The film adaptation of a best-selling murder mystery novel. An abandoned girl raises herself to adulthood in the dangerous marshlands and is isolated from her community because of many rumors about herself. She is drawn to two young men from town, and when one of them is found dead she is Kya opens herself to a new and startling world; but when one of them is found dead, the community immediately labels her as the main suspect.
The 15th film from the One Piece series takes place on Elegia, the “Island of Music,” where Uta, the world’s greatest diva, performs her first ever live concert and reveals herself to the public. Straw Hats, pirates, Marines, and fans from all over the world gather to hear Uta’s “otherworldly” voice. However, the event begins with the shocking revelation that Uta is Shanks’ daughter.
A doctor begins experiencing terrifying occurrences after witnessing a bizarre, traumatic incident involving a patient. She must confront her troubling past in order to survive and escape her horrifying new reality as an overwhelming terror takes over her life.
A couple lives in a seemingly perfect town that is overseen by a mysterious company. When cracks appear in their idyllic life, the wife begins to question their true purpose.
A mother is torn in a fishing village between protecting her son and her own sense of right and wrong. A lie she tells for him shatters their family and their tight-knit community.
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[Note: release dates for movies in Philippine cinemas are subject to change without prior notice. For more upcoming movies, click here.]
Stand-up comedian Jo Koy who is best known for his jokes about his Filipino upbringing is heading to the big screen through the film Easter Sunday. It tells the story of struggling comedian and single father Joe Valencia, who reunites with his dysfunctional Filipino family to celebrate Easter Sunday.
Watch the trailer for Easter Sunday below:
If you’re planning to see Easter Sunday in theaters this week, then we’ve got some fun facts for you to check out! Here are some details about the new comedy film you might want to know about.
1. The Steven Spielberg produced the film out of love for Jo Koy.
Steven Spielberg, who brought life to some of the biggest movie franchises in cinema history such as Jurassic Parks, JAWS, and Indiana Jones just to name a few, produced the film because he loved Jo Koy’s performance in the Netflix special Comin’ in Hot.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the comedian recalled how he walked into Amblin and was told that the director loved him. Shares Jo Koy in the interview, “[Steven] wanted to know what kind of movie idea I had and I pitched this one. From the minute he said, ‘We’ll buy it’ to this day right here, he’s had his hand in every step of the way. I love you, Steven.”
2. It’s the first film with an all-Filipino ensemble produced by a major Hollywood studio.
While there have been other US films depicting the Filipino-American experience, Easter Sunday will be the first title produced by a major Hollywood studio, Spielberg’s Amblin Entertainment, alongside Dan Lin’s Rideback. The latter is known for producing The Lego Movie franchise and the IT franchise. Amblin Partners and Universal Pictures share Easter Sunday’s international distribution rights.
3. Other stand-up comedians join Jo Koy in the new film.
Jo Koy isn’t the only veteran comic to star in the film, as other popular stand-up comedians join him on Easter Sunday. These include Brandon Wardell who plays his son, Joe Valencia Jr.; Tiffany Hadish who plays Vanessa, a police officer that Joe shares a history with; and Jimmy O. Yang, who stars as the hustler Marvin on top of being an executive producer for the film.
Speaking about producing the movie, Yang told Slash Film in an interview: “Of course, I’m like, ‘What about else I can do to bring value to help as an actor?’ And I wanted to play an even bigger part, but I couldn’t because of my schedule with Space Force, so I ended up, still able to do this cameo and was there on the first day of the shoot, which is very special.”
4. Even the director is a stand-up comedian.
The film’s director, Jay Chandrasekhar, is also a stand-up comedian and is best known for directing the Super Troopers film franchise, The Dukes of Hazzard, and episodes of Community and The Goldbergs. Aside from being in the director’s chair, Chandrasekhar is also part of the cast. In an interview with Collider, the director shared how he approached the movie.
“I’m a standup, [Jo Koy] is a standup. So I said to him, ‘We got to make a really funny movie because people are going to expect it to be …’ They’re not like, ‘Hey, Filipinos are in it, it’s great.’ They’re going to want to be a really funny movie. Then we’ll also have all these Filipinos in it, and then that part will advance the cause. So we agreed to just make sure we’ve made a full-on, funny movie,” explained Chandrasekhar.
5. Veteran Hollywood actors Lou Diamond Phillips and Tia Carrere are also part of the cast.
Also joining Joe Valencia’s Filipino cast in the film are veteran actors Lou Diamond Phillips and Tia Carrere. Phillips has starred in multiple movies and shows since the ’80s including La Bamba, Miami Vice, Criminal Minds, and Courage Under Fire just to name a few. He also voiced Mayor Sancho Santamaria in Netflix’s animated series Trese. Meanwhile, Tia Carrere has starred in films and shows such as Wayne’s World, True Lies, Rising Sun, and Curb Your Enthusiasm.
“I’ve played Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Thai, everything under the sun, including the silent Asian girl in the corner that looks lovingly at her white boyfriend and says nothing. It’s been a long road to where we get to be front and center,” Carrere told EWin an interview about the new film.
From October 5 to 16, 2022, the 21st edition of PELÍCULA-Spanish Film Festival will return to face-to-face screenings. After two years of having a virtual festival, PELÍCULA will screen around twenty movies in three venues of Metro-Manila including Shangri-La Plaza, Cine Adarna at UP Diliman, and Instituto Cervantes Intramuros branch.
Since its creation in 2002 by Instituto Cervantes de Manila, PELíCULA has been an annual attraction in Philippine theatres. After the height of the Covid-19 crisis which forced cinemas to close worldwide and caused audiences of PELíCULA to migrate online, the festival returns to the big screen, on a first-come, first-served free admission basis. Furthermore, the Festival will also host face-to-face online screenings in Malaysia and Australia, as well as the Philippines.
In the Philippines, the Festival will open on October 5 with El buen patrón (Fernando León de Aranoa, 2021), a comedy starring Javier Bardem. Other comedies in the line-up include La boda de Rosa (Icíar Bollaín, 2020), El test (Dani de la Orden, 2022), Con quién viajas (Martín Cuervo, 2021). The official entries also include documentaries such as A las mujeres de España. María Lejárraga (Laura Hojman, 2022),dramas such as Maixabel (Icíar Bollaín, 2021) or El olvido que seremos (Fernando Trueba, 2020), and thrillers like La hija (Manuel Martín Cuenca, 2021).
PELÍCULA will also feature Latin American films such as the Colombian documentary Jinetes del Paraíso (Talia Osorio Cardona, 2020), the Panamenian comedy Algo azul (Mariel García Spooner, 2021), and Competencia oficial, a Spanish-Argentinean comedy directed in 2021 by Gastón Duprat and Mariano Cohn, and featuring Penélope Cruz, Antonio Banderas,and Oscar Martínez.
Just like in the previous editions, audiences may vote for their favorite films in the Audience Choice Awards. Established in 2004, the award will be given to the film that the viewers have voted as the best of the Festival. Since its establishment in 2004, it has been a very popular tradition in the Festival and is kept alive even through the festival’s transition online. In its 21st edition, both face-to-face and online audiences will be able to rate the films right after having viewed them. The film with the highest ratings will again receive this year’s Audience Choice Award and will be screened again during the closing of PELICULA 2022, on October 16.
To celebrate the 21st edition of the cinematographic showcase, there will be a short series of movies coming from the Basque Country (featuring Handia, and Oreina, among others); plus a special selection of classic Spanish films, to be shown online. These films are Esa pareja feliz (Juan Antonio Bardem & Luis García Berlanga, 1951), Muerte de un ciclista (Juan Antonio Bardem, 1953), Mamá cumple cien años (Carlos Saura, 1979) and El sur (Víctor Erice, 1983).
Since its first editions PELíCULA has programmed activities aiming to be a meeting point between the Philippine and Spanish cultures. In line with this, the Festival is honored to premiere Con tu latido. Fillipinas canta a Aute, the film of a concert-tribute to Spanish-Filipino musician and artist Luis Eduardo Aute, born in Manila in 1943. The screening is scheduled for 11 October, at Instituto Cervantes (Intramuros branch).
Philippine cinema was born in the Spanish language and almost all film-related terms in Filipino are in Spanish (such as pelikula, sine, direktor, aktor, contrabida, etc.), proof of the rich cinematic history shared between Spain and the Philippines. With this in mind, PELíCULA will be holding “En corto: Short films from the Philippines and Spain”, an activity which will feature recent short films from both countries.
PELíCULA 2022 is an initiative of Instituto Cervantes in Manila and Sydney, the Embassies of Spain in the Philippines, Malaysia and Australia, and the AECID, in collaboration with the Film Development Council of the Philippines, Instituto Etxepare, Filmoteca Vasca, the Embassy of Colombia in the Philippines, the Embassy of Panama in the Philippines, the UP Film Institute, the University of the Philippines, Intramuros Administration, Vibal Foundation, Philippine Transmarine Carriers, Rustan’s, and La Pícara.
All the movies are in Spanish (or their original language) with English subtitles. For updates on the Festival, please visit the website of the Festival (https://pelikula.org) or the Facebook page of Instituto Cervantes de Manila: www.facebook.com/InstitutoCervantesManila
Easter Sunday features an all-star Fil-Am comedic cast who have made a name for themselves globally including Lou Diamond Phillips (Courage Under Fire), Tony nominee Eva Noblezada (Broadway’s Hadestown), Tia Carrere (True Lies, Wayne’s World films), Lydia Gaston (Broadway’s The King and I), Eugene Cordero (The Good Place series), Rodney To (Parks and Recreation series), Brandon Wardell (Curb Your Enthusiasm series) and stand-up comedian Joey Guila.
Eugene Cordero, Jo Koy and Lou Diamond Philips
World boxing icon and Philippines’ pride, Manny Pacquiao for his part has shown support for the film and uploaded a photo of the movie’s poster in his Instagram page, to quote, “Support tayo mga kababayan” using the hashtag #PinoyPride.
Rodney To, Joey Guila, Jo Koy and Eugene Cordero
A showcase of Filipino excellence on the global stage and bringing the Filipino culture to worldwide audience, Easter Sunday, from DreamWorks Pictures, is directed by Jay Chandrasekhar (Super Troopers, The Dukes of Hazzard, I Love You, Man), from a script by Ken Cheng (Sin City Saints series) and Kate Angelo (Sex Tape) based on a story by Ken Cheng.
Tia Carrere & Lydia Gaston
The film is produced by Rideback’s blockbuster producers Dan Lin (The Lego Movie franchise, It franchise) and Jonathan Eirich (Aladdin, The Two Popes), and is executive produced by Nick Reynolds, Joe Meloche, Jo Koy, Jessica Gao, Jimmy O. Yang, Ken Cheng and Seth William Meier.
Brandon Wardell, Jo Koy,, Rodney To, Melody Bitiu and Joey Guila
From Universal Pictures International, catch Easter Sunday with your family and friends starting August 31 in cinemas nationwide.
James Cameron’s Academy Award®-winning 2009 epic adventure “Avatar,” the most successful film of all time, returns to Philippine cinemas September 21 — now in a remastered version. Check out the new trailer and new poster art to celebrate the re-release of the 2009 film.
Written and directed by Academy Award® winner James Cameron, “Avatar” stars Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez, and Sigourney Weaver. The film was produced by James Cameron and Jon Landau. Nominated for nine Academy Awards® including Best Picture and Best Director, the film won three Oscars®, for Best Cinematography, Production Design and Visual Effects.
Disney’s live-action adaptation of Pinocchio has dropped a new trailer, and it finally gives us a good look at the iconic character from the classic Disney film. Watch the new trailer below:
After Beauty and The Beast, Mulan, Lion King, and Aladdin, the beloved tale of Pinocchio is next to get a live-action adaptation from Netflix. As seen in the trailer, the live-action Pinocchio does not stray away from the classic design, while his father, Gepetto, is brought to life by Tom Hanks.
Pinocchio tells the story of the woodworker Gepetto who wishes that the puppet he made would come to life. His wish gets granted, and he treats Pinocchio like his son. However, the wooden boy would find himself in all sorts of mischief, and would soon be shipped to Pleasure Island where there are no rules for boys like him– a deal that comes with scary consequences.
Alongside Tom Hanks are stars Benjamin Evan Ainsworth who will voice Pinocchio, Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Jiminy Cricket, Lorraine Bracco as Sofia the Seagull, Cynthia Erivo as the Blue Fairy, Keegan Michael-Key as Honest John, and Luke Evans as the Coachman.
The film is set for release on Disney Plus this September 8. It is yet to be announced if the film will be available in Philippine theaters.
Aside from this live-action take on the Disney classic, Netflix is also set to release their stop-motion animated film Pinocchio from Guillermo del Toro. Watch the trailer here. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to get the latest news on film, TV, and more updates around the city!
Columbia Pictures PH has officially announced on social media that Spider-Man: No Way Home: The More Fun Stuff Version is coming to Philippine cinemas this September 7!
The upcoming rerelease of the hit Marvel Studios movie will include 11 minutes of more content, as revealed by Fandango. While the context of these new scenes is still under wraps, big fans of the franchise would surely want to catch this new cut in theaters.
Released in the Philippines back in January, Spider-Man: No Way Home officially brought together the three actors who played Spider-Man in one flick: Tom Holland, Andrew Garfield, and Tobey Maguire. The film followed Holland’s Peter Parker as he tried to undo the damage caused by Mysterio who revealed his true identity to the public.
Parker seeks the help of Doctor Strange who casts a spell for people to forget what happened, but this spell cracks open the multiverse, pulling some of the most notable villains from past Spider-Man films into their universe. Alongside these villains, Peter Parker also found new allies in the form of the two other Peter Parkers who were pulled into his universe as well.
Directed by Jon Watts, the film also stars Willem Dafoe, Alfred Molina, Jamie Foxx, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, and Marisa Tomei. You can also stream Spider-Man: No Way Home on Netflix.
In the film “The Invitation”, after the death of her mother and having no other known relatives, Evie (Nathalie Emmanuel) takes a DNA test…and discovers a long-lost cousin she never knew she had. Invited by her newfound family to a lavish wedding in the English countryside, she’s at first seduced by the sexy aristocrat host but is soon thrust into a nightmare of survival as she uncovers twisted secrets in her family’s history and the disturbing intentions behind their generosity.
Photo Courtesy of Columbia Pictures
“At first he seems like a charming, sweet man who doesn’t fit the aesthetic of what Evie’s just been brought into,” says Doherty of his character. “When he and Evie first meet, there’s a lot of chemistry – a spark. And as that relationship evolves, it intensifies pretty quickly. It seems that because he doesn’t fit into this very conservative world and he sees her as a strong, independent woman from New York, and for that reason, he wants her to stay, to run away with him. Of course, he has his own agenda.”
Playing a character who holds those secrets was a process for Doherty. “To try to embody the character, the best thing to do is to have the weight and heaviness in my eyes. Everything comes from that,” he says. “Obviously, there’s a confidence and a knowingness. It was useful to me to know the character always has a knowing thought at the back of his head.”
Photo Courtesy of Columbia Pictures
“Thomas has that X factor,” says director Jessica M. Thompson. “You can’t not watch him. Part of it is the way he looks – he has these incredible features, so sharp and defined. But the way he commands the space and handles himself… he brings a lot of layers to the role. It’s almost like he’s playing two characters – the charming romantic Lord of the Manor, our leading man… and then he reveals who he really is. That could have been difficult to balance, but Thomas commands the space and makes it look easy.”
Doherty stars in the highly anticipated reboot of Gossip Girl for HBOMax, which premiered in 2021 as HBO Max’s most-watched original series over launch weekend. It has been renewed for a second season. He was previously seen in Hulu’s High Fidelity opposite Zoe Kravitz. He is a graduate of The MGA Academy of the Performing Arts who at the age of 27 has gained a huge following from his starring role as Harry Hook in Disney’s hit franchise Descendants, which garnered nearly 21 million viewers in the most sought after demographic. Doherty has amassed over 4 million social media followers. He can also be seen in HBO’s Catherine the Great opposite Helen Mirren and Jason Clarke.
Photo Courtesy of Columbia Pictures
In Philippine cinemas August 24, The Invitation is distributed by Columbia Pictures, local office of Sony Pictures Releasing International. Connect with the hashtag #InvitationMovie
The anime film is being distributed in North America by Crunchyroll, which specializes in anime film and television. “We’re absolutely thrilled that ‘Dragon Ball’ fans could come together to experience and enjoy this amazing film in theaters,” Mitchel Berger, Crunchyroll’s senior VP of global commerce, said in a statement. “Crunchyroll thanks all of the fans, whether or not you are a ‘super’ fan or a newcomer, and we hope they come back again and again.”
Dragon Ball Super: SUPER HERO follows two warriors, Piccolo and Gohan, as they face down an attack by a pair of ultimate Androids that call themselves “Super Heroes” and combat the schemes of the villainous Red Ribbon Army.
Photo Courtesy of Columbia Pictures
The film is also a big hit among critics, garnering a 92% Tomatometer score in Rotten Tomatoes, with a glorious critical consensus: “Blending beautifully animated action with fresh character development, Dragon Ball Super: SUPER HERO is everything fans of the franchise will be looking for.”
The New York Times called the film “exquisitely gratifying,” while Los Angeles Times wrote the movie “is a must see for fans that salutes one of the series’ best relationships.”
Photo Courtesy of Columbia Pictures
Variety raved that the film “mostly finds a sweet spot between fan service and narrative heft,” as The Guardian endorsed that “SUPER HERO’s eye candy animation is mesmeric.”
Finally, Den of Geek hailed “Dragon Ball Super: SUPER HERO is a celebration of what’s made Dragon Ball great for more than 35 years, but it also leaves the franchise in a place that’s more liberated than ever before.”
Dragon Ball Super: SUPER HERO opens exclusively in cinemas across the Philippines starting this August 31.
The nomadic rogue lion hunts his victims under the cloak of midnight. His pride, the lions he is instinctively bound to protect at any cost, has been slaughtered by poachers. Alone, he now hunts the animal responsible for killing them: humans.
In Beast, Elba takes on the role of Dr. Nate Daniels who left the savannah to build a new life in the States with his wife. As a child of South Africa, he still dreams of the wild beauty of the savannah. After his wife’s death, he returns to his homeland with his two daughters Meredith (Halley) and Norah (Jeffries) to pay homage to his late wife where Nate feels life finally coming in full circle.
Sharlto Copley, Iyana Halley and Idris Elba
They are welcomed by his long-time and closest friend Martin (Copley), a biologist and ardent anti-poacher who also manages a game reserve in Africa. Martin has survived in his South African homeland by adhering to one simple tenant: humans will never outsmart nature. Now, trapped in a game reserve with only his instincts to guide them, Nate has to survive for his girls to live. If that is to happen, Meredith and Norah must learn to trust him again.
Beast Director Baltasar Kormakur
Immersing the audience in the experience of the film, director Kormákur extends the film’s terrifying experiences of the characters to the audience. “The lion is always seen from the perspective of the characters,” Kormákur says. “You always feel it coming to them. You can’t cut away. You are stuck in the shot. I knew that I wanted all the big action scenes to be done like that. That increases the suspense and the excitement of being trapped in this situation.”
All involved in the production spent a great deal of time paying attention to the dynamics of what lion would actually feel like—especially as it attacked. “Baltasar and I talked about the massive Barbary lion, which is almost extinct, as a reference,” Idris Elba says. “When this thing hits the car, you feel the car move. This is not your average lion; this lion is huge. We spend a lot of time giving the audience a sense of this lion’s scale and its power. As well, it’s an incredibly smart and calculating predator.”
Leah Jeffries, Idris Elba & Iyana Halley
It was also critical to director Kormákur to bring the realistic version of South Africa such that the it was number one on the list for filming locations. “Touching ground here and scouting in the region and seeing what South Africa’s film community could offer, we knew we made the right decision,” producer James Lopez says.
Idris Elba & Producer Will Packer
The team protected the natural environments in which they were filming. For one scene where Idris is in a watering hole, the production built an actual watering hole, so as not to disturb an existing one used by animals. The team also used actual town names and included South African cast, used dialects and filmed architecture of the villages to stay true to the story.
A Universal Pictures International film, Beast opens in local cinemas nationwide on August 24. Rated R-13 by the local censors board.
