SUMMARY
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The saddest thing about Charliebebs Gohetia’s I Love You. Thank You. is that in its effort to weave into its exploration of the wandering lives of twenty-something expatriate Filipino gay men a more pronounced and somewhat conventional romantic slant, it reduces itself into just another sad love story to the detriment of its more interesting elements.
Signs of strain
Paul (Joross Gamboa), a Filipino based in Bangkok, has been secretly in love with Red (Prince Stefan), the boyfriend of his childhood friend Ivan (CJ Reyes).
Unable to open up to Red and still uncertain as to what he wants to do in life, he travels alone to Siem Reap where he meets Tang (Ae Pattawan), a Thai writer. While Paul and Tang are opening up to the possibility of romance in Cambodia, Red and Ivan’s relationship start showing signs of strain.
There is a certain cleverness in the way Gohetia sets up his characters’ places in each other’s lives. He establishes them as tenuous creatures, moving in and out of each other’s consciousness without direction and reason.
I Love You. Thank You. is somewhat engaging in that sense. It romanticizes drifters, turning the misery of their aimless search for meaning into something that could probably be profound if conceived and executed properly.
Uneven performances
Unfortunately, the film is drowning in dialogue.
Worse, a lot of the dialogue in the film are maudlin, more suited for cheesy romance novels than films that aspire some semblance of realism. It is too earnest in selling its sentimentality that it feels overeager to the point of being melodramatic.
The performances are also uneven.
Gamboa is fine. He is convincing even when he is required to deliver lines that are embellished with impractical bathos. It is Stefan and Reyes who are dubious. They tend to overplay their characters’ heartbreaks, rendering performances that magnify the film’s problems.
Glaring faults
Sure, there are merits to I Love You.Thank You.’s meandering showcase of individuals whose frustratingly vague romances reflect their own uncertainties. Sadly, those merits are overpowered by too many glaring faults. It is more dull than deep. When it aspires to be impassioned, it tends to go overboard, resulting in scenes that feel awkward and silly. – Rappler.com
Francis Joseph Cruz litigates for a living and writes about cinema for fun. The first Filipino movie he saw in the theaters was Carlo J. Caparas’ ‘Tirad Pass.’ Since then, he’s been on a mission to find better memories with Philippine cinema.
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