Pa-Mine Pare (2021)

A Cute Snapshot of Love, As It Happens

This short film successfully showcases the abilities of relatively new actors, recruited by ABS-CBN for possible further roles. It is a sweet and very watchable snapshot of a love that is struggling to find its voice. Well worth a half-hour watch.

Plot: The plot is about exposition, not development. We learn about the characters; we don't see them change. The action takes place over a two-day period as one of the characters (Davey) is about to leave to stay with his family in another city. That forces him to confront how he feels about leaving his best friend Anton behind.

The interactions between the two are very true to life -- a mixture of playfullness, seriousness, and physicality between males that will be familiar to any guy who struggled when growing up to make sense of confused feelings of attraction for his best buddy. And also true to life is Davey's initial inability to admit, even to himself, what he's feeling. His struggle doesn't last very long though (it's only a 29 minute movie) and the resolution (apparently "chosen by the fans" in some sort of poll) produces a happy ending.

Actors/Chemistry: The two leads are quite good looking and enjoy excellent boyish chemistry. Don't expect fireworks -- there's no sex in this movie; the most intimate moment occurs when Anton gently takes Davey's hand, after Davey's admission that he's so confused...... But the actors really succeed in making viewers understand what the characters are feeling under the surface. (They are so successful that the viewers figure it out well before the script does!)

Minor Roles: There are several interesting looks at friends of the happy couple, but not enough time to develop them fully. One is out-and-proud, and the other is homophobic and negative - until he figures out that his friends' happiness matters more to him than his prejudices. Their roles broaden the movie in a very useful way, so it is not just monofocused on the leads.

Music: There is some nice background music but this is not one of the strong suits for this movie.

Production Values: Very good. ABS-CBN knows their stuff. However, one can see that production was obviously crimped by pandemic precautions. (By far the largest portion of the screen footage is of single characters, talking on a phone or interacting over the internet.) The two leads have some scenes together, fortunately. (It will be soooo nice when film production can go back to normal filming protocols.....)

I think there's a lot more interest to be wrung out of all these characters, and I hope ABS-CBN takes this as a pilot for a continuing production of some sort.

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