Sid & Aya: NOT A LOVE STORY (2018)

Soundtrack

The movie is highly recommended by two of my friends with impeccable taste and some others 

Maybe NOT A TYPICAL LOVE STORY is a better tag line, but it's too long, I guess, because this is indeed a love story.  NOT A LOVE STORY made it more intriguing and I bet a lot of people watched this because of that very reason.

Others were debating(softly, but within earshot) a while ago inside the theatre. One said that Sid said that before seeing Aya again and the other was disagreeing.  

You might ask, "Did they part?"

Seeing another person again has many meanings.  It could mean the same day or whatever, so I won't answer your question.  You have to see the movie yourself or search the net for people who love giving the story away.  

What I can say is that I am adding Irene Emma Villamor to my favourite Writers and Directors list because she knows how to intrigue people and she knows how to tell a very good story and make it great because she could share to the audience her vision of how the movie is supposed to be seen, heard and felt.

The actors are perfect for their roles. Anne Curtis looks innocent, but she could be so sexy. She is also intelligent and wise, and I heard from the grapevine that she's a very kind person too.  The "juice" incident at a famous club was just blown out of proportion.  I think her experiences,  her imagination, and who she really is, enable her to play any role.  She is truly limitless.

Here, as Aya, she is playful, but since she has a lot of emotional baggage, she tries to be strong because she is so selfless.

Dingdong Dantes as Sid is very believable.  

His abilities made him a very rich person and sad to say, he did step on many people's toes before he reached the top.

Dingdong was able to let us see inside Sid's soul.  His inner filth...his conflicted being. All the descriptions of an insomniac are embodied by Sid.  The broken Sid trying to pickup the pieces to make himself whole again. 

While watching the movie we didn't see Dingdong.  We believed in our hearts he was really Sid.  

He, Sid I mean, is an a-hole, but thankfully he encountered a black swan along the way.

There's no roll call here because all actors did their best, but I guess I should mention that it was refreshing to see Jobelle Salvador as Aya's mom here.


I hope more people would get to see this. 

Even so, I suggest that people below thirteen years old shouldn't watch this.  Yes, they may understand, but I think it's not for them even if you could guide them.  The subject matter is quite heavy and...

Well, if you think they should be aware of these things, go ahead.  It's only a suggestion.

I won't make this long anymore.

Kudos to everyone involved in this film.

To the reader:  Thanks for your time!  

To those who do not understand the vernacular, there are subtitles.

Cinematography by Pao Orendain

Anne Curtis as Aya
Dingdong Dantes as Sid
Gabby Eigenmann as Darren Syquia
Cholo Barretto as Jerry
Bubbles Paraiso as Dani
Josef Elizalde as Gabe
Pio Balbuena as Justin
Gab Lagman
Joey Marquez as Ninong
Jobelle Salvador as Aya's mom
Johnny Revilla as the Syquia nemesis