Sweet goes ‘ugly’ for the first time

Award-winning actor-comedian John Lapus is very happy that he has a filmfest entry again this year and he’s playing one of the lead roles. He’s in the cast of Quantum Films’ “Buy Now Die Later,” a horror-comedy directed by Randolph Longjas. The movie co-stars him with Vhong Navarro, Rayver Cruz, Lotlot de Leon, Alex Gonzaga and Janine Gutierrez.

“I am playing the role of Pippa, a gay character, who bought a bottle of perfume from Santi who owns an antique shop. I bought a mysterious bottle of perfume and once I spray it on, all men gravitate to me. Lahat sila naaakit sa akin,” Sweet related at the presscon of the film last week.

“Once the gay population sees the movie, they would surely ask where they can buy the said perfume,” Sweet jokingly said. “But since we are only human and prone to commit mistakes like becoming greedy, then that’s when the problem arose. That’s when the horror starts for the five characters in the film.”

“Buy Now Die Later” is the only horror-comedy film in the upcoming Metro Manila Film Festival and Sweet is proud he was chosen by Quantum Films’ Joji Alonso to be part of the cast. He also liked the idea of working with a young director who started a career in advertising.

“To date, Direk Randolph is the youngest director I’ve worked with. My God, he’s only 26. He’s that young. Aside from the fact that he started his career doing commercials, his work is very sleek. Young directors have fresh ideas. Imagine, I have been in the business for 22 years and now I get the chance to work with a 26-year-old director. I really learned a lot of new things from him,” said Sweet.

“When it comes to art, especially in making movies, there is no age limit. Just because you have been in the industry for so long means you already know everything. We can still learn a lot from other people. It is best for actors like me to be open and listen. Since Direk Randolph came from the advertising world, napaka-pulido nilang gumawa. Their training in doing commercials dictates that every shot should be perfect. It’s hard because you exert more effort but you feel good once you see the end product. In my case, I had some scenes which we had to do four takes. And there was a scene where I need to run from Quezon City to Escolta because I was being chased by men.”

On what he liked best about his role, Sweet said, “This is the first time I played, modesty aside, the role of an ugly gay person. I’ve always played the beautiful and glamorous bading. In this film, I didn’t use a girdle to make my stomach look firm. I looked fat. We even had a look test, which Direk Randolph was quite strict about. What he told me after the look test – I didn’t know if I should be flattered – was that he needed to make me look ugly. So ibig sabihin maganda pala ako? Nilagyan nila ako ng bukol sa mukha na mayroon pang buhok-buhok to make me look ugly. The role is challenging because the character is very physical. Sa mga eksena ko, doon magtitilian ang mga tao. Sa horror kasi importante ang gulat factor and that’s what my role provides.”

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Jeric Raval returns to the action genre after 12 years of absence from the big screen. This is thru “Manila’s Finest,” which opens today in theaters nationwide and is directed by William Mayo.

The last film Jeric did was “Lapu-Lapu” released in 2002, which featured action star-turned-senator Lito Lapid.

While he appears on TV occasionally, “Manila’s Finest” is really Jeric’s comeback vehicle. Jeric says this signifies his intention to become more active in his acting career. He recently signed up for a managerial contract with Viva Artist Agency together with his son. “I am excited and thankful that I was able to finish a movie despite the fact that our film industry is not that active anymore in doing movies,” he said.

He is hopeful for the resurgence of the film industry, not only for actors like him both for other people in the film industry like stuntmen, character actors and extras. When the film industry suffered a slump, many people lost their jobs.

Jeric is playing the role of a police officer in “Manila's Finest” which is produced by Armor Film Productions, owned by Prince Armodoval.

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Launched at the CCP last Saturday (December 5) was the Pilipino version of Noel Ferrer’s book “Sisikat Din Ako!” under a new title – “Mag Artista Ka.” We are part of this book as one of the contributing writers.  We are honored to have been chosen by Noel (who is also a talent manager of Ryan Agoncillo, Edgar Allan Guzman, Luis Alandy and Joross Gamboa, among others) since we are in good company with our friends Alwin Ignacio and Arnel Ramos, together with Jerry Donato, Jet Valle, Rikka Infantado, Attorney Toto Villareal and Jose Javier Reyes.

Published by Anvil and first released last September 19 was the original version of the book in English. It was the first time we were asked to contribute articles for a book and we are humbled at the opportunity. At the said occasion, Noel announced that “Sisikat Din Ako!” will have a version in Pilipino to be released in time for the celebration of his birthday.

“Mag-Artista Ka” is handy because of its compact size which could easily fit in your bag. It is also easy reading. For those who are dreaming to become stars, here’s a book that can be your guide in pursuing a career in showbiz.

Featured in the cover is the tandem of Alden Richards and Maine Mendoza who both are undoubtedly the most phenomenal stars in showbiz today.