Vice Ganda, Coco Martin mark MMFF return with underwhelming entries

CEBU, Philippines — Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) mainstays Vice Ganda and Coco Martin marked their return to the festival after two years with their respective entries produced by Star Cinema. Now that the Filipino public can watch movies inside theaters again, it was a no-brainer that both Kapamilya stars would aim to re-capture their blockbuster success.

However, audiences can notice that something seems different with their latest starrers. In Vice’s “Partners in Crime”, the concept and the cast feel scaled-down compared to his previous comedy flicks, which featured multiple recognizable stars and ambitious locations such as a circus kingdom in “Fantastica” and a family-owned mall in “The Mall, The Merrier.” Coco’s romantic-comedy “Labyu with an Accent”, unlike his earlier MMFF fare, does not feature action scenes.

Since Vice and Coco have strong name recognition that guarantees box-office returns, perhaps they could afford to offer something new. But as it turns out, their films still feel same old, same old. While their fans will be entertained, others who loathe how these kinds of films have defined the quality at MMFF in recent years will remain unimpressed.

Partners in Crime

Vice co-stars with Ivana Alawi in this Viva Films-Star Cinema project where their respective characters, Jack and Barbara, compete for the chance to conduct an exclusive, one-on-one interview with the “wealthiest man in the Philippines” named Don Bill inside his mansion during his birthday party.

But the “lovers”-turned-enemies find themselves at the wrong place at the wrong time when they stumble upon a dead Don Bill – and there is incriminating CCTV footage that could frame them as murderers. To save themselves, the duo must follow the demands of the real perpetrator while they try to figure out his or her identity.

A murder-mystery in a Vice Ganda film looks refreshing on paper. But the slapstick humor feels similar to his past works which have its fair share of fans and critics. Because “Partners in Crime” prioritizes bringing out the laughs rather than making sense as a story, the whodunit arc feels so predictable, which makes it less engaging for viewers to speculate on who the real killer is.

Director Cathy Garcia-Molina’s fingerprints are barely seen in the movie. The dramatic scenes would have felt Molina-esque if there weren’t random jokes inserted in the middle.

Molina has helmed comedies before such as “Four Sisters and a Wedding” and rom-coms including “A Very Special Love” and “You Changed My Life”, so this is not a testament that she can’t do comedy well. But clearly, slapstick is not her strongest suit. It feels like she was only attached as director to give the film an upper hand promotion-wise.

Those who enjoy Vice’s comedy and wanted to see how he pairs with Ivana will appreciate “Partners in Crime” if they think less of the plot, and just plan on having a good time for two hours. Otherwise, one should just spend those two hours watching a live episode of “It’s Showtime” where Vice’s humor shines, a few episodes of Ivana’s teleserye “A Family Affair”, or re-watch a Catchy Garcia-Molina movie.

Labyu with an Accent

The film starts strong as it focuses on the budding romance between Gabo (Coco) and Filipino-American Trisha (Jodi Sta. Maria). To process her relationship’s sudden downfall, the heartbroken Trisha leaves the US for the Philippines where she meets Gabo who makes her happy.

When Trisha is forced to return to America by her wealthy father, Gabo unexpectedly follows her as they attempt to carry on their romance, albeit with a lot of adjustments than Gabo anticipates.

Gabo relies on his street smarts to make a living, while well-off Trisha is more calculated. These two opposites somehow work with the chemistry between Coco and Jodi, and with how they played their roles well.

But the film falls apart in the second half when it suddenly transitions into a drama focusing on how Gabo struggles to find decent work in the US where his street smarts are useless and he’s at risk of deportation.

It seems like “Labyu with an Accent” has many ideas it wants to explore about OFWs in America, but it was so clumsily executed that the film somehow has no idea what it wants to say. There were also barely any jokes in the second half, making viewers wonder if this is truly a rom-com as its marketing suggested.

Head-scratching plot holes also leave viewers confused. One example: Trisha speaks limited Tagalog at the start, but as the movie progresses, she suddenly knows how to complete a sentence in the language with no difficulty and without Gabo helping her. Should viewers just move on from that abrupt character development without any question?

The film’s sudden change of tone gets even more frustrating when it concludes its romantic tale with no sense of complete closure. It may have answered the “will-they-won’t-they” between Gabo and Trisha in a very melodramatic fashion, but there were other loose ends that make this a frustrating watch.

For such an interesting premise and good performances from its lead actors, “Labyu with an Accent” struggles to find its footing throughout its two-hour runtime. It should have stuck to one genre, as opposed to having too many ideas with no sense of cohesion in its storytelling.