REEL DEAL: The Watch REVIEW

In a peaceful and simple suburban town of Glenview, Ohio, where everything seems to be perfect will be the target of a very big invasion that will also determine the fate of mankind. Evan  Truartwig, a manager of the local Costco manager forms a team called "The Neighboorhood Watch" to investigate the murderer of his co-worker.

Though very active in the community with putting up clubs for the residents, he has very few friends. With the establishment of "The Neighborhood watch", he met 3 interesting individuals, (Bob, Jamarcus, and Franklin) who will be part of a big discovery. 

The Watch  (orginally titled "Neighborhood Watch" with an original alien-themed, bullet-ridden poster, bearing a modified neighborhood watch sign, that was replaced as Fox sought to distance the premise from the Trayvon Martin case.)  brings together Ben Stiller Vince Vaughn, Jonah Hill and Richard Ayoade. With each has a very interesting comedic style, it brings a lot of interesting scenes with each dialogue.

Pen Medina portrays ‘Mother Ben’ in GMA’s ‘Aso ni San Roque’

Veteran stage and TV actor Pen Medina has replaced Eddie Garcia as ‘Mother Ben’ in the upcoming drama-fantasy series on GMA-7, “Aso ni San Roque.” 

Originally, the role of an elderly and motherly gay, was offered to Eddie Garcia but due to unforeseen health concerns, Garcia later requested the producers to give him a less time-demanding role, instead. Garcia will now portray the role of ‘Supremo,’ the leader of the aswangs. 

As ‘Mother Ben,’ Pen Medina will be the adoptive ‘mother’ to the lead star Mona Louise Rey who stars as ‘Fatima,’ a blind girl who has a dog, ‘Anghel’ for a pal.  Anghel is no ordinary canine; she is the incarnate of San Roque’s dog, which possesses a supernatural power to cure diseases. 

Pen says he enjoys Mona’s very light and bubbly personality which masks the fact that the eight-year-old girl is actually suffering from Type 1 Diabetes.  Pen very well understands her ordeal especially because the actor’s own son – his youngest – who is only ten years old is also suffering from the same disease. 

REEL DEAL: The Raid Redemption REVIEW

Really don't judge a book (film) by its cover. This has been proven when I saw the screening of the Indonesian Action Film, The Raid: Redemption (Serbuan Muat in Indonesia). The film is under the direction of G.H. Evans and stars the rising Indonesian actor, Iko Uwais. The Raid is the 2nd film of G.H. Evans and Iko Uwais together. Their first film is Merantau, released in 2009, and is considered one of the best martial art films. Like Merantau, The Raid also features the pencak silat, an indigenous fighting style created in Indonesia. Aside from pencak silat, The Raid incorporates different fighting styles. The cast is actually composed of professional martial artists from different disciplines.

The film is presented by METANTAU FILMS and XTZ FILMS in association with Celluloid Nightmare. The film is about an elite team of cops tasked to raid a rundown 15-storey apartment and remove its owner, a notorious drug lord called Tama. The apartment has never been touched by the police before and is now a sanctuary of infamous gangsters. The team infiltrates the apartment but a chance encounter with a spotter blows their cover. Tama orders the lockdown on the building. While the team has been stranded on one of the building’s floors, Tama solicits the aid of notorious criminals to defeat the special unit.

MUSIC LYF: Frank Ocean

Who is FRANK OCEAN?

Oblivious to the local music scene is a 24 year old American singer-songwriter named FRANK OCEAN who happens to be heating up the World Wide Web after unleashing his new album, “channel ORANGE”, and later stating how he has fallen in love with someone of the same sex as revealed in the album’s liner notes. In the past few weeks, Frank Ocean has nearly gotten 1.5 Million tweets and has been featured on 5,192 blogs. The album has also trended worldwide and has been tweeted 154,887 times. SPIN Magazine expressed that "A lot of people are going to love this man (Ocean) very soon." People Magazine stated that “channel ORANGE is not just the best debut of 2012 – it’s the best album period.” 

Mona Louise Rey and wonder dog Anghel banner GMA-7's newest telefantasya Aso ni San Roque

In the tradition of producing innovative and quality telefantasyas, GMA Network launches its newest series about a little girl who is gifted with a power to fulfill a prophecy and to transform the lives of the people she meets via Aso ni San Roque. It will air beginning September 10 right after 24 Oras.

After making audiences cry during her stint in GMA's top-rating teledrama, Munting Heredera and Luna Blanca, Mona Louise Rey is back on primetime to portray the role of Fatima --a blind girl with a good heart, who is the daughter of a mortal man to a mythical creature called “manananggal.” Behind Fatima's persona is a prophecy that is said to end the life of all evil creatures on earth.

2nd Skills-Up Training for OFWs Launched By Villar Foundation

OFWs around the world still contribute an important  portion of the GDP of the country however there is a number of them that are abused, underpaid and sent back with empty handed. Though many of them find it hard to find work locally and unable to start a business. The Villar Foundation, led by its Managing Director Cynthia Villar, launched the 2nd OFW Skills-up Training recently in Masibay, Las Piñas. 

With the aim of helping repatriated OFWs and their families who are having difficulty in finding employment, the program provides necessary skills training, particularly commercial cooking and housekeeping.

Global anti-corruption leaders to visit Manila in 5th GOPAC conference

Prominent parliamentarians from around the world are expected to attend the 5th International Conference of the Global Organization of Parliamentarians Against Corruption (GOPAC), which will be held for the first time here in Manila. The conference, organized in cooperation with the Senate of the Philippines and the Southeast Asian Parliamentarians Against Corruption (SEAPAC), and with the full support of President Benigno S. Aquino III, will run from January 30 to February 2, 2013 at the Philippine International Convention Center. 

Good Leaders, Good Laws, Good Citizens is the theme of this year’s conference. The conference proper will be conducted for two days, with capacity-building workshops centered around it. John Williams, GOPAC founder and CEO, and Dr. Naser Al Sane, GOPAC Chair, will be joining the Manila Steering Committee along with an expected 500 international delegates from over 46 countries in debates and discussions on the following topics: Parliamentary Oversight and The Role of Good Audit in the Fight Against Corruption; Anti Money Laundering Laws v. Bank Secrecy; and Transparency in Public Procurement and Business and Civil Society Oversight.

REEL DEAL: Bwakaw REVIEW

Cinemalaya films are penetrating into the mainstream cinema because of the reception it got from its viewers. The first one was "Ang Babae Sa Septic Tank", and now comes "Bwakaw" starring Eddie Garcia. The Film is one of the Directors Showcase 2012 Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival and Competition 

Bwakaw is a drama-comedy about growing old, and everyone's fear of growing old alone. Rene is a gay man who came out of the closet at age 70. Ailing in his twilight years, he thinks it is now too late for love, even companionship, and that all there is to look forward to is Death. He has made a will, bequeathing his few possessions to his even fewer friends. Everything is packed and labeled, ready for distribution. He has even paid for a coffin, taking advantage of a funeral home's Summer Sale. Nowadays the only companion Rene has is Bwakaw, a stray dog that hangs around his house and follows him wherever he goes. As Rene waits for the day of his death, he gets the surprise of his life when it is Bwakaw who suddenly falls ill and is diagnosed with cancer. 

Archdiocesan Youth Month 2012 Digital Artwork Competition

September brings us to the excitement of the coming Christmas season, but there is also something to celebrate this month with the Archdiocese of Manila Commission on Youth with the Archdiocesan Youth Month 2012!

The month long celebration brings together the youth and challenges them. They can now also express themselves with the Digital Artwork Competition for this Youth Month. 

With the theme: " A Celebration of Christian Faith" (Any of the 12 Articles of our Catholic Faith - CREDO) "...They called the church together and reported what God had dome with them and how he had opened the door of faith..." (Acts 14:27)

For more details,  inquiries, and entry form, please call ACY office 523-2814. You can also log in to the Archdiocesan Commission on Youth - Archdiocese of Manila facebook page. 

REEL DEAL: Taken 2 - Maggie Grace SPOTLIGHT

LIKE FATHER, LIKE DAUGHTER IN “TAKEN 2”

Hit action director Olivier Megaton heats up the action arena with twice the thrill, action and carnage in the upcoming sequel “Taken 2” where the first movie cemented Liam Nelson as this era ’s most relatable action hero being a family man keen on saving his daughter at all cost from human trafficking.

From the first movie where his daughter Kim (Maggie Grace) had been abducted by a cartel of human traffickers, “Taken 2” now follows Bryan Mills and his family at Istanbul where the father of the cartel’s leader is out to avenge his son killed by Mills during his daughter’s rescue.  With Mills and his wife abducted this time, Kim tries to save them at breakneck speed taking cues from his father’s infallible timely instructions to track them down.