Sunday, February 7, 2010

Movies for Valentine's Day and Chinese New Year


Buti pa ang kalendaryo, may date...
Buti pa ang Hershey’s, may kisses…


It's that time of year again. Love is in the air and romance films are being shown all over Metro Manila. The local film Paano Na Kaya sucks big time. What films to watch then?

Catch the fantastic Chinese films at the Spring Film Festival at Shangri-la Plaza Edsa. Ditch the synopses. Go out and walk in blindly to any of the festival screenings there. All films are surprisingly good. They also deal with the different facets of love. Festival will end on Tuesday, February 9, 2010.

I haven’t seen The Princess and the Frog but it has a satisfactory ranking at Metacritic. The film Dear John seems popular with ladies. It is currently the number one film in the United States. I’m wary though of watching it because of its low ranking at Metacritic. The movie Valentine’s Day has not yet been shown abroad. It opens locally on Friday, February 12.

Here is a screening guide to recommended romance/love-themed films:

(500) Days of Summer (Marc Webb)
Hearing The Smiths' ‘Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want' is just one of the cool things in the movie.
UP Cine Adarna
Mon, Feb 8 - 2:30 pm, 5 pm, 7 pm
Tue, Feb 9 - 2:30 pm, 5 pm, 7 pm
Wed, Feb 10 - 2:30 pm, 5 pm, 7 pm
Thu, Feb 11 - 2:30 pm, 5 pm, 7 pm
Fri, Feb 12 - 10 am, 1 pm


Cape No. 7 (Wei Te-Shang)
A rocker reads about the heartbreaking tale, culled from letters, of a teacher leaving his student.
Shang Cineplex, Shangri-la Plaza Edsa
Mon, Feb 8 - 8:35 pm
Tue, Feb 9 - 2 pm


In Love We Trust (Wang Xiaoshuai)
A mother's love for her daughter shakes up the relationships of two couples. Deeply moving and unforgettable.
Shang Cineplex, Shangri-la Plaza Edsa
Mon, Feb 8 - 6:10 pm
Tue, Feb 9 - 4:45 pm


Sanglaan (Milo Sogueco)
Pawnshop appraiser meets the boy of her dreams.
UP Videotheque
Wed, Feb 10 - 4:30 pm, 6:30 pm
Thu, Feb 11 - 4:30 pm
Fri, Feb 12 - 6:30 pm
Sat, Feb 13 - 2:30 pm, 6:30 pm


Seventeen Years (Zhang Yuan)
A female prisoner, on a holiday pass, hesitates to go back home.
Shang Cineplex, Shangri-la Plaza Edsa
Mon, Feb 8 - 4:15 pm
Tue, Feb 9 - 7:10 pm


The World (Jia Zhangke)
Two lovers working at a tacky theme park end up being plutoed by globalization.
Shang Cineplex, Shangri-la Plaza Edsa
Mon, Feb 8 - 2 pm
Tue, Feb 9 - 9:05 pm

3 comments:

  1. Hmm... The World (Jia Zhangke) seems to be the one missing from my collection of his oeuvre. I hope i have more time today to catch it, but if i finish my paper, i would definitely catch it tomorrow at shang.

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  2. Would you know if the Chinese films will be projected from a DVD source?

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  3. Hi Oggs,

    All of the films seem to have been projected from DVD sources.

    Do take seats at rows near the back of the theater because some of the subtitles are large.

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