Isa Pa, With Feelings2019

This and Third World Romance are my favorite romantic drama movies of Jose Liwanag (aka Carlo Aquino). His other movies felt downright miserable, redundant or recycled, for the lack of a better word. There is something about *Isa Pa With Feelings *that clicks effortlessly, especially the chemistry between the two leads, it feels natural and organic, they bring the kind of dynamic that feels straight out of a ’90s romantic comedy. Maine Mendoza is a natural. It's sad that she's no longer pursuing any film roles. Maybe she's choosy or disinterested to pick up any scripts, or perhaps not getting any more offers, although I would like to think it's the former rather than the latter. If there is a shared similarity between this movie and Third World Romance, that would be the characters played by Carlo Aquino. Both Gali and Alvin were written charmingly—they are the least type of guy anyone would fall for because they are often overlook for being overly friendly and nice—too good to be true, it's easy to think their intentions aren't pure. Mara and Gali's meet-cute doesn’t feel forced, and the spark between them is both realistic and captivating, making their on-screen chemistry feel authentic and relatable. I just wish Mara's conflict was explored further after she failed the board exam, whether she is really interested to pursue architecture or it's just something she wants to achieve in order to fulfill her father's unrealized ambitions. However, this part of the story was abandoned entirely during the second half. Either way, this movie is still a gem and a surprisingly good one at that. So play it, play it once more, but with feelings.