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| KIM MOLINA in 'JOWABLE' |
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| sarah geronimo and her dog in UNFORGETTABLE |
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| LOUISE ABUEL as EDWARD |
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| marco gumabao and anne curtis in JUST A STRANGER |
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| AGA MUHLACH with child star XIA VIGOR in MIRACLE IN CELL NO. 7 |
VIVA ENTERTAINMENT is currently on a winning streak with a series of successive hits. It maybe rainy but it’s still a win-win situation for Viva after the successful Vivacon (Viva Convention) held recently at the World Trade Center, the well attended first Filipino fan convention in local entertainment history.
This was followed by the box office success of the blockbuster hit, “Just a Stranger”, which confirms Anne Curtis’ continued strength at the box office and launches Marco Gumabao to full lead stardom. This love story of a married woman who falls in love with a younger man is a vindication for the film directed by Jason Paul Laxamana, which was rejected by the Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino as an entry but which turned to be a bigger hit outside of it.
This was followed by the action-thriller, “Angel Has Fallen”, distributed by Viva International starring Gerard Butler as the presidential security officer accused of assassinating his own president. It’s a certified hit here and abroad. This was quickly followed by the megahit comedy, “Sanggano Sanggago’t Sangguwapo” with the Gamol triumvirate of Janno Gibbs, Andrew E and Dennis Padilla that successfuly revived old school naughty comedy, as directed by Al Tantay.
Coming up next on September 25 will be another rollicking comedy about a lonelyheart looking for a partner or jowa, Kim Molina, who gets her first big break to stardom in the irreverent romp, “Jowable”. This is written and directed by Darryl Yap who started it as a hit short film on Facebook then as a hit novel in book form. Kim is paired with her “Rak of Aegis” leading man, her real life jowa, Jerald Napoles.
And come October, don’t miss the new movie of Sarah Geronimo, who won Star Award best actress for her movie last year, “Miss Granny”. This year, we won’t be surprised if Sarah would get more acclaim for her performance as an autistic girl who gets lost on her way to Baguio to visit her ailing grandma, Gina Pareno, with only her pet dog for company. This is in “Unforgettable”, a heart tugging light drama about the friendship of a girl and a dog, directed by Jun Lana and with Regine Velasquez as a very special guest star.
Sarah is one of those singers who successfully forayed into acting. Her big concert last year, “This I5 Me”, which celebrated her 15th anniversary in showbusiness, is now available on Netflix and her loyal Popster fans can watch it any time and all the times they want to relive the experience of Sarah giving one of her best live performances ever.
It features a formidable repertoire of Filipino and foreign songs with Louie Ocampo as musical director, stage directed by Paul Basinillo. Her guests in this concert are Billy Crawford, Mark Bautista, Xian Lim, James Reid and Daniel Padilla.
And before the year is finally over, don’t miss more great offerings from Viva, including the highly acclaimed Cinemalaya entry, “Edward”, the coming of age story of a teenage boy inside an overcrowded public hospital starring Louise Abuel in the title role, with Ella Cruz winning the Cinemalaya best supporting actress award as the patient who he becomes his ill-fated first love.
In December, don’t miss Viva’s two entries. First is “Momalland” starring Anne Curtis and Vice Ganda (co-prod with Star Cinema) and the Filipino adaptation of the hit Korean drama, “Miracle on Cell No. 7” starring Aga Muhlach, child star Xia Vigor and Bela Padilla, directed by Nuel Naval. Truly, for Viva, the best is yet to come!!!