There’s not really magic involved
when it comes to love and destiny because we all make it happen. The movie Suddenly
It’s Magic attests to that statement despite having a contradicting title.
Of all three movies I’ve seen in
the cinemas lately (see previous posts about Skyfall and Secret Affair), this
is the one I’ve enjoyed the most although I didn’t expect much from it. In
fact, a friend and I just don’t have anything to do last lazy weekend afternoon
so we decided to kill the time with this movie. We both enjoyed it and giggled
all the time as if we were still in high school.
Cast and Characters
Before I write about the movie
any further, below is the cast and characters.
Mario Maurer as Marcus
Hanson
Erich Gonzales as
Josephine 'Joey' Hermosa
Baifern Pimchanok as
Sririta Taylor
John Lee as Mtri
Joy Viado as Manang Chinggay
Joross Gamboa as Sam
Cacai Bautista as Marj
Guji Lorenzana as Marvin
Other Crew of Joey’s Shop:
Ces Quesada
Dinkee Doo
Dionne Monsanto
Jestoni Alarcon as the
Governor, Joey’s dad
Mario Maurer will be a
familiar face and name for those who are fans of romantic love stories from our
neighboring Asian countries. In fact, he starred in that epic Thai film “Crazy
Little Thing Called Love” which a lot of us have fallen in love with. Baifern
Pimchanok looks familiar as she actually resembles 2NE1’s Sandara Park who
had once become a household name in Philippine cinemas years ago.
Plot and Synopsis
Going back to the movie, the
story starts with Joey musing on the background about lovers becoming
disillusioned about love. She was left by her fiancé before their wedding day.
The same fate befell Marcus, who on the other hand had to deal with working with
his ex on screen although she is no longer in love with him and is already
involved with another. He loves his work but wanted a chance to get away from
it all. Incidentally, their household maid gave him the idea to go on vacation.
He chose Ilocos Norte in the Philippines and was all too happy that no one
recognized him.
Up in the north, he met Joey,
whom he found to be very pretty although they started off on the wrong foot. He
said her cupcakes tasted sad. This led to her opening up about why he possibly
tasted the bitterness in her baked goodies. It wasn’t only about her beau but about
her parents too. More on this topic below…
The same cupcake was
phenomenal for the couple. It was a choice between writing “follow your destiny”
or “follow your heart” and Joey gave Marcus the latter. He went back for her
but his mom found out his whereabouts and brought him back home but not without
Joey. It was chaos with her being around hateful fans who adored the Marcus and
Sritita love team. But other than that, it was the fact that he was not himself
with her around. He wasn’t willing to give up his destiny but loves to be with
her and follow his heart too. But they bid farewell to each other anyway to
give way to destiny. But of course, you know what happens next. After Marcus
got good breaks at work, he was able to take a break too and patched things up
with Joey.
Why This Movie Rocks
Personally, it’s more than the
“kilig” moment which got me hooked in this film. I love the symbolism evident
in everything about the movie. To start with, I’ve mentioned about the choice
between “follow your destiny” or “follow your heart” earlier. As for knowing
what destiny is, this film simply described it as something we dream about
since kids or if not, something we want to attain.
When Joey let go of Marcus in
pursuit his destiny, she finally understood why her mom had to set her dad free
as well because he is supposedly destined to perform great deeds (politics
related from a local office going up to the provincial as she grew older). The
same fate actually befell Marcus’ mom and dad. His dad gave up the life he
loves for the love of his life (his mom). Marcus’ mom asked him to leave the
love of his life instead to get the life he loves because he just might have
both in the end. She was also responsible for convincing Joey to leave, saying
she’s going to be good for her son but not right now.
Another symbolic chapter was
about praying to God. The Buddhist Marcus asked the Christian Joey how her
people pray. She said it’s like talking to God and saying what your heart feels
even if He already knows about it. Joey, during her stay in Thailand also took
part in Buddhist rituals and asked for blessings and prayers from the temple monks.
The idea of writing down your wish and releasing it unto the universe through a
balloon also rocks! Not that it’s any better than prayer but it works, at least
in this film.
Aside from symbolism, you will
also appreciate the characters. Marcus, who knew nothing about the Filipino culture,
was too eager to learn about it just to impress his Filipina love. The modern
day harana with guitar riffs and rap song is something you will applaud. Marcus
rapping the lines “I don’t want a sad cupcake no more…” and so on echoes
through my mind till now.
You will also be fascinated by
the breathtaking sceneries both in Thailand and the Philippines, particularly
up in the north at the Ilocos region. If you love traveling, you will even have
an idea where to go and check in for both places just by watching the film. You’d
even see names of resorts and inns. I don’t know if they were intentional
though for promotional or advertisement purposes.
Rating and Recommendation
If I’m going to rate this
movie, I’d give it an 8/10.
If you haven’t watched Suddenly
It’s Magic yet, you should.
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