On Tuesday, January 11, the exclusion of Deception in the 2021 Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) was considered by its director Joel Lamangan and its producer Atty. Ferdie Topacio to be a “saving grace” due to the event’s low turnout.
“Siguro. Siguro dahil hindi maganda ang turnover ng Metro Manila Film Fest. Parang it’s a blessing in disguise. Siguro. Siguro,” Lamangan believed during the film’s virtual media conference.
Last year’s MMFF had a small number of moviegoers on its opening, despite cinemas having reopened. One of its official entries, The ExorSis, had only earned P7,500 on its first day.
One of the reasons the MMFF was not much of a success was the still ongoing pandemic, which the director also noted. In addition, he said that people are still afraid of going to moviehouses because of Covid-19.
“Kung hindi ito nasama sa MMFF, siguro blessing in disguise dahil hindi naging maganda ang resulta ng mga pinalabas na pelikula sa MMFF. Parang hindi pa tayo ready ang mga sinehan at ang mga tao na pumasok sa sinehan sa panahon ngayon.”
Atty. Topacio likewise agreed. He also thinks that a wider audience should appreciate Claudine Barretto’s portrayal of her character in the film instead of being played in an almost empty theater.
“I would adapt the answer ni Direk Joel because I think this movie deserves a wider audience. This is a masterpiece. Ang ganda talaga. Ako I have already seen it three times.
“At tama ka, si Claudine ay walang kakupas-kupas. She dominates every scene, her screen presence is still there, at talagang masasayang kung kakaunti ang makakanuod nito,” he said.
Deception features the team-up of Barretto and Mark Anthony Fernandez after 27 years. It tells the story of a former actress who, after serving ten years in jail for parricide and arson, finally gets the chance to redeem herself.
Catch the movie on Vivamax, January 28.
