MANILA, Philippines - Wenn Deramas said that he has stepped up the comedy plate in his latest movie Moron 5 and The Crying Lady under Viva Films and MVP Pictures, and there’s good reason to take him at his word.
Direk Wenn has more than proven his mettle as a comedy director, given his string of box-office hits, the latest of which was last year’s Praybeyt Benjamin said to be the highest-grossing Filipino film to date.
With his reputation firmly in place, it does look like another side-splitting comedy is in the offing, starting with the characters who are named after unlikely inspirations.
In Moron 5 and The Crying Lady, Luis Manzano is Albert (as in Einsten); Billy Crawford is Isaac (yes, as in Newton); Marvin Agustin is Aristotle (the philosopher, remember?); DJ Durano is Michaelangelo (the Sistine Chapel master, not the ninja turtle); and Martin Escudero is Mozart (you know who!).
And you know what they say about how your name becomes you? Well, it doesn’t really follow. They’re the Moron 5, and their (mis)adventures — including getting thrown into jail and trying to get out of it to disastrous results — when they cross paths with the “evil genius” Crying Lady, played by John “Sweet” Lapus, make up the story from a screenplay by Mel del Rosario.
But as it’s been said that the heart is the first feature of the working mind, there’s a redeeming and endearing quality amid all that “stupidity.”
Direk Wenn explained in a presscon, “The film is really a story about five long-time friends who even when they were kids, they were already considered ‘stupid.’ But whatever they lack in brains, they more than made up for it with their hearts. Just imagine, they went through jail and were treated unfairly, and yet they’re still clueless as to why all those things happened to them. They just accepted whatever happened in their lives.”
He also offered a little insight into Sweet’s character, revealing that the Crying Lady is also actually very much part of the boys’ childhood. In fact, it is through the benevolence of the Crying Lady that the boys are able to survive school, bullying and what-nots. And as the story follows the thread of how the school friends become enemies later in life, expect gag after gag, direk Wenn said.
Despite the “political references” — for one, all Moron 5 have the country’s presidents as family names not to mention there’s a scene that should remind us of a recent political fuss — direk Wenn clarified this is not a political satire, nor is the film trying to inject some political color in the guise of comedy because “I don’t want to offend anybody.”
He shared how the film came to be: “All this started during Praybeyt Benjamin as there’s a character there that was so stupid. I was asked what I wanted to do next after Praybeyt, and I said I wanted to do a story about five idiots.”
Denying that it’s inspired after a Bollywood film about three idiots, he said, “When I was told that there was a film called Three Idiots, I replaced my title, and since Maroon 5 is popular, the title is a (pun) on the band.”
Despite his long and extensive experience in doing comedies, direk Wenn admitted that the film is a first of sorts for him; he’s experimenting and veering away from his formula.
“You’re used to seeing me doing films revolving around mothers, like you have the Tanging Ina series. (My films) are always about the mother or the siblings,” said the director. “Secondly, with Vice Ganda (star of his Petrang Kabayo and Praybeyt Benjamin), my films tackled homosexuality.”
“In Moron 5, I just wanted to deliver a series of gags and jokes. But that’s not to say this is a senseless film. But I just want to see audiences laugh until their stomachs ache.
“We achieved that in Praybeyt Benjamin, so we’ll see. It’s also the first time that I’m handling more male characters in a comedy. We’re trying what they call as masculine comedy.”
Meanwhile, the director refused to delve more into what prompted the back-out of Star Cinema from co-producing Moron 5 and The Crying Lady with Viva Vilms. Based on his contract, he is slated to do one more film under Star Cinema. He is also set to do nine more with Viva Films. Almost all of his past films were produced if not co-produced by Star Cinema, which he has worked with for the last 15 years. (The director, who graduated from the University of Sto. Tomas, started his career in the entertainment biz with ABS-CBN 20 years ago, rising from the ranks — production assistant, writer, head writer, executive producer, TV director — before he began directing films.)
Direk Wenn mused about the issue: “Let’s cross the bridge when there’s a bridge. And if there’s a bridge, then let’s cross it. What’s more important (is that you) don’t burn bridges.”
Moron 5 and The Crying Lady opens in theaters nationwide on April 7 (Black Saturday).