Father issues and self-truth

“The movie doesn’t require Aquino to transform into anyone. All she has to do is play herself.

Love team Julia Barretto and Joshua Garcia play enemies-turned-friends-turned-something deeper in Star Cinema’s latest rom-com I Love You, Hater. With our local mainstream cinema churning out rom-coms by the second, this latest silver-screen fairytale romance offers nothing fresh or exciting. It is so formulaic that the leading lady has the obligatory goofy, annoying BFFs surrounding her. And, you guessed it—two annoying BFFS giving two different opinions on matters of the heart.

Barretto plays rejected daughter, Zoey, who falls in love with gay guy, Joko (Garcia), who is not really gay, but a sham of a guy living a life of lie in order to please everyone around him. The two meet-cute while fighting for the coveted P100,000 a month-salary position of personal assistant to social media celebrity, Sasha (Kris Aquino).

The film feels low-budgeted with awful sound design and bland camera work, relying on its big stars to ferry the run-of-the mill narrative until its predictable ending. The celebrities—Aquino, Barretto and Garcia—all have striking visual presence, sashaying in rooms in their brightly colored frocks and resounding voices. Unfortunately, they severely lack defining characteristics, with only their backstory to support their flimsy personality.

Barretto’s Zoey starts off as an insufferable aggressive “beyatch” that gradually softens as she starts falling in love with Joko. To be an insufferable, aggressive “beyatch” means to theatrically act haughtily. Her pompous demeanor makes Zoey terribly unlikeable, but she eventually becomes tolerable once she’s in love.

And to why Zoey fell in love with Joko is beyond me. Sure, she tells the audience through loud musings that Joko is such a gentleman (yes, the movie tells rather than shows), but what else? Maybe it’s Joko’s sartorial gayness depicted in playful pastel-colored shirts? Or perhaps it’s his John Lloyd vibes? You never really understand. Or you can just blame it on the Proximity Principle.

Aquino’s Sasha doesn’t really require the controversial actress to transform into anyone. All she has to do is play herself, the “Queen of All Media,” for a character that comes across as a hybrid of Devil Wears Prada boss Miranda and Kris Aquino in KrisTV.

Sasha is true-blue Kris Aquino, only more restrained and tactful, filtered to create a more pleasing persona. Apart from wearing ugly, busy prints that hurt the eyes, Sasha also suffers from father issues, which is a condescending way to tell the audience that, surprise! No one’s life is perfect, even if you have a million Instagram followers.

It is frustrating how flat these characters are, lacking delicious idiosyncrasies and nuances. They are mere caricatures that plainly spell out the conflict and drama. Joko could have been a mine of clever, comedic delights as he pretends to be gay, but the fun ends as soon as it begins. And for a liar, he doesn’t project any internal struggle, turmoil or guilt, which only makes him seem like a psychopath.

Meanwhile, Joko falls in love with Zoey the moment he sees her walking in slow-mo, so his love is purely based on physical attraction. It’s all about the jet-black hair, the flawless skin and her limbs, never evolving into something deeper. But since Zoey also lacks personality other than a competitive nature, you give up figuring out the reasons for this young love transpiring before us.

I Love You, Hater injects LGBT content because it’s an unspoken mandatory element to any work of art, lest you risk being criticized as a hater. For a romantic story, though, the movie lacks giddy feels and romantic thrills. And for a comedy, it doesn’t really make you laugh. But the movie surely packs on moral values. In this social media age, where carefully curated public profiles blur the line between reputation and humanity, it admirably advocates truthfulness albeit its dry execution.

Barretto showcases acting depth towards the climax of the film in a tearful confrontational scene with Garcia. Here, she displays impressive skills of a leading actress in a dramatic role. Meanwhile, Aquino is also given an opportunity to shed some tears in a father-daughter scene so emotionally manipulative and overwrought that it robs us of any feeling.

Another major character in this movie is the Enervon Multivitamins. The orange foil lying on the tabletop, then the sugar-coated orange capsule emerging, popped into the mouth, and showered with loving looks and some very positive reviews. It’s hard to miss this scene as it’s given almost the same amount of importance as Ronaldo Valdez, who plays Sasha’s father.

For a movie with a title that suggests a strong emotional conflict, I Love You, Hater is actually the opposite. A superficial and trite fare, oftentimes technically crude, it merely caters to fans of its stars.

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