The Portrait (2017)

It's nice to have Filipino musical movies like this one.

The second movie I took advantage to watch as part of MMFF50, this movie is really worth being my other choice to watch aside from the Jose Rizal 1998 film.
Filipinos boast a lot of singers and musicians, but the fact that the country doesn't produce a lot of musicals is such a travesty. That's why I love that they were able to make this musical (I'm referring to the stage show this was based on) and I love that they were even able to make a movie version of the musical through this movie. I also really enjoyed the casting. I love that they decided to put legit musical and theater actors as headliners for this film instead of the usual big names. Joanna Ampil (who I'm only familiar since I read her name as someone who played Fantine in Les Misérables London, she also performed as Fantine along with her Les Mis costars like Ramin Karimloo back in 2004 for Queen Elizabeth of the UK and France's Jacques Chirac) and Rachel Alejandro are so amazing as the main characters. The only actor who is a big name (among the main characters) is Paulo Avelino, but I think he auditioned to get this role. He's also really capable and I like him as an actor in general (praying he doesn't get stuck in a loveteam with Kim Chiu as they have two recent projects together). The other characters are also well played and well sung. There are some big names and some less well known ones but all did well. I was surprised that character actors such as Nonie Buencamino and Jaime Fabregas (would have been surprised more if I hadn't seen him in Jose Rizal just a day earlier where he sang a bit) can sing as well. So nice to see Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo again here. I only know her as the Liesl in the Sound of Music video performance from the 80s which I found on youtube where she performed with renowned names like Lea Salonga (who did Les Misérables in London like this movie's Joanna Ampil) and Senator Risa Hontiveros.
The story is about two girls who protect their childhood home and their father's legacy against all odds. I love their sisterhood and their deep care for each other. Their father, a cripple who was a renowned painter, had his last painting still in their house and many people want to buy it. Losing support from their selfish siblings and losing money to take care of their father and the house, the girls are tempted to sell the last painting of their father. We later learned that this painting was considered as a curse by both girls (despite being valued by many) as this last painting was painted by their father after the father committed suicide by jumping (which caused his crippled state) after the girls blamed him for something (I forgot the reason why). As a way to apologize to their father as well as to maintain their childhood home their father loves, one of the sisters destroyed her father's last painting despite almost being tempted by Paulo Avelino's character to sell the painting so that she'll fulfill her childhood dream of travelling the world while being with a man who loves her (Avelino's character was willing to marry her provided she sells the painting to an American buyer he talked to since the American promised a commission to him).
It's pitiful that we don't see the painting, but I guess the filmmakers feel the character's description are enough (don't know if the audience saw the painting in the musical version).
I think what we can get from the story is that we see that the two girls value their honor and their love for their father more than money. I just wish that they'll still be able to find love as their sacrifices to maintain their family home is enough.

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