CEBU, Philippines – Just hours following the uploading of the official trailer of the sexy romantic drama “Ex with Benefits,” medical representatives took offense at the supposedly unflattering portrayal of their profession in the film.
In the trailer, Coleen Garcia is depicted as an ambitious medical representative (Arkisha) who badly needs the endorsement of the “doctor of the year” (Adam) played by Derek Ramsay. As it turns out, Adam and Arkisha used to be romantically involved with each other until they broke up 10 years ago, something that Adam never really got over with.
The trailer goes on to show Adam asking Arkisha to convince him that the product she’s selling is worth it and she assures him that it is. They end up in bed but with Arkisha implying that love has nothing to do with it.
As reported by the blog site The Fanboy SEO, a certain Nikki Quisumbing, a medical representative now based overseas, was outraged by the trailer and posted an open letter to the Movie and Television Review Classification Board (MTRCB) to review both the trailer and the film.
“Pinapangit po nila ang image ng mga Professional Medical Representative at ang professional relationship namin sa doctors. Pangalawa po, wala po sa duty namin ang humiga sa kama para humingi ng benta. Kami po ay nag-undergo ng two months intensive training para pumasa sa pagiging Medrep sa Pilipinas. Ngayon po kahit ako ay wala na sa Pilipinas, nababalitaan ko po na may PRC exams ang mga Medrep para pumasa,” Quisumbing posted last Saturday.
“Sana po ay marinig nyo po ang boses namin dahil ano na lang po ang iisipin ng mga kaibigan, kamag-anak at mga magulang namin? Na ganito kaming mga propesyonal Medrep at nagpapa-kama sa doctor? At lalong lalo na po yung mga babaeng medrep na may pamilya na. Ano na lang po ang sasabihin ng mga anak nila na makakakita ng trailer na to lalo pa at malaking media ang Star Cinema at ABS-CBN.”
A screenshot of Quisumbing’s note has been shared and circulated on social media, particularly in two Facebook groups, Pinoy Medreps and Ikaw ay isang MEDREP kung… where members are mostly medical representatives and reacted mostly in agreement with her call to boycott the film.
A group of medical representatives based in Baguio City called BRAD (Baguio Responsible Association of Detailmen) wrote the film’s director, Gino M. Santos, and asked for his side on the issue before they make their next move to file a complaint with the City Government of Baguio and request for the banning of the film in Baguio Cinemas.
In an earlier post, Quisumbing also scored the film’s writer/s. “Sa sumulat ng pelikulang ito, hindi nyo alam ang paghihirap ng isang medrep para lang makuha ang tiwala ng doctors,” she wrote.
This prompted a response from the writer of the Wattpad book “Ex With Benefits” upon which the movie was supposedly based. In her own Facebook post addressed to the medreps, Ruth Mendoza a.k.a. youramnesiagirl said that the story depicted in the film was not what she originally wrote.
“I know how you feel about the movie pero gusto ko din pong malaman nyo na hindi po story from my book ang laman ng movie. I know you are confused but yeah they changed the whole story. Hindi po doktor si Adam at hindi din po medrep si Arkisha sa book ko. Yes, sobrang layo po. Ayoko na sana magsalita tungkol sa kung gaano kalaki ang difference ng movie sa book but I believe that this time kailangan ko na pong ipagtanggol ang sarili ko at sana maintindihan nyo ako,” went part of Mendoza’s post.
Although Quisumbing seemed to have deleted her posts, she has maintained her profile pic that simply said “#RespectforMedReps.”
As the controversy continues to heat up, not even lead stars Derek Ramsay and Coleen Garcia were spared from the flak engulfing the film. Derek and director Gino M. Santos are both asking those concerned to first see the film before rushing to judgment.
“To all Medreps out there I just want to say that I have complete respect for the work you do. Alam ko mahirap ang trabaho nyo at mahirap makuha ang tiwala ng mga doctor. Sana mapanood nyo muna ang pelikula before assuming na negative ang image na pinapakita namin sa mga Medrep. When an action movie has a corrupt politician or policeman we don’t assume all politicians and policemen are corrupt. I hope this message will clarify the issues,” the actor posted on Instagram.
Santos expressed a similar view. “We’re not painting a bad picture of Medreps. We’re just telling a story from the point of view of someone who may have done something regrettable, and now wants to change that. The story really is more about exes than it is about Medreps sleeping with doctors. And if they watch the film, they’ll see that,” he said.
Produced by Star Cinema and Viva Films, “Ex with Benefits” opens in cinemas nationwide on September 2. — InterAksyon.com