Vilma Santos-Recto is a popular multi-awarded actress and politician in the Republic of the Philippines. *** She is known as "Queen of Philippine Movies," "Queenstar," "Grand Slam Queen," "Box Office Queen," and "Star for All Seasons." *** This website is mostly about her iconic film career.
Basic Information: Directed, story, screenplay: Consuelo P. Osorio; Cast: Eddie Peregrina, Vilma Santos, Edgar Mortiz, Esperanza Fabon, Bebong Osorio, Mildred Ortega, Joe Alvarez, Dolly Favorito, Nick Aladdin, Mary Walter, Ben David, Patria Plata, Priscilla Ramirez; Original Music: Demet Velasquez; Film poster: Video48
Plot Description: No Available Data
Film Achievement: No Available Data
Film Review: “…Ipinanganak nga marahil si Ma. Rosa Vilma Tuazon Santos sa show business dahil sa pagitan ng taping ng “Larawan..” ay nagkasunod-sunod na ang kanyang mga pelikula…“My Darling Eddie” ng JBC (Disyembre 16 – 23, 1969, “Mardy” ng JBC (Disyembre 31 – Enero 6, 1969)…hanggang “Young Love” ng VP Enero 1 – 21, 1970) ng lumikha ng rekord sa takilya….Makalipas ang mga tatlong buwan, nakatanggap ng maikling sulat si Mama Santos muka lay G. Agra. Naghahanap ang Sampaguita Picutures ng batang babae na gaganap ng mahalagang papel sa “Anak, Ang Iyong Ina!” at isinali ng amain ang pangalan ni Vi. Hindi puwedeng lumiban si Papa Santos sa pinpasukang government office, at ayaw naman nilang mapahiya ang kamag-anak, kaya napilitan si Mama Santos na humingi ng day=off sa opisina (Aguinaldo’s). Pagdating sa studio, wala si G. Agra at nasa location shooting, ngunit totoong naroroon ang pangalan ni Vi, kaya’t pinapasok sila sa tanggapan. Napadaan sa harapan ni Mama Santos si Bella Flores na dala ang script ng “Trudis Liit.” Nagulumihanan si Mama Santos. Binasa niyang muli ang liham ni G. Agra. Mali yata ang napuntahan nila! Akma niyang tatawagin si Vi na noon ay nkikipaglaro sa iba pang mga bata upang yayain na itong umuwi, nang pumasok sina Mommy Vera, Dr. at Mrs. Perez, at Eddie Garcia. At doon nagsimula ang movie career ni Vi na magpahanggang ngayon ay batbat pa rin ng iba’t ibang panunuri, opinyon at konklusiyon…” – Ched P. Gonzales (READ MORE)
“Eddie Peregrina was another OPM (Original Pilipino Music) legend. While he sang with The Blinkers in Japan, he also became the first jukebox king in his homeland where Filipinos thronged around the coin-operated machines to drop 20 centavos to listen to their favorite singing idol. With the band, Eddie Peregrina gave us memorable hits like Blue Eyes and Together Again. During his prime, Eddie Pergrina was also doing TV (like the popular The Eddie-Nora Show) and acted in movies with leading ladies (like Vilma Santos, Espie Fabon, Nora Aunor). Eddie died from a car accident at the age of 32 in 1977. He was survived by his wife, Lyn, and two daughters, Edlyn and Michelle. He left a legacy of evergreen songs like Alaala ay ikaw and Nabubuhay ako dahil sa’yo…” – Questing Bandstand (READ MORE)
“…Peregrina’s popularity was high, particularly among masses. Jukebox, the coin-operated machine which plays selected music, was said to have attained much popularity as well because of continuous requests of Peregrina’s songs. His fame surge even more among the Filipino masses when he became movie star, cast with the leading ladies of the 1970s, including Esperanza Fabon and Nora Aunor, with whom he had a TV show entitled The Eddie-Nora Show on Channel 9 in the 1960s. Among his movies included Mardy, Memories of Our Dreams with Esperanza Fabon. He co-starred with his wife Lyn Salazarin in Batul of Mactan in 1974. He was also the leading man in Dito sa Aking Puso (1970) with Nora Aunor and with Vilma Santos in Mardy. Most of his films were produced by JBC Productions, which invariably paired him with Vilma Santos, Edgar Mortiz, Esperanza Fabon, and directed by Bebong Osorio. When not busy attending show business commitments, he managed his own business, including Edviper Records and the Pervil Photo Studio…” – Wikepedia (READ MORE)
“…During the early 60’s, a singer’s popularity was practically determined by the jukebox, a coin-operated machine that can play specially selected songs from self-contained media. It was a period when fans dropped 20 centavos in a jukebox to listen to Timi Yuro’s “Crazy” or Matt Monro’s “Walk Away” and “Before You Go.” Of course, Eddie’s songs like “Together Again,” “Two Lovely Flowers,” “Mardy” and “I Do Love You” were such national anthems and outdid their foreign counterparts not only in the jukebox market but also on the airwaves, in restaurants and well…the local cabarets…” – Gypsy Baldovino (READ MORE)
“…By late 1969, movie producers had been tapping a Vilma Santos-Edgar Mortiz love team. Edgar was a Tawag ng Tanghalan winner. They started to be together in the movies, My Darling Eddie (1969) and The Jukebox King (1969)…In 1970, the love team of Vilma Santos and Edgar “Bobot” Mortiz was officially launched in the movie Young Love, together with the another popular love team during that time, Nora Aunor and Tirso Cruz III. The Vi and Bot love team went on to do 14 more movies in 1970—The Young Idols, Songs and Lovers, Sweethearts, Sixteen, Love Letters, Love is for the Two of Us, Mga Batang Bangketa, My Pledge of Love, Renee Rose, Baby Vi, Because You Are Mine, Edgar Loves Vilma, From the Bottom of My Heart, and I Love You Honey. All did well at the box-office…” – Rommel R. Llanes (READ MORE)
Basic Information: Direction Lauro Pacheco; Cast: Lolita Rodriguez, Marlene Dauden and Eddie Rodriguez/ Also Starring Sammy Barretto, Carina Mujer, Mary Walter, Dely Villanueva, Jose villafranca and Lito garcia/ Featuring Ben Perez, Aruray and Vilma Santos; Screenplay Jose F. Sibal; Music Levi Celerio; Larry Santiago Productions; Release Date January 9, 1966 at Center Theatre; Film poster: Video48
Plot Description: No Available Data
Film Achievement: No Available Data
Film Review: “…Ipinanganak nga marahil si Ma. Rosa Vilma Tuazon Santos sa show business dahil sa pagitan ng taping ng “Larawan..” ay nagkasunod-sunod na ang kanyang mga pelikula…“De Colores” ng Arco-Iris (Marso 30 – April 10, 1968)…hanggang “Young Love” ng VP Enero 1 – 21, 1970) ng lumikha ng rekord sa takilya….Makalipas ang mga tatlong buwan, nakatanggap ng maikling sulat si Mama Santos muka lay G. Agra. Naghahanap ang Sampaguita Picutures ng batang babae na gaganap ng mahalagang papel sa “Anak, Ang Iyong Ina!” at isinali ng amain ang pangalan ni Vi. Hindi puwedeng lumiban si Papa Santos sa pinpasukang government office, at ayaw naman nilang mapahiya ang kamag-anak, kaya napilitan si Mama Santos na humingi ng day=off sa opisina (Aguinaldo’s). Pagdating sa studio, wala si G. Agra at nasa location shooting, ngunit totoong naroroon ang pangalan ni Vi, kaya’t pinapasok sila sa tanggapan. Napadaan sa harapan ni Mama Santos si Bella Flores na dala ang script ng “Trudis Liit.” Nagulumihanan si Mama Santos. Binasa niyang muli ang liham ni G. Agra. Mali yata ang napuntahan nila! Akma niyang tatawagin si Vi na noon ay nkikipaglaro sa iba pang mga bata upang yayain na itong umuwi, nang pumasok sina Mommy Vera, Dr. at Mrs. Perez, at Eddie Garcia. At doon nagsimula ang movie career ni Vi na magpahanggang ngayon ay batbat pa rin ng iba’t ibang panunuri, opinyon at konklusiyon…” – Ched P. Gonzales (READ MORE)
“…In 1963, two great Sampaguita talents, Lolita Rodriguez and Marlene Dauden and drama king Eddie Rodriguez starred in Sapagka’t Kami’y Tao Lamang, the movie that turned out to be a sensational and phenomenal hit. The movie garnered the year’s top FAMAS awards— Best Actor for Eddie Rodriguez; Best Supporting Actress for Marlene Dauden; Best Director for Armando De Guzman. It started the series of the so-called love triangle movies featuring the three dramatic icons in Philippine movies. Ms. Dauden was memorable in such dramas as Anino ni Bathala (1958) and Kamandag (1959). In both films, Marlene won the FAMAS best supporting actress trophies. She was also awarded the FAMAS Best Actress awards twice: Sa Bawa’t Pintig ng Puso (1964) and Kapag Puso’y Sinugatan (1967)…” – Simon Santos (READ MORE)
Basic Information: Direction, Screenplay and Original Story: Ishmael Bernal; Cast: Romeo Vasquez, Vilma Santos, Mat Ranillo III, Ana Gonzales, Anita Linda, Fred Montilla, Mary Walter, Laila Dee, Roldan Rodrigo, Ann Villegas, Ernie Zarate, Catherine Santos, Val Mallari, Oscar Miranda, Ursula Carlos, Rene Magno, SOS Daredevils, Danie Ramirez, Danny Franco and Rheez Chua’s Models; Art Director: Bobby Bautista; Assistant Art Directors: Emiliano Gonzales, Virgilio Sanchez, and Bert Isleta; Electricians and Gripmen: Corpuz, Romeo Dueñas, Narsiso David, Mariano Guzman, Irinio Flores; Unit Driver: Jose Maigapo; Color Processed: LVN Laboratory; Director of Cinematography: Nonong Rasca; Assistant Cameraman: Felizardo Anastacio; Sound: Luis Reyes; Field Soundman: Jose Fortuno; Boomman: Alberto Dueñas; SFX Technician: Jun Martinez; Film Editor: Nonoy Santillian; Senior Editor: Ruben Pantua; Assistant Editors: Rico Salas, Ariel Quicho, Jun Calaguan; Music: The Vanishing Tribe; Theme Songs: “Puso’y Alinlangan” performed by Vilma Santos, “Torn Between Two Lovers” performed by Gracie Rivera, Dyna Records; Guest Choroeographer: Peter Estocado; Make-up Artists: Dading Ravela and Virgie F. Capulong; Legman: Rodolfo Basco; Publicities: Teresa Santos Blas, Beth Castillo; Stills: Ben Nollora and Lito Morales; Layout Artist: Hannibal Cambel; Title Designer: Marvin B. Panganiban; Production Manager and Assistant Director: Dante Javier; Production Staff: Nelson Sia, Ruben Fernandez, Gloria B. Agustin; Administrative and Sales: Jon Santos Blas, Estrella T. Mendoza, Lea Santos, Fidelio Santos, Julie S. Enriquez; Executive Production: T. Buhain Santos; Executive Producer: Emilia Santos Blas; Produced by Lea Production; 15th Years Anniversary Production; Film Poster Archived: Video48
Plot Description: Dalawang Pugad, Isang Ibon is a 1977 drama film directed by Ishmael Bernal. The film analyzes adultery in a mature way and presents reasons why many modern marriages in bourgeois families slowly dissipate into alienation and lead to adultery. The movie’s main plot involves a fashion model (Vilma Santos) who is torn between two men: her young boyfriend, who is a self-centered, airheaded fashion model (Mat Ranillo III), and an older married man (Romeo Vasquez), who is estranged from his domineering wife (Anna Gonzales). – Wikipilipinas
Film Achievement: 1977 Gawad Urian: Best Director – Ishmael Bernal; Best Editing Nomination – Nonoy Santillan; Best Picture Nomination; Best Production Design Nomination – Bobby Bautista; Best Screenplay Nomination – Ishmael Bernal; Best Sound Nomination – Luis Reyes; Best Supporting Actor Nomination – Mat Ranillo III
Film Review: “…Bernal, testing the tensions of triangular love (for geometry books, one of his characters wittily says) for some time now, plunges deeper into character analysis and metaphorizing… In Lumayo, Lumapit ang Umaga, the triangle was unevenly explored: the first love was sketchily drawn. Dalawang Pugad, Isang become a choice for a more stable relationship. Walang Katapusang Tag-araw was a strange reverse of characters for two women and an unusual development of love into hatred and hatred into love, where therefore the triangle was essentially illusions. Ikaw ay Akin finally sets an interlocked triangle on its bases and looks at it (from all 3 angles) squarely in the face…” – Petronila CletoPelikula, Atbp (READ MORE)
“…Her metamorphosis began in late 1976 when she agreed to be kissed by Rudy Fernandez in Makahiya at Talahib. It was a “feeler” of sort and when the public clacked its tongue in obvious approval, Vilma shelved her lollipops-and-roses image and proved that she, too, could be a woman – a wise move indeed because at that time her career was on a downswing and her movies were not making money. Then she did Mga Rosas sa Putikan for her own VS Films where she played a country girl forced into prostitution in the big city. The movie did fairly well at the tills. Good sign. And came her romance with Romeo Vasquez, boosting both their stocks at the box office (thier two starrers, Nag-aapoy na Damdamin and Pulot-Gata where Vilma did her own wet style, were big moneymakers). The tandem, although it did help Vilma, actually helped Vasquez more in re-establishing himself at the box office (without Vilma, his movies with other leading ladies hardly create any ripple). In Susan Kelly, Edad 20, Vilma played a notorious-woman role that required her to wear skimpy bikini briefs in some scenes, following it up with two giant sizzlers (Dalawang Pugad, Isang Ibon and Masarap, Masakit ang Umibig) that catapulted her as the newest Bold Queen. Then came Burlesk Queen…” – Ricardo F. Lo, Expressweek Magazine January 19, 1978 (READ MORE)
“Sometime in the mid 70s, matinee idol Romeo Vasquez returned to the movie scene after a long absence, his movie career in limbo after his failed marriage with popular actress Amalia Fuentes. His teamup with Vilma Santos somehow rekindled and revived his career. Their first movie together, Nag-aapoy na Damdamin in 1976 turned out to be a big hit. Despite their age gap, reel and real life sweetheart, Romeo, 34 and Vilma, 23, soon became the hottest love team, doing one hit movies after another…” – Video 48 (READ MORE)
“…Romeo Vasquez is an oddity in Vilma’s life. Hindi akalain ng lahat na ang isang notorious playboy and balikbayan actor would capture the heart of the then elusive Ate Vi. Nagkaroon sila ng affair which lasted for more than a year. Kilala si Bobby sa pagiging bohemyo kaya naman walang kakilala si Ate Vi na bumoto sa aktor. Ate Vi was love struck at talagang na head-over heels in love. Nagsimula ang kanilang affair sa set ng kanilang pelikulang “Nag-aapoy na Damdamin”. True to this title, nagliyab silang dalawa at tunay ngang nag-apoy ang kanilang damdamin. May plano pa nga sila ni Bobby na magpakasal sa Europe. Talagang Ate Vi was ready to give up her life as an actress and would settle with the actor abroad. And with herb relationship with Bobby, nag-surface ang bagong Vilma Santos.Ate Vi realized that she cann’t sacrifice everything for love. Nagising siya sa katotohanan at nagkamali kung kaya nagdesisyon siyang kumalas sa bohemyong aktor…” – Willie Fernandez (READ MORE)
“…But it was with handsome actor Romeo Vasquez that Vilma Santos had her most controversial relationship. Romeo was the former husband of Philippine movie queen Amalia Fuentes. He and Vilma first paired in the movie Nag-aapoy na Damdamin (1976). It was also during this year that they became a couple. They made several movies together, all of which did well at the box-office. Vi and Bobby (Romeo’s nickname) became the most-talked about reel and real love team at the time. The relationship was always on the pages of showbiz magazines and tabloid entertainment section pages because of the intrigues and the personalities who got involved with them…” – Rommel R. Llanes (READ MORE)
The first nine months fo 1977 saw the release of bad local movies that are unbelievable for their sheer contempt of the moviegoer and even more unbelievable for their increasing popularity. The few decent ones include Robert Arevalo’s Hubad na Bayani, Eddie Romero’s Sinong Kapiling, Sinong Kasiping, Manuel Cinco’s Hostage…Hanapin si Batuigas, Briccio Santos’ Manikang Papel and Luis Enriquez Malayo Man Malapit Din. These are films that respect their audiences and treat them not just paying patrons but also as thinking individuals. For the past two weeks, however, a film that say something and says it right have been packing moviehouses in competition with the James Bond movie, other “adults” local picture and the Dolphy-Nida comedy. This is a cheerful occassion for the local movie industry because rarely does a director hit two birds with one stone; that is Dalawang Pugad…Isang Ibon, a love-triangle drama that was a pre-sold on account of the publicity generated by the oprivate lives of its two principal stars. Its director and scriptwriter, Ishmael Bernal, however, deserves the greater part of the credit for the picture’s commercial and artistic success. For Beranal has done what was dismissed before as an impossibility – a good Vilma Santos-Romeo Vasquez movie. Dalawang Pugad is not just a good movie, it is a superior movie and the year’s best so far (and take this from one who earlieer wanted to avoid the movie like the plague). It has uniformly good performance by the cast, which includes Mat Ranillo III, Anita Linda, Fred Motnilla, Anna Gonzales, Laila Dee, Mary Walter, Ann Villegas, and the two lead, Vasquez and especially Vilma Santos who has done a surprisingly intelligent and affecting character portrayal.
Not since Romero’s Sinong Kapiling have we seen screen characters who think and behave and react to situations and problems like mature, sensitive and intelligent people. The characters do give way to occassional hysterical outbursts, but they somehow wake up to their senses before they forget themselves completely. And they are people in believable situations with real problems and genuine emotions. When they talk, they are seldom silly, and when they are silly, they are aware of it. But even when they’re silly or trite, they are never unsympathetic. Their conversations, in fact, are the most sophisticated heard in a local movie in a long time – shrewd, wry, loving, crisp and smart. You have to hand it to Bernal for making even a casual advertisement for motorcycle brand sound so much like an indispensable part of the dialogue. The story is simple enough, but the details can be so complicated. Twenty three year old Terry (Vilma) abandons her immature boyfriend and runs away with a married man against the vehement protestations of her parents. This is a common plot reworked to death in other movies. In another writer-director’s hans, the story would walk the tightrope between stale romantic melodrama and sensationalized New Morality expose, but Bernal invests it with such subtlety, sympathy, affection and full understanding, though inevitably with some slight cynicism, too, that he actually elevates the story into a search by intelligent people for meaning in human and personal relationships. – Mario A. Hernando, The Philippines Daily Express, Oct 21 1977 (READ MORE)
“…The 1977 Urian Awards further established the reputation of the Manunuris as discoverers of new or ignored talents. Word spread around that “you don’t have to spend a cent for PR to win in the Urian” after Daria Ramirez (Sino’ng Kapiling, Sino’ng Kasiping) bested formidable co-nominee Vilma Santos (Burlesk Queen) for the best actress plum. The choice of Ramirez was not a popular one either, for her portrayal of a middle-class wife was devoid of the “pang-FAMAS” hysterics usually equated with good acting in Philippine movies. The most significant event of 1977, however, was the debate on which criterion should take precedence in choosing the best film: cinematic style or filmic content? It had been decided before that if two films were equally well-made, the film with the more significant content would be chosen. But the application of the criterion became very difficult with the two films being deliberated on: Robert Arevalo’s Hubad na Bayani and Ishmael Bernal’s Dalawang Pugad, Isang Ibon. Hubad is a truthful portrayal of the peasant uprisings of the 30’s, but it was marred by technical flaws. Dalawang Pugad, centering on the problem of infidelity, was narrower in scope but was just as truthful in its portrayal. Hubad had its good moments but was uneven as a whole, while Dalawang Pugad had a tighter orchestration of cinematic elements. Which film should be given more weight? To an observer, the answer would have been obvious, but, taken in context, at the time when so many tired formula films on “the other woman” were being made, the achievement of Bernal’s film could not be underestimated. The upshot was that Hubad won as best picture and Bernal was awarded best director for Dalawang Pugad…” – The Urian Anthology 1970-79, Video 48, 24 May 2011 (READ MORE)
Basic Information: Directed: Maria Saret; Story, screenplay: Ruben Arthur Nicdao; Cast: Vilma Santos, George Estregan, Ernie Garcia, Rez Cortez, Beth Bautista, Cloyd Robinson, Dick Israel, Laila Dee, Brenda Del Rio, Angie Ferro, Mary Walter, Odette Khan, Jarro Joaquin, Anita Linda; Original Music: Totoy Nuke; Cinematography: Vic Anao; Film Editing: Edgardo Vinarao
Plot Description: No Available Data
Film Revies: No Available Data
Film Achievement: “…Estregan won critical acclaim for many of his performances. In 1972, he was named FAMAS Best Actor for Sukdulan, and would win two other FAMAS Awards for Best Supporting actor for Kid Kaliwete (1978) and Lumakad Kang Hubad sa Mundong Ibabaw (1980). He was nominated for the FAMAS Award three other times, as Best Actor for Lumapit, Lumayo ang Umaga (1975) and Lalake Ako (1982), and for Best Supporting Actor in Magkayakap sa Magdamag (1986). He also received a nomination from the Gawad Urian as Best Actor for Hostage: Hanapin si Batuigas (1977)…” – Wikipedia (READ MORE)
Basic Information: Directed: Marilou Diaz-Abaya; Story: William C. Leary; Screenplay: Ricardo Lee; Cast: Vilma Santos, Rez Cortez, Rolando Tinio, Zeny Zabala, Cecille Castillo, Chanda Romero, Len Santos, Raquel Villavicencio, Johnny Delgado, Phillip Salvador, Caridad Sanchez, Maria Isabel Lopez, Dindo Fernando, Dexter Doria, Mary Walter, Vangie Labalan, Harlene Bautista; Executive producer: Vic del Rosario Jr.; Original Music: Willy Cruz; Cinematography: Manolo Abaya; Film Editing: Ike Jarlego Jr.; Production Design: Fiel Zabat; Art Direction: Charlie Arceo, Melchor Defensor, Jay Lozada; Sound: Vic Macamay
Plot Description: A woman hardened by the underworld, Elena Duavit falls in love with Roy, a notorious gang leader. Elena is raped by members of a rival gang who are killed in a gun battle with the police. Implicated, she goes into hiding with her boyfriend but is captured, resulting to a death sentence for Baby Tsina. This tested team-up of award-winning performers Vilma Santos and Philip Salvador gives credence to this true story that hit the headlines in the 60’s. From the educated direction of Marilou Diaz-Abaya and the cinematography by Manolo Abaya, the story is by perennial contest awardee Ricky Lee. – Pinoy Torrentz (READ MORE)
Film Achievement: 1984 FAP: Best Musical Score – Willy Cruz; Best Production Design – Fiel Zabat; 1984 FAMAS: Best Actor Nomination – Phillip Salvador; Best Supporting Actor Nomination – Dindo Fernando; Best Supporting Actress Nomination – Caridad Sanchez; 1984 Gawad Urian: Best Actor Nomination – Phillip Salvador; Best Cinematography Nomination – Manolo Abaya; Best Director Nomination – Marilou Diaz-Abaya; Best Editing Nomination – Ike Jarlego Jr.; Best Music Nomination – Willy Cruz; Best Production Design Nomination – Fiel Zabat; Best Sound Nomination – Vic Macamay; Best Supporting Actor Nomination – Dindo Fernando; Best Supporting Actor Nomination – Len Santos
Film Reviews: “…Ang istoryang ito ay matagal nang ikinukuwento sa akin ni William. Wala pa akong asawa, pangarap na ni William na magawa ang pelikula. He had the story at hand. Siya talaga ang nag-negotiate para makuha ang istorya. Noong una nga raw, ayaw pumayag ni Baby Tsina at ng kanyang asawa dahil gusto na nilang kalimutan yun. Eh, si William alam ko yan kung magpilit, tsaka personal kasi niyang kilala si Baby Tsina, nakuha rin ang istorya,” salaysay ni Vilma…”Noong una kong mabasa ang script, ayoko sanang maniwala na nangyari talaga yun. Masyadong cinematic, eh. Para bang sa pelikula at sa komiks lang nangyayari. Until the day nga that I met the real Baby Tsina. Nang siya na ang makuwento sa akin ng naging buhay niya, lalo na after the crime at sa loob Correctional, saka ko lang nalaman na ang nakalagay sa script ay kulang pa pala. Mas matindi ang istorya niya, pero hindi na maaring isamang lahat sa pelikula. Baka namang masyadong humaba eh. Malakas ang istorya. I think the story alone will sell the movie. Lalo na kung iisiping isa itong celebrated case at nasundan ng mga tao noon sa mga diyaryo. Front page stories pa raw lagi iyang si Baby Tsina noon eh…” – Ariel Francisco (READ MORE)
“…You know, I did a movie before, Baby Tsina, but I wasn’t really Chinese there. In Mano Po 3, I play Lilia Chong-Yang, a socially conscious anti-crime crusader and I get to know more about Chinese culture. We were even taught how to speak Fookien Chinese by a private tutor. Sa dubbing, the coach was there to make sure we’re perfect with our pronunciation of all our Chinese lines…” – Mario E. Bautista (READ MORE)
“…Marilou Diaz-Abaya will forever live with her magnum opuses like Brutal, Moral, Karnal, Muro Ami, Baby Tsina, Sa Pusod ng Dagat, Bagong Buwan and the multi-awarded period masterpiece Jose Rizal released in the ’90s and still gets screened to this day in schools and historical festivals even abroad…” – Ricardo F. Lo (READ MORE)
“…What Marc found out only recently was that none of the original copies of the films Marilou directed in the 1980s had been preserved. “While movies like ‘Moral’ (1982) and ‘Baby Tsina’ (1984) were all on VCDs, their original reels are nowhere to be found. It’s frustrating. Archiving is really bad here in the Philippines,” he said. Marilou’s debut film, “Tanikala,” was released in 1980…” – Marinel R. Cruz, Philippine Daily Inquirer, August 30, 2012 (READ MORE)
Like A Mother – “…Batangas Governor Vilma Santos, who was directed by Diaz-Abaya in one of her landmark films, said, “Direk Marilou was like a mother to me, especially on the set of ‘Baby Tsina.’ I remember that she would always bring for the cast members pandesal and Spanish sardines, which we ate before shooting. “I love her and her husband, Direk Manolo, who I always requested to be my cinematographer in all of my Eskinol commercials before. “The last time I saw Direk Marilou was at the wake of actor Johnny Delgado. She was already sick then. She was a fighter. She told me, “kaya ko ‘to! I pray for her family and for the eternal repose of her soul…” – Philippine Daily Inquirer, Oct 09 2012 (READ MORE)
“…All the performances in Baby Tsina leave vivid portraits in the mind. Under Abaya’s direction, the actors and actresses do not seem to act, rather we seem to discover them as human beings whom the camera has espied. Vilma Santos projects a lusty but touching portrait of Baby, a victim who greedily looks forward to deliverance from the night-to-night struggle for customers, thrashing about wildly when her savior is killed initiating her into an even more debasing condition. Phillip Salvador weaves in and out of the story capturing the sinister charm of the grubby but good-looking creatures of Manila’s underbelly. Dindo Fernando’s Jorge engages our attention in a portrayal that is by turns comic, caustic and warm indicating an actor governed by intelligence and respect for the dignity of the character he is playing. As Baby’s mother Nena, Caridad Sanchez radiates a tenseness that effectively projects her determination to keep her dignity against all odds. With Abaya as the controlling intelligence behind husband Manolo Abaya’s camera, Fiel Zabat’s sharp eye for the authentic look and detail of the period, the shanties and apartments, the restaurants and the dives, the streets and the alleyways and the teeming crowds that come and go, these are familiar images in Philippine art and life that in Baby Tsina appear more real and feel more real…” – Jojo Devera, Sari-Saring Sineng Pinoy (READ MORE)
“…While there is a palpable sense of femininity in these movies, Abaya abstains from sanctimonious pageantry and puts things in perspective. She raises concerns of women and the violence committed to them, but she also recognizes their shortcomings and susceptibility to moral hypnosis, their fates determined by their resolve or lack thereof. The world is unfair to women, but so is to men.Karnal, for instance, has a strong and suffocating depiction of patriarchy, the overbearing father played by Vic Silayan controlling not just the women of the house but also the men. It’s a horrifying picture of a family maddened by circumstances, and the woman whose importance in the story is emphasized leaves a disturbing impression of subsistence, coming out alive in the end but bereft of spirit. By contrast, Moral is a lighter but sharper piece, one whose observations on the struggles of present-day women, lost in the mazes they create for themselves, are relevant up to now. WhereasBrutal and Alyas Baby Tsina dwell on the criminal and psychological, overplaying hopelessness and suffering, Moral rims its characters by emphasizing their faulty nature, placing them in more realistic situations but with less defined solutions to their problems…” – Richard Bolisay, Lilok Pelikula, Oct 23 2012 (READ MORE)
Grueling Finale – “…Apolinario’s second feature can be regarded as an affirmation of heritage, that of Philippine cinema. Beholding the film’s exposition of life in the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center, one is reminded that this film operates in Daboy (Rudy Fernandez) territory — wherein the outsider holds his individuality and his dignity amid the dehumanizing confines of prison, and its extension that is Philippine society. Yet for all its filth and insidious atmosphere of violence, there is nothing in this picture that is as harrowing as the prison life one sees in Mario O’Hara’s “Bulaklak sa City Jail,” or in the grueling finale of Marilou Diaz Abaya’s “Alyas Baby Tsina.” The solitary confinement endured, in one interlude, by Dingdong Dantes, Patrick Bergin and Joey Paras could have echoed the grimy horror of such detention as portrayed in “Baby Tsina,” to which its heroine (Vilma Santos) responds with a quiet, defiant fortitude — yet another striking facet of her long career with its comprehensive portrayal of the modern Filipina. Dingdong Dantes and Patrick Bergin, the renowned Irish actor, convey that Vilmanian, shall we say, serenity, amid their harsh confines — which, however, doesn’t look too harsh in this film, when one beholds that beautiful frame of a cockroach in its slow crawl on the dim prison floor…” – Ricky S. Torre, Rappler, 13 June 2013 (READ MORE)
Porcelain Skin – “…This is based on the story of Evelyn Duave, a woman who got sucked into a life of crime and eventually got jailed for murder. The Star For All Seasons plays the woman who was dubbed, “Baby Tsina” (or “Baby China” in court documents), simply because she looked Chinese. Other than that, there are no other Chinese references in the movie. Although, we have to say that Santos can easily pass for Chinese with her petite frame, porcelain skin, and delicate features. However, the movie is anything but delicate—what with the violent content…” – Spot, 23 Jan 2012 (READ MORE)
Production Values – “…Abaya and Lee’s next project, Alyas Baby Tsina/Alias Baby China (1984) was also based on a true legal story, that of Evelyn Duave Ortega, aka Baby Tsina. (She was called this alias in court documents because she looked Chinese. Otherwise there are no references to anything Chinese in her story or the film.) Duave was found guilty in 1971 of murder, and several appeals while on death row culminated in a Supreme Court decision seven years later that declared her innocent and released her from prison. A producer for major production company Viva had purchased the story rights and long wanted to turn the Duave story into an award-winning vehicle for superstar Vilma Santos. Abaya signed on and brought in Lee to adapt the story for film. As it turned out, as happens so often, the film strayed so far from the actual story, the producers might as well have spared themselves from paying story rights in the first place. The documents record that an Alfredo Bocaling was killed one night in a dark street by stabbing and hitting with blunt instruments. Accused of the killing were Baby China, a call girl, and her three male friends. She had allegedly told the men that Bocaling and his friend raped and robbed her and she wanted revenge. Their guilt by murder, adjudged by the Courts of First Instance and Appeal because of the consistency and corroborative nature of the three men’s confessions, were overturned by the Supreme Court due mainly to the inadmissibility of their extra-judicial confessions. The Supreme Court commuted their verdict from murder to homicide and their sentence from death penalty to reclusion perpetua. Baby herself, who did not confess, was found innocent after the extra-judicial confessions of the three men were rejected. One of course should never expect fidelity to an original story source, only a sense of integrity and believability in the adaptation. Did this adaptation succeed?In the struggle to fashion a crowd-pleasing story with an overarching social theme and an award-worthy role for its lead star, the film invented a number of characters and devices not in the actual story.
Baby’s lover Roy (Philip Salvador), with whom she plans to start a new life in America is fictional, and so is Roy’s death by shooting in a chase by rival gang members. In the real story all the principals were apprehended by the police while they were still in hiding. The Bocaling character has morphed into the film’s Toto (Johnny Delgado), a leader of an extortion syndicate that visits a sweeping wave of mass killings and rapes on Baby Tsina and her prostitute friends. The homicide scene of the real Bocaling is pumped up here into a chase and mass confrontation between gun-wielding gangs and the police. Neither did the real Baby (and Roy) seek refuge at the home of a lawyer friend, Jorge (played as an abugadong pulpol/cheap lawyer with sly wit by Dindo Fernando) where they debate the difference between what is law and what is right. When the fictional Baby is eventually committed to prison, she takes on a noble new role as resolute and impassioned advocate of more humane prison treatment for women, at one point making a speech before the whole prison population that spells out her message: “We are not robots that can be switched on and off! … We should be treated like human beings!” The film was a serious attempt to produce a work with significant social import that would be commercially entertaining all at the same time. But shoehorning the original into overused plotlines involving gang rivalries and populist heroine versus the system, add to this the blatant underlining of the “social message,” and credibility is lost, provoking instead a wearying wariness throughout the film. What succeeds in Baby Tsina is the care in production values that became such a prominent hallmark of Abaya’s works. It instilled trust in her, in that whether one liked her latest film or not, the keen attention to production design, lighting and photography at least showed that here was someone who took her craft and her audience seriously. With Baby Tsina, it is this gleaming surface, arising specially from Zabat’s production design and Manolo’s mood-infused lighting, that hints at authenticity and conviction that the narrative glaringly lacks…” – Asian Cine Vision (READ MORE)
Re-shoot of Alyas Baby Tsina – “…Ang payat mo” ang bungad naming bati sa kanya. “Kailangan kasi,” was her reply. “Medyo tumaba na nga ako ngayon. nahinto kasi ang shooting namin ng ilang days. You should’ve seen me a week ako. mas payat ako noon.” But it become her. Mas mukha siyang teenager. She sure that by now, alam na niyang kailangang lang magpapayat ni Vilma Santos para sa kanyang pelikulang ginagawa ngayon, ang Alyas Baby Tsina. Since she is in between pictures, kakaunti ang makikitang artikulo ngayon sa kanya. That’s why we have to write this progress report on her latest films. We asked her kung malapit nang matapos ang Baby Tsina. “Malayo pa eh,”she replied. “Ang dami kasi naming re-shoot. Sabi ni Marilou (Abaya, her director), May nasira raw ang ilang negatibo kaya’t kailangang ulitin. At last week of September, tapos na siguro. Did she like the movie? “Naku, malaking pelikula.”sambit niya. “Three acts kasi ‘yon. Inuna naming i-shoot ‘yung third act nang nakakulong na si Baby sa Correctional. Tapos we went back to perion noong prostiture pa lang siya. Ang hirap maging prostitute! Ngayon, we’re on the second act, love triangle kami nina Dindo Fernando at Philip Salvador…” – Mario E. Bautista, Movie Flash, 1984
“…Isa pang kasaysayan hango sa tunay na buhay, ang pelikulang ito ni Marilou Abaya. Bawat tagpo ay pinalabukan ng mabusising sinematograpiya at detalyadong disenyong pampelikula…” – Star Awards 1984
Star For All Seasons 
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