Bonifacio Movie Premier

One of the producers of the movie Bonifacio ang Unang Pangulo invited us to the premier showing last night at the SM Megamall Cinema 9.

When I told Edmund tha5 Oyen and I were going, he said it’s chaotic there. Long time ago, siguro 20+ years, this was where he and I would occasionally watch movies. It wasn’t that crowded yet and the facilities were quite new.

Oyen was in a hurry, she thought we would be late. There was some traffic around SM Megamall.
We claimed the tickets at the table in front of the popcorn stand.

Invitation says RED CARPET CHIC. Some were in long gown, while we were under dressed to say the least.

Too lazy to dress.
Old Prada bag, new dress $24.99 + tax from Marshall’s in Concorde, leather tsinelas with rhinestones, from Turkey $100+-.

One of the film producers, Rina Navarro and her teen daughter. Oyen and Rina are friends from AGBS.

Bebe Gandanghari (photography by JTY)

Aling Katipunera

We saved our seats first. Too close to the screen.

One gets excited, she screams, the whole bunch screams thinking that there’s an artista coming. When they saw Karla Estrada, they all screamed. Kala kasi nila Daniel Padilla was behind her.

Karla Estrada, mom of Daniel Padilla.

Relatives (descendants) of Andres Bonifacio

Oyen saw someone eating popcorn, she felt envious kaya I went out and bought cheese popcorn for both of us. Nanerbyos ako, I thought I didn’t have enough money kasi I changed my bag and unloaded the bills. Buti na lang nagkasya. I paid P310 for two buckets of cheese popcorn, one hotdog sandwich and two bottles of water.

Yung hotdog naman, I didn’t know that they put catsup, dulas ng dulas. It fell on my lap three times. I only ate half.

Although they said the premier is at 6 pm, by 7 pm I told my daughter the earliest it would start would be between 8:30 to 9 pm. They will wait for everyone to fill up the place, and only then, would the superstar Daniel Padilla enter the cinema.
She has time to go out and buy nachos.

Poemela Baranda (photography by JTY)

Vina Morales and Rommel Padilla arrives.

This is how you would look like if you lack sleep, traumatized, tensed.

I cannot be an entertainment blogger or artista paparazzi. The excitement and energy of screaming fans drain my dwindling energy.

I almost knocked this off its pedestal. Kasi when I got out of the toilet, the fans started screaming.

Daniel Padilla arrived with a coterie of PAs and security guards, left right front and back, as his cordon sanitaire. Siguro kasi baka manggigil yung mga fans eh baka dumugin, kurutin at paghahawakan.

Fifteen minutes after Daniel Padilla reached his seat in the balcony, a short program started with speeches and greetings from leading actors. Para akong nasa Plaza Miranda attending a rally to overthrow the government.

Celebrities like to wear dark glasses even inside movie houses. If you want to look, feel and be mistaken for a celebrity, try wearing dark glasses and walk around the mall. Notice how people would stop and look at you and wonder “Si ano yun? Sino na nga ba yun? Di ba artista yun?”

(photography by JTY)

I couldn’t look at the big screen. It was causing me nausea. I moved to the balcony and sat on the stairs farther up. Oyen followed.

Andres Bonifacio is played by Robin Padilla, who led the revolution against the abusive and cruel Spaniards. He became the first president thus the movie’s title Bonifacio an Unang Pangulo. Vina Morales is Gregoria “Oriang” de Jesus, the wife of Andres Procopio Bonifacio. Tila she was raped by Emilio Aguinaldo kasi isnara yung pinto ng kubo, naka higa si Oriang sa sahig. Yung ending, tila she offered her body to Emilio to free Andres but too late because Andres and his brother had already been butchered to death.

Emilio ordered the arrest, incarceration, torture and butchering of Andres and his innocent brother. Baka he raped Gregoria de Jesus.
Why do we even honor Emilio Aguinaldo eh salbahe naman pala, mang-aagaw ng kapangyarihan, at mamamatay tao ng kapwang rebolusyonaryong Pilipino?

I highly recommend this movie. Kudos goes to Enzo Williams, the director. There were no unnecessary conversations, no dragging scenes. The dialogues were well chosen and replete with meaning. I give a 10 to cinematography, screenplay, and 9 to musical scoring.

Go watch #BonifacioAngUnangPangulo when the Metro Manila Film Fest opens on December 25. You will come out loving your country more.

#MMFF2014

Correction:  According to an OMB reader,  the one who entered the house of Oriang to rape her was not Emilio Aguinaldo.