One of the most important things a film needs to do is understand its own genre. I shouldn’t have to explain this. If you have a “Three’s Company” plot, you have a comedy or a romcom. What you don’t have is a drama. Sure, you can make a drama, horror, documentary, whatever you want, but you better be talented because if you have a “wedding bells” film in which the controversy centers about whether or not the groom is bi-sexual, that sounds an awful lot like a comedy.
Philip (Paulo Avelino) and Lia (Bea Alonzo) get engaged in the first five minutes of the film – well that’s just begging for trouble right there. There is a gorgeous dusk shot with the two lovers embracing in an outdoor aisle surrounded by what appear to be white poppies; the instant the two touch, the field glows white. It really is spectacular film-making and the movie knows it; Kasal repeated the shot twice more from different angles. And thus ends what I loved about the film.
The romance get-together flashback that follows probably should have been left on the cutting-room floor: Philip stalks Lia and pushes until she’ll go out with him. His tack is far more aggressive than it ought to be (think Ryan Gosling at the beginning of The Notebook). It may well be that Lia totally wants a suitor who won’t take “no” for an answer, but this is not the era we live in. I don’t think sexual politics is that much different in the Philippines, but I cannot be sure. Oh, and the fact that Philip is a playboy son of wealth? Children of wealth never need favors. Movie, you’re not helping me out here. Kasal made a very big deal out of Lia’s father being LGBT – how can you be so PC on one plot point and so Stone Age on another?
Given the chance to explain to his wealthy kin why school teaching Lia is not “beneath him,” Philip kinda blows that moment, too. We can see his sincerity in announcing he loves her, yet while the camera spies Lia eavesdropping in the wings, Philip can’t seem to do better than that. C’mon movie, state your case.
Two scenes later, Philip is running for mayor of the Philippine island of Cebu. Why? I don’t know. He seems to have neither reason, nor strong desire; it’s just something children of privilege do, I guess. What could possibly go wrong? With Philip behind in the polls, Lia comes up with the idea of getting the bridge into town fixed. Philip’s candidacy may well prove successful
based on whether the bridge gets repaired to the satisfaction of the voting populace. The catch? The winning contractor for the job turns out to be Lia’s ex, Wado (Derek Ramsay). Wado will, quite literally do anything to get Lia back. This includes trading sex with a third party for bribery material, and then filming his own sexual bribery material. Say, señor, when does the Filipino Mr. Farley arrive, because I think you’re gonna violate the lease.
Kasal means “Fail” er “Marriage” in Tagalog. I looked it up because the film wasn’t free with that piece of information. This is a very odd romance, one in which I was rooting for the girl to dump both her suitors and for the film itself to dump the plot and explore the life of Philip’s campaign manager (Cris Villonco), whom I found far more attractive than any of the three leads. No such luck. And no such luck with this yawn-fest. Probably should have skipped after that poppy shot. Oh well.
When you’re engaged, don’t be shy
If perhaps you have been with a guy
Better disclose up front
And dare to be blunt
Or you’ll be waving your fiancée “Bi-Bi”
Rated TV-PG, 115 Minutes
Director: Ruel S. Bayani
Writer: Patrick John Valencia
Genre: Pre-wedding disclosure fails
Type of being most likely to enjoy this film: Desperate Tagalog speakers
Type of being least likely to enjoy this film: The newly engaged
