FAN GIRL is Black Sheep Production's entry to this year Metro Manila Film Festival. Written and directed by Antoinette Jadaone, the film stars Paulo Avelino and newbie Charlie Dizon.
The film revolves around the story of an obsessed teenage fan girl Jane (Dizon) and her idol Paulo Avelino (Avelino). Jane had an exciting close encounter with her ultimate idol and witnessed the true character of her favorite celebrity. Her whimsical fantasy towards Paulo turned out to be an overnight nightmare.
NARRATIVE: I admire the audacity of the storyline and narrative as it explored the real "human" side of a celebrity. The story was told without any pretense depicting the character of a movie star off the camera. The plot was straight forward and very lean as it just merely focused on Avelino and the fan girl Jane. The dialogues in the scenes were authentic it can get and did not sound very cinematic. It has a fast-paced narrative and very character-centric. Some critics say that FAN GIRL is a modern-day version of the Lino Brocka opus BONA. I kind of agree to that as both films have similar shades but JADAONE's story telling is less melodramatic but more fluid. Kudos to Jadaone as she made the audience think in the ending sequence.
ACTORS: Paulo Avelino was deglamorized 90% of the film. He's not a picturesque of a romantic leading man except for the first few sequences in the opening scenes. His body is not even toned on screen, his cheeks were a bit fluffy too. The movie even showed his private part although some pundits say that it was just prosthetics for cinematic purpose only. New comer CHARLIE DIZON is a revelation. I can see a Hilda Koronel or an Amy Austria in her. Viewers can see her depth and emotions in her facial expressions. Her characterization of an obsessed fan girl JANE fit her to a T. It's my first time to see her on film. My favorite scene of Dizon was when she intentionally dropped off Avelino's pick up car on the road with the kid and she blurted out ***** in anger. She showed bravura in that scene. I would not be surprised if Avelino and Dizon will win Best Actor and Best Actress awards in MMFF 2020. Both deserve to win.
TECHNICAL: I like the cinematography especially on the scenes where it matched the dark side of Avelino’s character. Production design was simplistic yet realistic. Jadaone's overall directorial approach was a bit Indie-ish but I loved it as it showed superior merit.
Overall, I liked the film. The film is brave, the actors are excellent in their portrayal, the technical aspect is above average.
My rating: 9 out of 10. Highly recommended.
ctto BlackSheep Productions.
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