In the case of the other love teams, it’s obvious that James Reid is more of a pretty boy than ka-love team Nadine Lustre and this also goes for Daniel Padilla and his own ka-love team. But with Liza, no doubt she’s the better looking partner in the Liz-Quen tandem.
In the movie, Liza plays Audrey, a simple lass who works as a tour guide in Silay City, Negros Occidental. She’s very devoted to her boyfriend, Tristan (Gerald Anderson) who figured in a car accident after they had a misunderstanding and has been in coma for so many months now. Enrique Gil is Ethan, a young TV executive producer who’s hoping he’d be promoted as production manager. But he’s so task-oriented and not a people person, so he is instead sent to Bacolod to learn more about compassion in doing a local show.
Upon his arrival, he immediately has the usual rom-com kind of cute meet with his would be leading lady, Liza, who is driving her own scooter and recording things around her on her video cam to document it for her sleeping boyfriend to watch when he wakes up. They start on the wrong foot but you know very well that this will eventually lead into something sweet and romantic.Ethan tries to get Audrey to host his new show for him about traveling around Silay. At first, she won’t accept, even if being a TV host is really her lifelong dream, but she later decides to do it for her slumbering BF who needs money for his stay in the hospital. She turns out to be a very charming host and their show rates well. She and Ethan also get much closer to each other, even if Ethan is very much aware that she’s already taken. Then Tristan wakes up. Big conflict, of course, and the movie turns into heavy drama. But still, we already know it will not be very difficult for Audrey to make her final choice for the obligatory happy ending since Tristan is portrayed as an overbearing and very controlling boyfriend, just like John Lloyd Cruz as Popoy in “One More Chance”. Also, Audrey is actually more motivated by her guilt feelings as she blames herself for being the cause of Tristan’s accident, when it’s not really her fault at all.
It’s at this point that the movie becomes tedious viewing. They feel they have to come up with a crowd pleasing final sequence for a surefire feel good ending and the way they conclude the movie at the studio (where Ethan is auditioning new girls for his show and Audrey is trying her best to locate him) comes out so lengthy, so contrived and so engineered to make sure it will be a “kilig” moment for the fans.The movie’s title doesn’t have anything to do with the core of the story and the movie follows the usual escapist formula, but the viewer’s interest is sustained by the fact that it is quite well acted. It’s generous of Gerald to agree to play major support when he’s already a leading man himself. Enrique Gil once played support to Gerald and Kim Chiu in “Till My Heartaches End”. Now, it’s Gerald who supports him in a role that shows him just lying on a bed most of the time. But in the scenes where he’s awake, Gerald does it with restraint. He wisely underplays his emotional scenes quite well so he won’t come out as too much of a contravida.
Enrique Gil also fares well as Ethan, giving a heartfelt and moving performance. He is obviously well taken care of in all his scenes, including his hairstyle which was atrocious in his first movie with Liza, “Just the Way You Are”. He is given a backstory with his mom (Carmina Villaroel) leaving him and his dad for another man (Ariel Rivera) and he grows up with his grandma (Liza Lorena) so he is distant to his mom.But it’s Liza who really stands out in the movie. The camera just loves her and she doesn’t make any false move, whether she’s clowning around or getting to be so emotional. She has an endearing screen presence and palpable charisma that gives her all the K (karapatan) to be considered as ABS-CBN’s next big star. Only 17 years old, she still has a long way to go in her life and career. In the movie, she’s nicely supported by her mom, Aiko Melendez, and three lolas, Marissa Delgado, Eva Darren and Marita Zobel.
Director Mae Cruz Alviar made sure the whole movie will come out to be very glossy on the big screen. The movie also serves as a good promotional guide for local tourists to visit Silay and its beautiful old houses.
