"Ganun talaga ako ever since. Kasi kung anong gusto ko, ’yun ’yung gusto ko, eh. Hindi pwedeng gusto ng iba para sa akin. Mabait naman ako, mabait kung mabait ka sa akin. Kung hindi ka mabait, ayoko rin sayo. Nasusulat na naman ako, bastos raw ako. Siempre kung hindi ka niya papansinin, bakit mo papansinin. Hindi naman sa bastos, baka naman hindi siya namamansin dahil ayaw niya sa akin, so ayoko rin sa kanya. But never naman ako nanakit ng tao."
You also know that she’s something else when she tells you to your face that the best thing about showbiz is the money, straight to the point, with no dreamy side-trips about acting being her one true love, her art and passion.
"Mag-ipon lang kasi plano ko ng mag-CCA (Center for Culinary Arts). Dream ko talaga (is to be a) model, photographer, pilot. Itutuloy ko pa rin ang acting…plano ko kasing bumili ng private plane pag marami na akong pera. Eh parehong mahal "yun so mag-iipon lang ako. Dami kong pangarap no?"
She is an actress because of the money, but you can bet she’s worth every cent. While her contemporaries are struggling to make it cute on TV, she ran away with two acting awards because of hardcore dramatic roles like that of a traumatized rape victim in Azucena and an autistic retardate in Hubog. That can’t be done by someone who’s just doing a good job because of the money. That can only be done by someone who is extraordinarily talented. With achievements of that caliber, it is easy to see why Alex considers those characters as her dream roles fulfilled.
"Mahirap kasi gawin ’yun, eh. Konti lang ’yung taong nakagawa nun, magbibigay ng justice. (I played an) autistic, retarded na baliw (in Hubog) na hindi mo maintindihan. Ano ako dito, 12 years old na ang utak ko five (years old) so napagtri-tripan ako ng mga lalaki. Inaano nila ako kapalit ng hamburger, tapos pag narinig ko ’yung hamburger, parang ‘Ay!’, ginagawa ko lahat ng pinapagawa sa akin. Mahirap, eh. Ang hirap kaya nun. ’Yung tinanggap ko sabi ko, ‘Teka teka, papaano ko gagawin?"
Aside from heavy acting in movies, Alex also has her share of youth-oriented television shows like Click that airs every Saturday and Kung Mawawala Ka. Her movie, Mga Munting Tinig, which has been entered in the Toronto Film Festival, is a certified hit among the critics and has become the country’s entry to the Oscars.
In a week, she has an average of one pictorial, and four taping days. What she cannot stand are the out of town tapings, like when she was in Quezon for 12 days for Munting Tinig, and out of town shows where she has to stand on stage in front of a crowd and act all bubbly and happy. She points out that those are some of the things that she does not like about showbiz.
"May mga bagay na ginagawa ng artista na ayoko such as kung may loveteam ka, kailangan sweet kayo eh hindi naman kayo… Showbiz ’yung boyfriend ko, pero wag na natin siya pag-usapan. Ayokong pag-usapan yung love life kasi ang daming nakikialam. Kung alam na ng tao kung sino, kung alam na kung meron o wala, tama na ’yun."
Alex keeps a normal lifestyle when she doesn’t have work. She starts her day with a cup of coffee, and then she bums around in her favorite parlor, Tips and Toes, then she goes home at around 10pm, and watches movies all night. "Gusto ko yung mga feel-good. Ayoko ng mga masisira na utak ko sa kakaintindi. Ayoko ng action, tinutulugan ko talaga. Hindi ko ma-take eh. Masyadong masakit. Sakit tignan."
Aside from her boyfriend, she also used to spend time with her two gay best friends but she no longer sees them because one left for the U.S. to work, and the other got himself a boyfriend, leaving her with an unsteady circle of new friends.
Alessandra does not have many hobbies although she would really want to try horseback-riding, skydiving, para-sailing, and motocross. Her mom will definitely not allow it, but who can stop her? Alex de Rossi may be young and beautiful, but you gotta watch out for the attitude. Nevertheless, she is just so talented, she gets away with it. Anyway, it’s all in a day’s work, as she puts it, "Ako nagtra-trabaho lang. Ganun lang, wala akong pakialam kung anong tingin ng tao sa akin. Basta ginagawa ko lang trabaho ko, I guess tama na ’yun."