The Witcher: Henry Cavill in Manila 2019

 

On Thursday, December 12, 2019 (12/12 😲) fans are treated to a once in a lifetime chance to meet Hollywood Superstar and lead actor of Netflix's new series "The Witcher", Henry Cavill. 

The Witcher tells the story of Geralt of Rivia, a beast hunter that has a powerful ability to battle and destroy wild beast or monsters. Based on the saga written by Andrzej Sapkowski that was a eventually developed into the very popular video game that it is today. Now fans of both the book and the video games will see their favorite character come to life, thanks to Netflix. 

My sister and I got very lucky that day when we approached the information booth for the wrist bands (I will say no more hence we get into trouble 😉). There was a lot of commotion that happened in our section (Section E), and unfortunately neither my sister or myself (or anybody in that section it seems) was able to get a good picture of Henry.

Mr. Cavill arrived at Activity Center of the Ayala Malls Manila Bay past 5 PM and he immediately approached the fans and started signing autographs. It took him a solid 1.5 hour signing autographs, taking selfies and saying "Hi" to fans. Henry was such a trooper! So gracious and generous with his time. He must have gotten tired at some point, but he never showed it instead gave the fans such warm smiles as he walked along the black carpet and made sure that he's able to accommodate everyone as much as he can. Look, no other celebrity would have done what Henry did. Other celebrity's would have preferred to be whisked away by their handlers rather than spending that much time with the audience. Even celebrity host Metteo Guidicelli sounded amazed and one could feel his sincerity when he thanked Henry for showing such kindness to the Filipino fans. Fans that waited patiently for him for hours. Others even camped out side the night before (now I wish I could've done the same). When Henry finally got on stage, the interview would only last for less than 10 minutes ( I think it's close to 6 minutes by reckoning) but this did not diminish his enthusiasm at all. Matteo even managed to get him say "Mahal ko kayo" with perfect diction and it just melted our hearts even more! 

Below are some videos taken by my sister. Mind you, Henry's barely made it to the black carpet and still farther from where I was standing.

When he finally made it to where I was, chaos ensues (hahaha)! Suddenly I was being pinned against the person in front of me but no matter what I made sure that my left arm was free and had enough room to move around so I can hand him my memorabilia and have it signed, The Last Days of Krypton by Kevin J. Anderson and The Witcher postcard. I'm soft spoken so I tried to call out his name as best as I can, but thank God for having long arms because he saw my book and took it right away (he even dropped my Sharpie pen!). By this time my face was already covered with waving posters and whatnots, and when he's about to hand it back to me he had to look through (the waving items) and find who he's suppose to return it to. Since my face was no longer visible so I kept waving my hand as if to say it's mine and when he saw it, handed me back my book and poster both signed by him. The evening ended with a special screening  of the first episode of the The Witcher to members of the media and some very lucky fans. I read somewhere that screen writer and executive producer Lauren Schmidt Hissrich along with Henry went inside the theater to greet the fans before the screening (I'm so jealous!).

I still find myself staring at the book and The Witcher postcard that he signed and I still can't believe how lucky I was to see him in person. Its like an early Christmas/Birthday present for me (my b-day is on Boxing Day, boring I know)

Going to this event would not have been possible had it not been for a couple of people. I would like to thank my sister @marquezceu who came with me to give her support. She made sure that I was firmly planted on that tiny platform and will not get boxed out by the two people in front to me who kept pushing me back the entire time.  

Also, thanks to Aling Susan for agreeing to look after our mum so we can attend the event that day. It's been hard for us to go out these days as our mum needs constant care due to her illness. It will be a very challenging Christmas for us, however moments like these are the ones that keeps us going. 

My very first fan event ever and what a success that was! Don't forget to watch The Witcher on Netflix on December 20, 2019. Mark your calendars peeps! 

South Pacific: A movie for all time

People may think that reviewing a movie that was released decades ago would no longer be relevant to this day and age. Well, I beg to disagree.

When the two music greats Rodgers and Hammerstein composed the lyrics for the then stage musical South Pacific, it was meant for an audience that has gone through the hardships of war and are still coming into terms of the effects of it in their daily lives four year after Word War II. The musical tackles themes not just about the effects of war but also about love, sex and racism. Subjects that still is very much in everyone's mind to to this day and age.

South Pacific Broadway Musical Original Poster

Based on James A. Michener's book Tales of the South Pacific, the Broadway musical was premiered in 1949 and was a huge success hence a movie version was inevitable.  

The first time I saw South Pacific Movie was on free TV, I must have been around 8 or 9 years old and our television set was a Sony box type black and white TV that has a knob that's used for changing the channels. This was in the late 80's but in our family, buying a colored TV is considered ludicrous and as the old people would say, if it ain't broke... don't fix it (or in this instance no need to replace it)!

A lot has to be said on how Joshua Logan handled the movie version (he also directed the Broadway version) particularly with his choice to use filters. I personally didn't like it myself. While I appreciate what Logan was trying to convey onscreen, as if one is being lured and mystified by the the mountains itself as the song Bali Ha'i suggests. However, they were not able to capture this effectively as it felt too out of place (that scene where everything goes red, 'twas a Bloody Mary moment indeed!). It was such a strain on the eye unfortunately. Below is the HD trailer for the movie:

Speaking of Bali Ha'i, only recently have I learned that Juanita Hall, who reprises the role of Bloody Mary in the movie was actually dubbed by Muriel Smith who played the same role in the London production. No offense to Ms. Smith but I find Juanita Hall's voice much more richer and enchanting. You'll hear instances when she seems to strain her voice on certain notes, but it was both beautiful and haunting nonetheless. Below is a video that I stumbled upon on YouTube, here you can hear the song Bali Ha'i in Hall's own singing voice. (Disclaimer: Rights to the video belongs to its owner)

As I always say, I am no movie critic and my feedback would always come from a fans perspective. South Pacific may not have the same success as The Sound of Music which also is a personal favorite of mine, but I must say that South Pacific had a ground breaking  success in terms of cinematography as it was one of the first to utilize underwater camera and the underwater scenes of Lt. Cable and Liat is just gorgeous. John Kerr and France Nuyen make a perfect pair. Even at their prime, the chemistry between them is so evident and I just can't help but feel giddy or "kilig" whenever I see them together! 

Now, the relationship between Lt. Cable and Liat is something that is frowned up even in this age and era. Differences in social classes are never a thing of the past, on the contrary it is constant barrier that we as a society, are yet to hurdle. Bigotry and hatred is more palpable than ever, and it seems that people are becoming more intolerant of each others beliefs, culture and color. It has taken us two World Wars and we human beings haven't learned a thing from our past mistakes. 

The movie South Pacific celebrated it's 60th Anniversary in 2018 and has re-released in cinemas for a limited engagement. The Special Edition DVD for South Pacific's Golden Anniversary can be purchased on Amazon.com.

On a more personal note, this movie has been my go-to of late, specially when my mother was admitted to the hospital for more than two weeks. listening to "Younger Than Springtime" has kept me going and has lifted my spirits on very sad moments. I found myself quite smitten with John Kerr and have been trying to scrounge for interviews, movie clips and watchamacallit's online. Unfortunately, Mr. Kerr seems to be a private person and was quite picky with the roles he has taken on. Here's a link to a website that's is dedicated to John Kerr. The essay that he wrote is quite poignant and endearing as he tells personal stories from his childhood. He is sorely missed by his fans. 

It'll be a challenging Christmas season for my family but I'd like to enjoy every moment no matter how hard it gets. I am not a "Cock-Eyed Optimist" as Mitzi Gaynor's character Nellie Forbush would admit, on the contrary I can be quite the opposite, but from now on you'll hear me saying that " life is just a bowl of Jello and appear more intelligent than smart, but I'm stuck like a dope with a thing called hope, and I can't get it out of my heart. Not this heart..."