dane jamandron,
It may well be the most awaited and most talked about film in this year’s Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino (PPP).
When it was launched in August 16, 100 Tula Para Kay Stella was an immediate hit. Probably because of the Filipinos’ penchant for heartbreaking yet kilig love stories, people trooped to the cinemas and lined up to watch it.
JC Santos, who gained popularity in the hit TV series ‘Till I Met You, stars as the shy, awkward honor student Fidel Lansangan who meets the confident, rocker girl Stella Puno, played by actress Bela Padilla of Camp Sawi fame. The supporting cast is led by former Starstruck contestant who plays the character of Chuck. Other well-known Filipino celebrities are also part of the cast such as Dennis Padilla, Mayton Eugenio, Ana Abad Santos, Prince Stefan, Arvic James Tan, Maricel Morales, Caleb Santos and Christopher Roxas. The film is directed by Jason Paul Laxamana who also directed “The Third Party” and “Ang Taba Ko Kasi.”
Even though they were opposites, Fidel and Stella built a subtle relationship with each other after their first meeting during their freshman orientation at the Pampanga Agricultural College (PAC). As their friendship grew, so did Fidel’s feelings for the black-lipstick-wearing Stella.
Fidel expressed his feelings through writing a series of poems inspired by Stella, yet he never had the guts to give her the collection personally. Meanwhile Stella, who aspired to be a musician, went from one boyfriend to another in order to reach the fame she dreamt of. The friendship they had was a rollercoaster ride of emotions and experiences, their relationship reached a myriad of heights and pitfalls, yet Fidel’s love remains unwavering as he continued writing poems for Stella until he reached his 100th. By the time he was confident enough to confess his love, a twist in the story made the audience’s heart ache until the end of the movie.
The actors’ portrayal of their characters brought the movie to life. Though Santos and Padilla looked mature to be 17-18 year olds, they were able to portray the emotions and the struggles of their characters. Santos maintained Fidel’s stutter for the entirety of the film and portrayed the evolution of his character, from an awkward freshman to a confident performer. Padilla, on the other hand, deftly depicted Stella’s tragedies and exhibited the aspiring musician’s humanity by showing her imperfections. However, the supporting cast wasn't consistent. Some of them came out of nowhere and suddenly had major roles, like Von. Some of their acting also felt very scripted and didn’t give off a natural feel.
Behind Fidel and Stella’s story was this annoying repetitive Original Soundtrack (OST). The song “241” by Rivermaya was repeated throughout the movie in an attempt to create a little too obvious of a foreshadowing. However, the production design team was very diligent with the characters’ clothes and props. The characters using devices like the earlier generations of Nokia phones and the casual use of old social media sites like “Friendster” were suitable for its time period. The colors of the movie were also “faded” giving it the feel of the setting an “older” vibe.
The movie itself was realistic, showing us that real life isn’t like a fairy tale and that we won’t always end up with the person we really wanted to. However, with the title “100 Tula Para Kay Stella,” we expected bigger and bolder lines to hit us in the end. We would have preferred if the actual 100 poems written by Fidel were better. It showed progress and how Fidel was improving by being better as the movie went by, despite lacking the wow factor we were looking for.
In the end, 100 Tula Para Kay Stella had its good and bad points. In spite of its flaws, it still undeniably touched the hearts of many and reiterated the importance of saying what you really feel. // by Dane Jamandron, John Allan Gregorio, Nathan Ramos, Fiel Delos Reyes
Feature: Written yet Unspoken
It may well be the most awaited and most talked about film in this year’s Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino (PPP).
When it was launched in August 16, 100 Tula Para Kay Stella was an immediate hit. Probably because of the Filipinos’ penchant for heartbreaking yet kilig love stories, people trooped to the cinemas and lined up to watch it.
JC Santos, who gained popularity in the hit TV series ‘Till I Met You, stars as the shy, awkward honor student Fidel Lansangan who meets the confident, rocker girl Stella Puno, played by actress Bela Padilla of Camp Sawi fame. The supporting cast is led by former Starstruck contestant who plays the character of Chuck. Other well-known Filipino celebrities are also part of the cast such as Dennis Padilla, Mayton Eugenio, Ana Abad Santos, Prince Stefan, Arvic James Tan, Maricel Morales, Caleb Santos and Christopher Roxas. The film is directed by Jason Paul Laxamana who also directed “The Third Party” and “Ang Taba Ko Kasi.”
Even though they were opposites, Fidel and Stella built a subtle relationship with each other after their first meeting during their freshman orientation at the Pampanga Agricultural College (PAC). As their friendship grew, so did Fidel’s feelings for the black-lipstick-wearing Stella.
 |
| EYES ON EACH OTHER. Bela Padilla (left) and JC Santos (right) star as Stella Puno and Fidel Lansangan, respectively. Photo Credit: Viva Films |
Fidel expressed his feelings through writing a series of poems inspired by Stella, yet he never had the guts to give her the collection personally. Meanwhile Stella, who aspired to be a musician, went from one boyfriend to another in order to reach the fame she dreamt of. The friendship they had was a rollercoaster ride of emotions and experiences, their relationship reached a myriad of heights and pitfalls, yet Fidel’s love remains unwavering as he continued writing poems for Stella until he reached his 100th. By the time he was confident enough to confess his love, a twist in the story made the audience’s heart ache until the end of the movie.
The actors’ portrayal of their characters brought the movie to life. Though Santos and Padilla looked mature to be 17-18 year olds, they were able to portray the emotions and the struggles of their characters. Santos maintained Fidel’s stutter for the entirety of the film and portrayed the evolution of his character, from an awkward freshman to a confident performer. Padilla, on the other hand, deftly depicted Stella’s tragedies and exhibited the aspiring musician’s humanity by showing her imperfections. However, the supporting cast wasn't consistent. Some of them came out of nowhere and suddenly had major roles, like Von. Some of their acting also felt very scripted and didn’t give off a natural feel.
Behind Fidel and Stella’s story was this annoying repetitive Original Soundtrack (OST). The song “241” by Rivermaya was repeated throughout the movie in an attempt to create a little too obvious of a foreshadowing. However, the production design team was very diligent with the characters’ clothes and props. The characters using devices like the earlier generations of Nokia phones and the casual use of old social media sites like “Friendster” were suitable for its time period. The colors of the movie were also “faded” giving it the feel of the setting an “older” vibe.
The movie itself was realistic, showing us that real life isn’t like a fairy tale and that we won’t always end up with the person we really wanted to. However, with the title “100 Tula Para Kay Stella,” we expected bigger and bolder lines to hit us in the end. We would have preferred if the actual 100 poems written by Fidel were better. It showed progress and how Fidel was improving by being better as the movie went by, despite lacking the wow factor we were looking for.
In the end, 100 Tula Para Kay Stella had its good and bad points. In spite of its flaws, it still undeniably touched the hearts of many and reiterated the importance of saying what you really feel. // by Dane Jamandron, John Allan Gregorio, Nathan Ramos, Fiel Delos Reyes
0 comments: