A very special love (2008) - Review

After I saw Bakit Hindi Ka Crush Ng Crush Mo I wanted to see more pinoy movies, sinced they seemed perfect for summertime. So my next pinoy movie was “A very special love”, which was featured in numerous lists of best pinoy movies and in most it was amongst top five. Also it was a huge commercial success and it is still one of the highest grossing movies in Philippines. 

What is this about:

Directed by Cathy Garcia Molina. Star John Loyd Cruz, Sarah Geronimo. Laida (Sara Geronimo) is a romantic girl that is in love with Miguel “Miggy” Montenegro, owner of Flippage magazine, even though she has never met him. On the day she arrives for an interview, most of the staff quit due to Miggy’s personality, so she is hired instantly.

My review:

Laida is the perfect example of rom com heroine. She is cheerful, cut, incurably romantic and a bit clumsy. She has naïve ideas about love and she manages, somehow, to put up with Miggy’s intense character. Not only that, but she makes him a better person too.

Miggy, on the other hand, is arrogant, talks down to everyone, insults everyone’s work, never takes responsibility for his actions until the last minute, he is alone with no real friends – for good reason – and somehow Laida finds that charming. Now that I think about it, you could say it resembles “Beauty and the Beast”.

This is his mood for the first half of the movie

It has many funny scenes, especially misunderstandings where he says one thing and she understands something completely different. At first I didn’t get why everyone said John Loyd Cruz and Sarah Geronimo are one of the most successful movie couples, meaning that their pairing together was so good that clicked with the audience. After he started falling for her, however, I could see the chemistry.

In the latter half of the movie some dramatic scenes make their appearance, unfortunately. Miggy’s family problems do explain why he is the way he is, but I think they didn’t have to approach it so seriously. And things get resolved quite easily in the end, as per usual for a rom com.

I love these notes Laida put on coffee cups. They are so cute.

Why you should watch:

• It’s a nice romantic comedy.

• It has good actors with very good chemistry.

• It has a few memorable funny scenes.

• Nice music. It didn’t distract or bother me.

Why not to watch:

• Gets a little dramatic in the second half. 

• The male lead, Miggy, waits until the very end to set things right.

• It's a run-of-the-mill romantic comedy, nothing fresh or  different.

Final review:

6/10. It is a good romantic comedy, but I think it is a bit overpraised. Or perhaps it didn’t click with me. Overall, I certainly recommend it as summer movie.