What ‘Until She Remembers’ doesn’t forget to remind viewers
Watching every scene of this film is like relishing every word, sentence and paragraph of a novelette written by an inspired author.
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Daily TribuneWatching every scene of this film is like relishing every word, sentence and paragraph of a novelette written by an inspired author.
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SCREEN icons Charo Santos-Concio and versatile actress Barbie Forteza share the screen in the critically acclaimed film.
PHOTOGRAPHs courtesy of netflix/imdb
BOOTS Anson Roa-Rodrigo and Charo Santos-Concio headline ‘Until She Remembers.’
The ultimate viewing pleasure of a red-blooded male is watching girl-to-girl sex. But that seems to work only for porn. Lesbian films, especially in the Philippines, do not have that big an audience.
The 1998 lesbian movie Tatlo…
Magkasalo by Carlos Siguion-Reyna is remembered mostly by showbiz people as the one project Rosanna Roces rejected. Rosanna was at the very peak of her career that time and anything she did became headline news. One was dropping out of Tatlo after it had been announced that she was appearing as a lesbian in that movie. It was a right choice. But not for Gina Alajar who replaced her. Tatlo bombed at the box-office.
The 2006 LGBTQ movie, Rome and Juliet, was critically-acclaimed. It won the Gawad Urian best screenplay for Chris Violago and Connie Macatuno, who also directed the film. But in terms of box-office success, it didn’t do that well.
In 2019, director Roman Perez, Jr. tried doing another lesbian film — disguised as a thriller — but it had little impact on the viewing public. The stars of this movie, incidentally, were Rhen Escano and beauty queen Cindy Miranda.
A few months ago, it was announced that Charo Santos and Boots Anson Roa-Rodrigo were doing a movie together. They were part of a trio in the early 1980s who all had one common denominator: The image they projected was sweet. The third in that triad was Susan Roces. If you’d care to know, they were even ranked according to their level of sweetness and this was the order: Boots, Susan and Charo.
So, Boots and Charo were making a movie together. What was the big deal? They were playing lesbian lovers and the very thought of it sent shock waves even to the most permissive of sectors in show business. After all, Boots is 81, while Charo is 70. The film’s title is Until She Remembers. It is now on Netflix.
In the story, the relationship of Boots and Charo begins as teacher and student. But they go beyond that and become lovers. Charo’s parents separate them. They even force Charo to get married and have a family.
Decades pass and Charo still longs to be with Boots. Charo admits this desire to her granddaughter, as played by Barbie Forteza. With Barbie’s help, the two former lovers are reunited, except that Boots at that stage already has dementia.
Until She Remembers is not all about geriatric lesbianism. It dwells on family relationships and the dynamics in some homes of this generation, especially when both parents are career-driven. The film also tackles the issue of blended families and how this setup is already accepted by society. Until She Remembers, fortunately, doesn’t forget to remind viewers about how children suffer in situations where parents don’t get along.
Until She Remembers is beautifully-crafted, which shouldn’t come as a surprise since it is written and directed by Cannes Film Festival winner Brillante Mendoza. The story is polished and carefully laid out.
It also boasts of excellent performances by the lead characters: Charo, Boots and Barbie, who is — without doubt — the most versatile actress of her generation. It is her spunk that keeps the film engaging.
Until She Remembers is also technically superior. It is beautifully photographed and its production design is impressive, which — again — is to be expected. After all, Mendoza was an award-winning production designer before he became an internationally renowned filmmaker.
Watching every scene of this film is like relishing every word, sentence and paragraph of a novelette written by an inspired author with a most creative mind. Although its subject is unconventional, it doesn’t jolt the sensibilities of the audience. It caresses the feelings of the sensitive viewer instead.
In recent film history, Until She Remembers is the most tender love story ever told.
