Cesar feels confident — his suspense-thriller for MMFF will do well

Actor-director-producer Cesar Montano believes that "Ligalig," his graded A comeback film and official entry to this December's Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF), will record a strong showing at the box-office. "Ligalig" has already been invited to premiere in the US come January 2007.

Cesar Montano dropped by the recent meeting of the Entertainment Press Society (ENPRESS) held at the Baliwag Grill and Restaurant located at E. Rodriguez Avenue in Quezon City. According to the actor-director-producer, he believes "Ligalig," which is a suspense thriller, has a captive audience. He hopes that the public would be enticed to watch his film, his comeback movie to the Metro Manila Film Festival, where he won two years ago for "Panaghoy sa Suba."

"Ligalig" is a suspense thriller and Cesar is confident it would have a strong showing at the box-office. He even predicts it would rank at number three among the nine official entries at the festival which started Christmas Day at major theaters nationwide.

Cesar is confident of the quality of "Ligalig" as a film, one of the nine official entries to the MMFF 2006. It boasts of a star-studded and competent cast - Johnny Delgado, Sunshine Cruz, Celia Rodriguez, Gwen Garci, Katya Santos, Rommel Montano, Alvin Anson and John Regala. "Ligalig" is also one of the three movies that was graded A by the Cinema Evaluation Board (CEB), entitling it to a 100 percent tax rebate. The two other graded A films were "Zsazsa Zaturnnah" from Regal Entertainment and "Kasal, Kasali, Kasalo" produced by Star Cinema.

"I was so happy when I learned 'Ligalig' got an A rating. I wasn't expecting this. I would have been happy already with a B rating. I am very happy that the members of CEB liked the film," says the actor-director. He admitted to have had a hard time looking for investors that's why it took some time before he made a comeback in film production. But it's worth the long wait - and to make a difference, he opted to field a suspense thriller.

"Suspense thriller movies are easy to sell to film markets in America and Europe," says Cesar. "If they liked your concept, they would buy it outright and they'd probably make their own version. We ought to focus our eyes not only on the local market but on film markets abroad. The suspense thriller genre is one of the more popular types of movies."

One of the most successful Pinoy movies this year in terms of box-office take is the suspense thriller "Sukob" starring Kris Aquino and Claudine Barretto.

Cesar says "Ligalig" has something new to offer in terms of story, camera shots, editing and cinematography. The actor-director was also pleased with the decision of the Festival Executive Committee to extend by two days the duration of the festival.

"Ligalig" has been invited to have a premier showing in the US this January 2007 where it might be re-titled to "Agitated."

Juday-Ryan movie out to win hearts and awards?

The trailer of the movie alone is already being talked about. Those who have seen the preview are one in saying that "Kasal, Kasali, Kasalo," the first movie together of sweethearts Judy Ann Santos and Ryan Agoncillo, directed by Jose Javier Reyes, will win not just the hearts of the audience but also the awards during the annual Metro Manila Film Festival.

Direk Joey is at his best in this kind of film. It's witty and humorous, sleek. There's never any dull moment in the movie that holds the audience's attention from beginning to end with Direk Joey's absorbing style of directing making every character, whether big or small, bubble with life.

Another plus factor is its being the first movie together of Juday and Ryan, whose romance has captured the imagination of the public since they admitted their true relationship early this year, spawning speculations that they have set a date for their wedding.

"We haven't really set a date," says Juday who opened the year 2006 with the Star Cinema blockbuster "Don't Give Up On Us" (with Piolo Pascual). With "Kasal, Kasali, Kasalo," Juday is calculated to close the year with an even bigger bang than the one created by "Don't Give Up On Us." She might even win the best actress award for her work in this Joey Reyes film about newlyweds coping with the rigors of married life.

"Enteng Kabisote" geared to top box office race anew

If the size of the audience would be the gauge of a movie's success at the box-office, then it is safe to say that "Enteng Kabisote 3: Okay Ka Fairy Ko (The Legend Goes On and On and On)" stands a very good chance of once again topping the box-office race in the current Metro Manila Film Festival which started Monday.

Definitely, the general audience, especially the kids are in for lots of surprises as they follow the continuing saga of the Kabisotes, their adventures and misadventures. Basically, family-oriented, this Tony Y. Reyes film will tackle the effects of greed and how it becomes rust to a once happy family. For sure, many lessons will be learned in this latest installment of the well-loved boob tube sitcom that for many years captured the hearts of many.

Just like the previous installments, this latest Enteng Kabisote film also boasts of spectacular special effects to the delight of the viewers. OctoArts and M-Zet want to ensure that their loyal patrons get their money's worth in watching their Christmas offering. The interesting plot plus the technical marvel are surely this film's main strengths why it consistently dominates the tills every year. And this 2006, the public will once again witness its magic onscreen.