Crying Ladies

I saw this movie in Cebu (middle of Philippines) a month ago. I do not understand Tagalog, so I got a whispered translation in the theatre.

Even so, the jokes came through, and they were intelligent and fresh, as is the story. It is not a fluff piece, but neither is it not a melodrama. It is a good story about three middle aged women slogging through various crises in their lives, all caught through the lens of a man coping with the death of his father, whose lifetime secrets reveal themselves.

The running joke about the waylaid sunglasses, stolen by Sharon Cuneta from Eric Quizon after he forgets them, and how they wind up on the face of the police officer who escort's the funeral procession is pretty funny, as is the story of the final days of Sharon Cuneta's relationship with her soon-to-be-taken-from-her son touching.

My advise: see it and enjoy it, it is worth your time.

Crying Ladies definitely has its moments. The beautifully-shot scenes of a traditional Chinese funeral lend a cultural richness and international appeal to the film. The comedy is raw and unpretentious; a very Filipino sense of humor shines through. There are poignant, delicately human scenes when the characters get drawn by the real tears shed by the bereaved family so that it is difficult to tell whether they were still crying for pay or just being participants of a shared broken humanity. And there is a very endearing, sincere quality about the characters of Crying Ladies, owing a lot to the first-rate portrayal of the lead actors led by Sharon Cuneta. Her conflicted Stella is thoroughly real; with just the right amount of goofball doses to make her likable. Tough critics from the New York Times and Village Voice gave her the "two thumbs up," even when they point out the film's flaws.

And flaws there are, one of which is the film's uneven editing– languishing unnecessarily in some sequences and sloppily breaking narrative continuity here and there.

Nonetheless, Crying Ladies succeeds in presenting a whimsical glimpse of how adept Pinoys are at turning tears into laughter... so seamlessly, and without bitterness.

it was not that "earth shaking" nor did it "lack substance". it could have been "whimsical", but this i can attest, it truly deserved the honor of being named best picture of the 2003 metro manila film festival. among the qualified contenders in the aforementioned film festival include bridal shower (a wonderful sex comedy) and mano po 2 (a domestic family drama that has no relation with the original).

crying ladies is a well-written comedy with notable performances delivered by its leads, particularly hilda koronel. sharon cuneta and eric quizon contributed their share of the goods but for mr. quizon to win the best supporting actor plum for the role he portrayed may be pushing it too far considering other notable performances in other competing films. ms. cuneta is rarely seen in a comedic role which makes her performance totally refreshing.

the movie is not dragging; the script a palanca awardee.

My friends and I viewed this a week ago with breathless anticipation. Receiving accolades from various award giving bodies in Manila and handpicked to represent the Philippines in this year's Oscar, we expected this film to follow the ranks of some of the best Filipino movie classics that were previously shown abroad. Unfortunately, we were left feeling cheated and disappointed.

The Good Points: The production design, cinematography, sound and the technical framework of the film were exceptional. Truly ahead of all the other films currently being produced in the Philippines nowadays. Some aspects of the film's dialogue were funny, especially the interaction of the couple who reside right above Cuneta's apartment. That was just simply hilarious. Koronel's acting was also the best in the film - in fact, I think it was the saving grace of the whole flick. Every time she graced the screen, she was superb, and her Darna stint was funny as well.

The Bad Points: Cuneta's acting was lackluster (I still think she can do best in drama films over comedy ones). The insertion of Cuneta ads (i.e. Alaska and McDonalds) was just plain tacky. Also, Cuneta's portrayal of a poor, struggling city lady was unbelievable and unrealistic. She, with her porcelain white skin, looked like she just recently re-bonded and highlighted her hair. She just didn't quite suit this role (to her credit, she's one of the best dramatic actresses in Philippine Cinema). Moreover, I think the film researchers didn't really do their job well. Some of the street scenes were not based on facts. When Cuneta tried to extort money in a passenger bus, almost all gave money, mostly in bills, to support her plight. This doesn't happen at all, much less, in ordinary buses. Secondly, when Cuneta paid her fees in the jeepney, nobody attempted to help her pass on the money to the driver. This does not happen at all either. Jeepney passengers, as protocol, almost reflexively, will extend their arms to help pass on fees to the driver. For someone who loves watching realism in Philippine Cinema, these scenes will not fail to disappoint.

To end, I think this film was vastly overrated. Don't expect too much from this film. However, I'd recommend it for Koronel's acting and some hilarious dialogues that, sadly, only come in spurts.

3/10

this is a film that is made me love Sharon Cuneta, i really hated her films for cheesy lines, soundtracks and other crap but this is a cut above the rest. it is the best film of Sharon Cuneta since "Madrasta". she deserves to win the best actress award. even though there are some technical errors on the film, the story still makes it a real screen gem. we hope to see more films like this. it shows the real situation of how Filipinos live and how they cope up with poverty and how they will prove their love for their love ones. this is a really good movie and star cinema craps can't reach the quality of this film. we just hope to see more films like this really "Pinoy" and realistic film in the future