Close to Always Loving You

Yes, close to always loving you.

That’s the present status of two of today’s hottest young loveteams, Angel Locsin and Richard Gutierrez, stars of Regal Films/GMA Films’ I Will Always Love You (shot mostly in the USA, directed by Mac Alejandre); and John Lloyd Cruz and Bea Alonzo, stars of Star Cinema’s Close To You (first movie-directorial job of Cathy Garcia-Molina).

Like the legendary loveteams of Carmen Rosales and Rogelio dela Rosa, Gloria Romero and Luis Gonzales, Eddie Gutierrez and Susan Roces, there’s no romantic love but only "special friendship" between Angel and Richard, and John Lloyd and Bea. And yet, their movies together have caught the fancy of movie fans even if each of them is romantically linked to other people in real life – Angel to Oyo Boy Sotto, Richard to Georgina Wilson, Bea to...guess who?, and John Lloyd previously to Ciara Sotto.

But they do care for one another. That’s what special friends are for, isn’t it?

When Angel gets into a fix, the first person to offer his shoulders (to cry on) is Richard. Same with Bea and John Lloyd. When Bea got enmeshed in an ugly rumor when 2006 began, John Lloyd professed his love and care for her on national television.

Angel and Richard have been paired on TV (Mulawin) and in two movies, Let The Love Begin and Mulawin The Movie; while John Lloyd and Bea started as a loveteam on TV (Kay Tagal Kang Hinintay and Ikaw ang Lahat sa Akin) and starred in two movies (My First Romance and Now That I Have You).

To find out how compatible the four are, Conversations is putting them to the "If He Were/If She Were" test. Let’s find out.

• BIRD

Angel: I’d be an eagle. It’s the king of birds. Brave, caring with its little ones, flies high and not easily blown by the wind.

Richard: Eagle because it soars and soars.

Bea: Dove because it was the bird sent by Noah to check if the land had dried after the big flood. It had a mission. Like a dove, I believe that my mission is to spread God’s word.

John Lloyd: Eagle. It’s a rare specie these days, isn’t it? It signifies strength and power. An eagle is a rare bird and it’s nice to be rare, isn’t it?

• FLOWER

Angel: Sampaguita, our national flower. It’s fragrant and its color symbolizes peace.

Richard: Sunflower. It follows the sun and it has its head up in the sky.

Bea: Rose. It’s lovely even if it has thorns. The thorns are like my angst and challenges in life.

John Lloyd: Agapanthus. It’s also rare. Very flexible. Color is purple. It can stand by itself and when mixed with other flowers, even if small, agapanthus flowers really stand out.

• CITY

Angel: Makati because it’s a city which is forever busy, like me.

Richard: Manila, of course! Nothing beats Manila.

Bea: Singapore. I love the glaring contrast of the green gardens and the modern buildings. The gardens are like my showbiz life and the buildings the other side, very much like my personal life.

John Lloyd: Chicago. I’ve never been there but I should be one of these days. The city has never ceased to intrigue everytime I see it in the movies. Iba ang character, iba ang kulay.

• MOVIE

Angel: A romantic movie like I Will Always Love You. If I were a movie character I’d be Cecille, my character in the same movie. To her, the looks of a man and his money are not important. What counts is his love and concern for family.

Richard: Action-adventure. Movies that represent my outgoing and energetic personality.

Bea: Love Actually because it shows the many facets of love. Love is what the world needs now.

John Lloyd: Something like 21 Grams starring Sean Penn, one of my favorite actors. I’d also be in a suspense-thriller or any of the movies of my other favorite actors Clive Owen and Benicio del Toro.

• SONG

Angel: A lullaby. Ang sarap ng pakiramdam para kang dinuduyan-duyan, di ba?

Richard: One Love by Bob Marley.

Bea: I’m Like a Bird by Nelly Furtado. Why? I don’t know. I just love that song!

John Lloyd: A love song. No matter how much of a roller-coaster your life is, doon pa rin sa love ang balik mo. All of us are lovers, aren’t we?

• SAINT

Angel: I can’t think of myself as a saint. For me, napakataas ng katayuan ng mga saint.

Richard: I can never be a saint.

Bea: Not a saint but a guardian angel Barachiel because I like to watch over my loved ones.

John Lloyd: I belong to a Christian group which doesn’t believe in saints.

• KOMIKS CHARACTER

Angel: Darna. I should know. I know Darna and her alter ego Narda inside-out. Ayaw nila ng may naaapi.

Richard: Superman

Bea: Not a comic character...I’d be Nemo. He’s cute, isn’t he?

John Lloyd: Niknok

• PERFUME

Angel: Light Blue. Simple lang, very light.

Richard: Polo Blue by Ralph Lauren. I like its smell.

Bea: DKNY for Women. Not too strong, the smell is just right. Sakto lang.

John Lloyd: Gendarme. Fresh and subtle. Parang palagi kang bagong paligo.

• BOOK

Angel: The Bible. Marami kang mapupulot doon.

Richard: The Art of War by Sun Tzu.

Bea: The Zahir by Paulo Coelho. It’s about putting passion into everything that you do.

John Lloyd: Something like Dan Brown’s Angels and Demons and The Da Vinci Code. They can mislead you or deceive you but it’s all up to you if you let yourself be swayed. If your faith is firm and strong, then nothing can ever sway you.

• CAR

Angel: I’d be an Impala, 1964 or 1969 model. Makaluma pero maporma. Old model but nice to look at.

Richard: I love cars. Probably a Range Rover because I could be rough and rugged. It’s classy, too.

Bea: Beetle. Sana the new model because I am bagets. But the old model is also okay because, you know, I’m an old soul.

John Lloyd: A 750 LI BMW. Wow, sana! It’s my dream car. Very expensive, P13 million yata!

• TREE

Angel: Bamboo. The higher it grows the lower it bends. Sign of humility.

Richard: Mango tree. It bears great-tasting fruit.

Bea: Narra. It’s sturdy.

John Lloyd: Mango tree or Acacia tree because people can rest in its shade.

• FRUIT

Angel: Apple. Di ba sabi nila, an apple a day keeps the doctor away?

Richard: Mango.

Bea: Apple because it’s the fruit for all seasons and it keeps the doctor away. He, he, he!

John Lloyd: Tomato. You open it up and it reveals lots of seeds. Just like me. I love it when people get to know the real me. I love seeing their faces and hearing what they have to say after a more personal introduction.

• PART OF THE HOUSE

Angel: I’d be the kitchen because I love to eat. Besides, the kitchen is the busiest part of the house so I can relate to it because I’m a busy person.

Richard: The roof because it gives shelter to everyone.

Bea: Bedroom, specifically a bed because it shares all my smiles and tears. Very reliable.

John Lloyd: The bathroom. I spend a lot of time inside the bathroom. That’s where I read scripts, make phone calls, relax. My bathtub is all white, very spacious, big enough for four people.

• PART OF THE BODY

Angel: The eyes. When you look at a person’s eyes, you can see how he feels. I’m a very transparent person.

Richard: The eyes, definitely. Di ba they are the windows to one’s soul?

Bea: The eyes because they are the windows to a person’s soul.

John Lloyd: The eyes. Even if I can’t hear or talk, I’m okay as long as I can see. The eyes are our links to the world, aren’t they?

• IF HE/SHE WERE NOT HIMSELF/HERSELF, WHO WOULD HE/SHE BE?

Angel: I would still be Angel but a criminology student.

Richard: I don’t want to be anybody else. I love Richard Gutierrez.

Bea: Nobody in particular. But I’d be someone who will serve The Lord and fulfill His will every single day.

John Lloyd: Someone powerful and very rich and very influential so that I can help as many people as possible. I can’t do it if I’m only rich; I must be powerful and influential to be able to reach the people that I want to help.

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