed by first time fiction film
director Aureaus Solito, is the recipient of numerous awards and has
just recently been invited into Robert Redford’s Sundance Film Festival
early next year, a first for Filipinos. Just another reason enough to
start singing "Pinoy Ako."

There is one visual that
keeps playing in my head: angelic-looking Maxi strutting down a muddy
alley as if it were a catwalk, narrow hips swinging in a pair of tiny
red shorts. Nathan Lopez plays the role with restraint, bringing to
life a sweet and delicate girl-who-happens-to-be-a-boy tasting the
first thrill of young love.

Whoever you are, wherever you’re from, watch this film. On a scale of 1 to 10, I’m giving it a hundred and one.

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http://maximooliveros.tripod.com
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