The day after Valentine's has been said to be the day for the other, covert, and/or illicit lovers. So it is no surprise that Ten Little Mistresses, the first, original Filipino Prime Video movie premieres today, February 15, 2023 at Amazon's video streaming platform.
Written and directed by Jun Robles Lana and featuring a powerhouse cast led by award winning actors Eugene Domingo and John Arcilla, Ten Little Mistresses is a mashup of a comedy with amped up levels of camp with a whodunit murder mystery.
The movie begins with Lilith (Domingo leading a choir of maids in preparation for the arrival of Don Valentin Esposo's (Arcilla) mistresses. Recently widowed, Valentin summoned his ten mistresses to his sprawling and isolated mansion on his birthday where he will make an important announcement.
The mistresses, namely Magenta (Carmi Martin), Babet (Pokwang), Helga (Agot Isidro), Diva (Kris Bernal), Aura (Arci Muñoz), Moon-Young (Sharlene San Pedro), Because (Adrianna So), Lady G (Christian Bables), Sparkle (Kate Alejandrino), and Coco (Iana Bernardez), expect that Valentin will make decision on who his next wife will be. And each mistress firmly believes that it will be her who will be the next Mrs. Esposo. But before he can make his announcement, Valentin drops dead.
As Lilith and her right hand maid Chiclet (Donna Cariaga) don their sleuth caps and try uncover the identity of Valentin's killer, viewers are treated to many twists and turns, and an occasional red herring.
Compound this murder mystery with mistresses attempting to upstage one another not just with their banter but with their over the top wardrobe as well. The way these bickering mistresses act, they can either be prime suspects or too crazy and absurd to pull off a murder.
The movie provides plenty of laughs, especially the quips of Pokwang's Babet. One has to think if these were written in the script or just impromptu lines of the veteran comedienne. But there were moments that fell flat like the scene when some of the mistresses argue as to what constitutes the side of the pool, as opposed to being its front or back. This came across as filler and didn't really add much to the plot or characterization.
While all of the mistresses were given the spotlight, there were some that were underutilized. Most of the mistresses gravitated towards their arch nemesis (Magenta vs Babet, Helga vs Diva, Sparkle vs Because) or kindred spirit (Moon-Young and Coco) while Aura and Lady G somehow remained the two oddest of the bunch. It would've been nice if there were more different pairings and groupings that further explored the dynamics between the mistresses.
Ten Little Mistresses serves as a showcase for both Eugene Domingo and John Arcilla. It has been quite a while since there was a Eugene Domingo starrer and this reminds audiences that she remains one of the country's prime comediennes who can switch gears and do a dramatic turn when needed. On the other hand, John Arcilla shows his versatility as an actor tackling a comedic role. He exhibits a swagger that makes it not surprising for Valentin having ten mistresses with such diverse and eccentric natures.
Nods to Filipino pop culture are generously scattered throughout the film but not all hit the mark. Surprising that the homage to Temptation Island was met with silence during the film's global gala premiere held last February 7 at the Shangri-La Plaza Mall. It remains to be seen how many of these Easter Eggs will resonate over to foreign audiences since the movie can be streamed in around 240 countries and territories.
Ten Little Mistresses is available for streaming at Prime Video starting February 15, 2023.
No comments:
Post a Comment