To the credit of both Coco Martin and Julia Montes, they were effectively able to remove traces of Daniel and Katerina in their performances for their first movie together titled A Moment in Time.
For almost 11 months, viewers have been used to seeing Coco and Julia bring life to star-crossed lovers in the ABS-CBN teleserye Walang Hanggan.
Under the direction of Manny Palo, Coco and Julia are able to offer moviegoers fresh portrayals as they bring life to their characters Patrick and Jillian.
As Patrick Javier—a passionate painter predisposed to creating dark and gloomy images on a canvass—Coco expertly portrays him as sporadically charming, deceptive, sweet and aggressive.
Julia Montes plays Jillian, an only child sheltered by her rich parents from the sordidness of reality. Julia plays the part with exquisitely combined innocence and maturity. She is perfect as a young woman coming-of-age to the truths and facts of life. Her vulnerability and strength shines through as she submits herself to the emotional machinations inflicted by Coco Martin’s character Patrick.
Her emotions are solid, intense and very affecting. Her acting chops slices away any doubts about her ability to portray young or adult characters. Talent-wise, she is clearly way ahead of her contemporaries.
Cherie Gil is perfectly coiffed and empathetic as Julia Montes’ mother.
In terms of plot, there are shades of scenes, characters and themes of recent Star Cinema movies rehashed in this movie.
The Patrick character, specifically his “in-your-face” persistence to woo Jillian, seems a milder form of John Lloyd Cruz’s character in The Mistress.
The public serenade performed by Patrick is reminiscent of what Mario Maurer did on Suddenly It’s Magic; the same way the beatbox performance of Julia Montes’ character Jillian is akin to what Erick Gonzales did in the same movie.
The birthday song performance arranged by Jillian to celebrate the surprise party of Patrick reminds one of the Toni Gonzaga-Vhong Navarro movie My Only U.
Patrick going to Amsterdam to desperately search for Jillian is evocative of Piolo Pascual looking for Iza Calzado in the movie Milan. Unlike Piolo’s character, however, Coco Martin’s Patrick behaves more like a stalker than a spurned lover.
In the scene where Patrick sees Jillian for the first time inside an LRT train, he doesn’t know her but he assumes that he does by calling out random names hoping one of it is hers. When he fails to catch her attention, he ups the ante by drawing her face on a wall. When that strategy fails, he chases her chauffeured car and hurls himself in front of it. Jillian labels him “weird,” but Coco’s character is essentially dysfunctional.
Thanks to Star Cinema’s slick storytelling; Coco Martin’s endearing magnetism and good acting skills; his dysfunction only comes off as cute, adorable and even forgivable.
Like a typical Star Cinema film, A Moment in Time makes use of contrived coincidences to propel the story forward–unfortunately decreasing the story’s believability.
Other than the Hallmark-card-like quotation spoken by Jillian’s fiancé (Joseph Marco) towards the end of the movie, A Moment in Time has nuggets of wisdom that audiences could learn from:
Ella Cruz’s character: “Di porke’t nasaktan ka, mananakit ka na rin ng iba.”
Manuel Chua’s character: “’Wag mo paglaruan ang nararamdaman ng tao.”
A Moment in Time’s glossy visuals helped soften Manila’s grime and grittiness the same way Coco and Julia’s onscreen presence made this Star Cinema movie about an emotionally abusive relationship, exceptionally entertaining, romantic, aspirational, and even likable.
News
Fans Think Daniel Padilla’s ~*Heartbreak Song*~ Is Now His Message To Kathryn Bernardo
It’s been a hot minute since Kathryn Bernardo and Daniel Padilla‘s breakup shook the world. But we just can’t move on, especially when we’ve found out that ABS-CBN Star Music released a lyric video to a 2018 heartbreak song by Daniel—and it’s giving us all the feels about…
Is a Daniel Padilla and Ely Buendia Collaboration Coming Soon? Here’s What We Know So Far!
MANILA — After his exclusive network contract renewal with ABS-CBN, Daniel Padilla sat down with ABS-CBN News to talk about the projects lined up for him this year. One of them is a collaboration with OPM rock icon Ely Buendia….
Nippon TV and ABS-CBN Seal the Deal: What’s in Store for Filipino Viewers with the Hit Drama “Mother”?
Nippon TV, Japan’s leading multiplatform entertainment powerhouse and ratings champion broadcaster and ABS-CBN, the Philippines’ leading content provider, and are partnering for the tenth adaptation of the hit Japanese TV drama “Mother” for Filipino audiences, which will be known locally by its title “Saving Grace” and it…
Who Were Coco Martin’s Most Memorable Leading Ladies in “Ang Probinsyano”? Discover the Women Behind the Action!
Helmed by multi-awarded action superstar Coco Martin, FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano has been home to many talents in the entertainment industry with its record-crushing run of almost-seven years on screen. Billed as the longest-running teleserye in the history of Philippine television, the series finally concluded its…
Karla Estrada hopes son Daniel Padilla will be okay
Nagbigay ng komento si Karla Estrada tungkol sa kalagayan ng anak na si Daniel Padilla. Ang panayam kay Karla ay in-upload sa YouTube channel ng broadcast journalist na si Bernadette Sembrano. Panimula ng actress-host: “Yung anak ko, pinag-usapan naman ng buong daigdig iyan ano….
WOW! Here’s a glimpse of Coco Martin’s epic collections
FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano lead actor and director Coco Martin dominates the showbiz scene as the country’s Primetime King, but in the luxurious hobby of collecting flashy, high-end automobiles and motorbikes, he is certainly one fastidious connoisseur. And, as most of you…
End of content
No more pages to load