Rhian happy JC still a kapuso

Author: Mario E. Bautista
Column: Freehand

Rhian Ramos admits she's happy that rumored boyfriend JC de Vera has ironed things out with GMA-7 and is not moving to ABS-CBN. "Siyempre, we're close friends kaya natutuwa akong he got his birthday wish, which is ma-solve na ang problem niya and he'd remain to be a Kapuso," she says. "But I seldom see him now kasi nga I'm taping 'Zorro' with Richard Gutierrez and most of the time, I stay there (on location). E, ako, when I work, talagang mas focused ako sa trabaho ko, kaya no chance for us to see each other often like noong we were doing' La Lola. ' As of now, I'm really proud to be part of a big project like 'Zorro' na ginastusan talaga sa costumes, sa sets, even in the Spanish types of weapons we used from swords to pistols. Daig pa nga nito ang isang malaking pelikula. Happy rin ako to be reunited with Richard after we did 'Capt. Barbell', 'Lupin' and 'Asero'. Isa si Richard sa mga kasundo kong katrabaho kasi he's not only a true professional kundi maalaga rin sa leading ladies niya. First leading man ko siya so I'm really very comfortable with him. I play Lolita Pulido, the daughter of rich parents Leo Martinez and Pinky Marquez, who want me to marry TJ Trinidad kahit si Richard ang mas gusto ko. "

How did she prepare doing a period show like "Zorro" that's set in Spanish times? "Siyempre, first of all, I trained in riding horses, then pati sa fencing kasi mapapasabak din daw ako rito sa eskrimahan. Then I have to study Spanish as we have to deliver some lines in Spanish. I also have to prepare my costumes. Dapat talaga, 'yung babagay sa'kin. Excited talaga ako with 'Zorro' as it's so different from any show I've done before. "

MARK ALWAYS BROKE

WE know of a lot of young stars who try to get into showbiz to be breadwinners of their families. Their parents usually don't work anymore. Some just accompany the stars when they work. Some of these stars are Sarah Geronimo, Jennylyn Mercado, Kim Chiu, Yasmien Kurdi, and many more. One of them is Mark Herras, who's only given an allowance of P500 a day plus gas money. His manager, Lolit Solis, says he's feeding nine people at home so it's no wonder his girlfriends broke up with him as he's broke most of the time. "Siya lang kasi ang kumakayod sa kanila," she says. "At least, nakabili na siya ng sarili niyang bahay para sa kanilang lahat. "

Mark is getting good feedback for his fine performance as the irresponsible son of Bing Loyzaga and Tirso Cruz III who becomes involved with his late brother's widow, Jennylyn Mercado. They say he shows a depth in his acting that wasn't there before. "I must credit our director, Joel Lamangan, for helping me interpret my role," he says. "I also make sure that I'm very serious sa trabaho ko ngayon. Dati, naglalaro-laro pa ako sa set but this time, kung wala akong take, I just study my script and internalize. "

MARIAN: NO TIME FOR SUITORS

Marian Rivera is honest enough to admit that she no longer accepts suitors even if she and Dingdong Dantes are still just on the "exclusively dating" stage. "Kasi wala rin naman akong time na makipag-date sa iba," she says. "Kami ni Dingdong, no choice kami na maging laging magkasama kasi we're always together sa taping ng 'Babaeng Hinugot sa Aking Tadyang'. So after work, kung minsan, we eat out or we go watch a movie together. Ganun lang. Relaxed na ako sa company ni Dingdong dahil ikatlong show na namin ito. "

The last film they watched together was "The Reader," for which Kate Winslet won the Oscar best actress award. How did she like it? "Maganda. I was touched kaya naiyak ako. Magaling talaga si Kate. "

Will she able to do the kind of nude scenes Kate did? "In fairness to her, kahit naghuhubad siya, hindi bastos ang dating nito. At sa galing ng acting niya, hindi mo naman mapapansin 'yung basta hubaran lang kundi yung ganda ng movie. But as for me, sorry po, hindi ko kaya ang ganung mga eksena. "

They're both born in August (Aug. 2 for Dong and Aug. 12 for her) and have the same zodiac sign, Leo. Some folks say this is obvious that they are compatible with each other. "Well, totoo namang magkasundong-magkasundo kami ngayon. Ni hindi nga kami nag-aaway at wala ring mga selosan. Pareho kami pati sa favorite food namin: sinigang, kahit na anong klaseng sinigang pero mas okay kung hipon. "

They're now doing everything to attract kid viewers to watch "Babaeng Hinugot. " "BInawasan na ang violence and we offer more drama on the show," she adds. "The story now veers away from syndicates and focuses more on family and love, para mas maging family-oriented. Lalo rin itong nagiging more interesting kasi my part, Proserfina, now doubts if Jackilou Blanco is really her mother o impostor lang ito. Maganda ang plot twist na ito kaya dapat abangan ng viewers. Parang second idenitities na namin ni Dong sina Proserfina at Homer. We're also told to refrain using words na mature and sexy, para ma-realize na bagay na bagay rin sa bata ang kuwento ng 'Babaeng Hinugot sa Aking Tadyang. '"

MOVIE REVIEW: NEW IN TOWN

WE enjoy Renee Zellwegger in the "Bridget Jones" movies she did so we welcome the sight of her in the new romantic comedy, "New In Town," set in the remote town of New Ulm in Minnesota which is covered by snow for about six months each yet. The setting reminds us of the Oscar-winning "Fargo," a town also located in Minnesota, and the characters in both films speak with a very pronounced quaint accent.

Renee plays Lucy Hill, a blonde wearing stilleto heels who is used to the warmth of sunshiny Florida, so going to a freezing place like New Ulm is a big sacrifice for her. (But the film was actually shot on location in Winnipeg, Canada, which also has freezing climate. ) She works as an ambitious executive in a food processing company in Miami and is assigned to downsize and restructure their company's plant in New Ulm, which is populated by people of Scandinavian and German descent. (Old Ulm is a town in Germany where Albert Einstein was born. )

The film opens with four women in New Ulm gathered on a table pasting things into scrapbooks. New Ulm is such a cold place and doing scrapbooks helps warm them up. Lucy is supposed to be a Scrooge whose job is to intimidate the people in New Ulm, so she doesn't even smile to keep a tough facade. But one of the women scrappers, Blanche Gunderson (Siobhan Hogan), who acts as Lucy's assistant, is not really scared of her and even invites her to dinner in her home. There, she meets Ted Mitchell (Harry Connick Jr. ), the widowed father of a 13-year old girl, Bobbie (Ferron Guerreiro).

Ted is the representative of the local union in the plant that Lucy plans to close down. As expected, they don't get along fine at the start, since Ted doesn't seem to be that nice. They have an argument that ends with both of them walking out. But you know their fight is just part of their romantic foreplay.

As may be expected again in vehicles of this sort, Lucy is actually a softie and soon realizes that the people in New Ulm are really friendly, diligent and proud of their work in the plant. Whaddaya know? She starts to like their small town folksiness, including the hunky Ted, and eventually does her best to save the plant that she's actually supposed to shut down, with her character transformation happening right on Christmas Eve when the townspeople gathered around the Christmas tree to sing about the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ.

If you go for this kind of romantic fluff, then no doubt you'll enjoy "New in Town" as it's really sweet, wholesome and tries its best to be a feel-good crowdpleaser. The script is formulaic, but all the mawkish and sappy ingredients are calculated by Director Jonas Elmer (a Danish filmmaker making his directorial debut in Hollywood) to make sure the movie has a happily ever after ending where the lovers find a long and lasting love. In this hard times of recession in the U. S. , it also offers the fantasy of showing blue collar workers being saved from economic doom.

Renee and Harry maybe playing predictable one-dimensional characters but they have enough charisma and succeed in making us care for them even if they are given somewhat trite dialogues. Renee, in particular, breezes through in her fish-out-of-water role with much endearing confidence and it's good to see her in another comedy like this. The film also manages to convey positive inputs about learning how to forget your first impressions, the need to prioritize people before company profits, and the advantage of people cooperating and pulling together in a community.

Source: People's Journal