REEL DEAL: Ang Manananggal Sa Unit 23B REVIEW

We have seen so many mananangal movies which are a mix of good and bad films. And despite the popularity of the winged pinoy monster, the film adaptations would be too light for a organ eating aswang, but I just saw ANG MANANANGGAL SA UNIT 23B which stars Ryza Cenon and Martin Del Rosario and one of the films featured for QCinema.

As part of QCinema, it also joins the roster which included films Patay Na Si Jesus with Jacklyn Jose and Hinulid with Nora Aunor. As the festival runs on a limited time and cinemas, it drew attention with fans watching the film as well as getting good reviews from film critics.

Personally, I don't have high expectations for the film given that it is a monster movie, and it has limited budget which I thought the effects will be cheaply done, but I was wrong.

First the movie had an interesting feel with the first few minutes, it was going to a romcom phase introducing the characters of Jewel and Nico, however there are some hints on what lies ahead in the story. Then it becomes more dark and violent thereafter. Ryza made a bold statement with the weird yet erotic role, however she clarifies that this does not mean to go full on sexy for future films. Martin Del Rosario is also interesting as the literal boy next door with a little twist, add Vangie Labalan as Nico's Grandmother made the entertainment package. 

I love the most about the film was the cinematography, music and effects. They elevated the new feel for Philippine cinema which delivers the message and details without exaggerating. Though it can be also merit a sequel, I say it is excellent in its own way.

Meet the Characters of Marvel's "Doctor Strange"

Delve in the history and background of the characters behind Marvel's Doctor Strange and learn how they help Stephen Strange on his journey into becoming the Sorcerer Supreme.

Check out the character posters below and watch the film when it opens nationwide on October 26!

DOCTOR STEPHEN STRANGE (Benedict Cumberbatch) was once a celebrated but arrogant surgeon, until a tragic accident cost him his medical skills and career. Searching for a way to restore his talents, he traveled the world until he finally encountered The Ancient One, the enigmatic teacher who offered to teach him the ways of the Mystic Arts.

MORDO (Chiwetel Ejiofor). Like Doctor Strange, Karl Mordo was an apprentice of The Ancient One who learned the Mystic Arts and the paths of alternative dimensions. Complex and intense, he could well turn out to be a friend, a rival, or a bitter enemy to the Ancient One’s latest pupil.

Matteo Guidicelli hunts for the most interesting van

In the final episode of Wheels Season 4, Matteo Guidicelli searches for the best van in the market. Together with the Wheels team, Matteo travels to Solenad in Sta. Rosa, Laguna to test drive some of the latest models from some of the country’s top car brands.

Also in this week’s episode, Uly flies to Thailand to witness round 7 of the 2016 Super GT season and experience firsthand the thrill of watching the finest race cars to the finish line, while Angel gives some safety tips on driving two and four-wheeled vehicles.

Make sure you don’t miss the final episode of Wheels, your guide to life on the fast lane. Wheels is now on its fourth season and airs every Thursdays, 10:30 p.m., on ABS-CBN Sports + Action Channel. For firsthand info on the latest happenings in motoring, like and follow Wheels on facebook.com/PhilStarWheels, @PhilStar_Wheels on Twitter and @PhilStarTV_Wheels on Instagram.

Smart Padala brings Filipino families closer this Christmas with Pamaskong Padalow Promo

For Filipinos, Christmas is one of the most important occasions of the year. We make time for it -- come home from the city or abroad -- just to celebrate the holidays with our loved ones and families. Filipinos are so excited about it that we start feeling the Christmas spirit as early as September.

To make this important occasion more meaningful for Filipinos, Smart Padala, the leading remittance network in the Philippines with more than 15,000 centers nationwide, released a new promo as an early Christmas treat. Dubbed “Pamaskong Padalow”, the promo allows consumers to enjoy lower padala fees from September 30 to December 30, 2016.

New "Collateral Beauty" Poster Says `We Are All Connected' JG Jay Gonzales

New Line Cinema has just rolled out the new international poster for its inspiring and emotional drama “Collateral Beauty” featuring the faces of the star-studded cast and with a reassuring tagline, “We are all connected.”

From Oscar-winning director David Frankel, “Collateral Beauty” is a thought-provoking drama that explores how even the deepest loss can reveal moments of beauty, and how the constants of love, time and death interlock in a life fully lived.

When a successful New York ad executive suffers a personal tragedy and retreats from life, his friends devise a drastic plan to reach him before he loses everything. Pushing him to the very edge, they force him to confront the truth in surprising and profoundly human ways.

“Collateral Beauty” features an all-star cast, including Will Smith, Edward Norton, Keira Knightley, Michael Peña, Naomie Harris, Jacob Latimore with Oscar winners Kate Winslet and Helen Mirren.

Shooting Begins on Warner Bros.' Sci-Film "Meg"

Principal photography is underway in New Zealand on the science fiction action thriller “Meg,” being directed by Jon Turteltaub (the “National Treasure” movies). The film stars Jason Statham (“Spy,” “Furious 7,” “The Expendables” films). Award-winning Chinese actress Li Bingbing (“Transformers: Age of Extinction,” “Forbidden Kingdom,” “The Message”) has been set to star opposite Statham.

In the film, a deep-sea submersible—part of an international undersea observation program—has been attacked by a massive creature, previously thought to be extinct, and now lies disabled at the bottom of the deepest trench in the Pacific…with its crew trapped inside. With time running out, expert deep sea rescue diver Jonas Taylor (Statham) is recruited by a visionary Chinese oceanographer (Winston Chao), against the wishes of his daughter Suyin (Li Bingbing), to save the crew—and the ocean itself—from this unstoppable threat: a pre-historic 75-foot-long shark known as the Megalodon. What no one could have imagined is that, years before, Taylor had encountered this same terrifying creature. Now, teamed with Suyin, he must confront his fears and risk his own life to save everyone trapped below…bringing him face to face once more with the greatest and largest predator of all time.

Anna Kendrick, the Reliable Whistle-blower in "The Accountant"

Academy Award-nominee Anna Kendrick (Up in the Air) stars in Warner Bros.' new action-thriller “The Accountant,” as Dana Cummings, an accounting clerk who's in the center of a multi-million-dollar anomaly.

(Watch The Accountant featurette Solving the Puzzle at https://youtu.be/mN6i2NDFBqY.)

Directed by Gavin O’Connor (Warrior), The Accountant tells the story of Christian Wolff (Ben Affleck), a math savant with more affinity for numbers than people. Behind the cover of a small-town CPA office, he works as a freelance accountant for some of the world’s most dangerous criminal organizations. With the Treasury Department’s Crime Enforcement Division, run by Ray King (J.K. Simmons), starting to close in, Christian takes on a legitimate client: a state-of-the-art robotics company where an accounting clerk (Kendrick) has discovered a discrepancy involving millions of dollars. But as Christian uncooks the books and gets closer to the truth, it is the body count that starts to rise.