My Coverage of "The Dark Knight Rises"

Director Chris Nolan on the Batman success: The phenomenon just happened By Raymond de Asis Lo, L.A. Correspondent (The Philippine Star) Updated July 16, 2012 12:00 AM Comments (0)

Christian reprises the Bruce Wayne role and Anne Hathaway is the new Catwoman
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If you are planning to catch the new Batman movie, The Dark Knight Rises, you better heed this advice: Make sure that you are sitting comfortably and that you are 100 percent ready the minute the cinema darkens and the opening title cards start to roll because the first 15 minutes of the movie is literally jaw-dropping!

The choreography and the execution of the very complicated stunt are simply extraordinary! This writer will not divulge any more details to avoid potential spoilers but believe me, this movie, the finale of visionary filmmaker Christopher Nolan’s groundbreaking trilogy, is going to be one of the most-talked about movies of the year. I was invited to the IMAX screening of the movie inside the Universal Studios last week and the jubilant applause the movie received even before the end credits could start rolling was an incredible proof at how movies as excellent as this could really move its audience.

The Warner Bros. release will open in the Philippines on July 19 and I just can’t wait for everyone to watch it. The movie lived up to its pre-release buzz — and more! But again, I’m not at a liberty to disclose what’s “more.”

The final installment of the magnificent three-part saga of the caped crusader picks up eight years after Batman was forced to take the blame for the death of beloved Gotham D.A. Harvey Dent. The hero became the villain and Bruce Wayne was forced to retire Batman into seclusion.

Oscar-winner Christian Bale returns for the very last time as Bruce Wayne/Batman. He is joined by fellow Oscar winners Michael Caine, who reprises the role of Alfred, and Morgan Freeman who returns as the gadget genius Lucius Fox. Oscar-nominated actor Gary Oldman is also back as Commissioner Gordon.

New members of the cast include Anne Hathaway, who plays the mysterious cat burglar Selina Kyle; Joseph Gordon-Levitt as John Blake, Commissioner Gordon’s new assistant; and Oscar-winner Marion Cotillard as Miranda Tate, Bruce Wayne’s on-again, off-again love interest.


This epic final chapter introduces the audience to one of Batman’s formidable villains, the masked and ruthless terrorist Bane who is portrayed to great menacing effect by Tom Hardy, who made a splash opposite Leonardo Di Caprio in Nolan’s own mind-bending masterpiece Inception two years ago.

I wish I could tell you more about the movie but I can’t. Oh, it’s hard!

But this writer met with the cast of the movie last Sunday during the junket held at the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills — and what happened during the event and what we talked about, I could freely share.

Most of the cast were present at the junket save for Hardy, who as the fearsome Bane, is perhaps, to this writer’s limited knowledge of the Batman Universe, one of the hero’s worst adversaries ever! Even more scary than the late actor Heath Ledger’s Oscar-winning turn as the Joker in the previous installment of the movie.

“I was just staggered by what Tom did,” Nolan told us during the group press conference. “The first time I saw him in make-up, he was just remarkable. You know you are seeing something you have never seen before.”
“It was very important to me that we not try and follow and do something that is a pale imitation of what Heath had done,” Nolan added. “I wanted Batman to come up with a primary physical adversary. I wanted to watch Christian as Batman stand toe-to-toe with the villain and not knowing who’s going to win that fight. It’s something I haven’t seen before and it was intentional in the film.”

And out of respect to the memory of Ledger who died tragically just days after filming his last scene in the previous Batman movie, the director took the decision, even before commencing work on this final movie, to not reference the Joker or provide any avenue for fans to unjustly compare Heath’s memorable performance of the character to Hardy’s starkly different but equally impressive turn as Bane.

“I took the decision very early on that it would be inappropriate,” Nolan said. “I felt that someone who’s a friend and a colleague, who suffered a terrible tragedy, to try to reduce that as plot point in the movie just felt wrong to me.”

Many observers claim that the massive success of the last Batman movie — it was the third highest grossing movie of all time after Avatar and Titanic for a couple of years until The Avengers took its spot just recently and was the movie that finally prompted the Oscars to tweak the number of possible Best Picture nominees after a huge outcry erupted when The Dark Knight failed to snag a nomination — were attributable to Heath’s indelible turn and how the filmmaker transformed what was primarily a genre movie into a topnotch, thought-provoking movie on the real tragedy of a superhero’s heartbreaking and lonely existence.

But for the director, the enormous success of The Dark Knight was something he didn’t particularly envision when he was doing it. And even if the buzz right now in Hollywood centers not on whether The Dark Knight Rises would be able to duplicate the success of its predecessor but by how much bigger it will be, Nolan would rather focus on delivering a movie that would satisfy everyone.

“I think it would be crazy to try and chase that kind of success. The film was a phenomenon! No one can really explain that, it just happened. It was great. But my responsibility, I feel, is to try and make a film for the studio and make their money back, that’s really the pressure.”

Among the actors, it was Hathaway who felt some pressure walking into the set. The pressure didn’t stem from the success of the previous Batman but more on the fact that among the main cast of the movie, she was the only one who has not worked with Nolan before.

The lovely actress, who was radiant in a white flowing dress on the day of the junket, shared that she felt nervous in the beginning being the newcomer on the set but that “motivated me to work even harder because I didn’t want to stand out.” Hathaway’s emphasis on “stand out” (or “mess-up” in ordinary language) drew laughter from her co-stars. “Everybody was actually very warm. I was not treated any differently.”


Another challenge to her was the tight body-hugging suit that she would have to wear during some of the more action-packed scenes in the movie. She related how she trained for those scenes featuring her in the suit while wearing some of the most fearsome pair of stilettos to appear on the big screen ever. She recalled the difficulty she had although she ultimately had fun learning how to fight describing it as “one of my happiest experiences I ever had as an actor.”

For Gordon-Levitt, who has previously worked with Nolan in Inception, described his experience on The Dark Knight Rises as the equivalent of a “dream-come-true moment.” He remembered watching The Dark Knighttwice and had no inkling that he would be involved and be part of the final chapter of the saga.
 He considered working on the final Batman movie a “delight” because “I’ve been a fan of Chris’ movies sinceMemento; because I had such a time of my life doing Inception; because I loved the first two movies so much; and also, because I had a Batman costume when I was four years old. I love the character! He’s the cool one. He just always has been.”

But for the rest of the cast who have been part of the production from the very beginning, the idea that the series was drawing to a close distracted them from the other pressures that are normally associated with the commercial side of making movies, i.e., performing better than the previous movie, etc.

“What was very important was that we are finishing our story,” Nolan said. “I have been working on Batmanfor almost 10 years and it’s been incredible. It’s definitely been a journey and I leave that with certain sadness. But I will never say goodbye to all these guys. It’s bittersweet. It’s been a very important year in my life.”

But the incredible, extraordinary, astonishing (you supply your own superlative later after watching the movie) ending never came to him just recently. “That was the first thing that we had. We had it for a long time,” Nolan revealed. “For me, the ending is the most important thing. It’s important to any film. It always comes first.

And for Batman himself, Bale, who sat nearly quiet for the entire 45-minute press conference, getting into the Batman suit for the very last time was also a little bittersweet experience.

Asked what he feels about leaving Batman behind, the notoriously detached actor just plainly declared, “When it’s time to say goodbye, it’s time to say goodbye.”

My Michelle Rodriguez and Milla Jovovich Story

Milla and Michelle By Raymond de Asis Lo (The Philippine Star) Updated September 09, 2012 12:00 AM Comments (0)

In a genre dominated by men, Milla Jovovich (top) and Michelle Rodriguez portray two tough ladies taking on monsters, zombies and men double their sizes in Resident Evil: Retribution.
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MANILA, Philippines - Hollywood actresses Milla Jovovich and Michelle Rodriguez could never be more different: Ukrainian-born actress Milla has blue-green eyes, is reserved and has a decidedly low-key image in the business whereas the feisty Michelle, with her sexy Latina brown features, is more candid — and, for a time, had an unsavory industry reputation. Michelle’s brushes with the law are almost legendary it’s a surprise how easily she seemed to have soften up and successfully rejoined mainstream Hollywood — which the star credits to the US economic downturn. “I love the recession!” she gleefully proclaims.

But before her current resurgence, Michelle would be lucky if she gets invited to read for a movie. “I was cocky back then, I had this bravado,” she tells this writer three weeks ago during a junket for Sony Pictures’ Resident Evil: Retribution, the latest and perhaps the penultimate installment in the successful sci-fi series based on the hit video game of the same name, at the Four Seasons in Beverly Hills.

“You know, you grow up poor in America, conspiracy theories are the biggest thing,” she says as she explains the very public phase of her meltdown. “You think, there’s somebody holding you down. Finally, you grow up into an adult and you realize that you are the one with the power to be whoever you want to be and you have to take yourself out of wherever you are to be who that person is.”

“But it takes a while for you not to stop blaming all the motherf---rs because sometimes you are like, ‘How come I don’t see any signs to go into the military in Beverly Hills? Why is it only in Jersey City where I come from? How come there’s not a liquor store in every corner over here? What’s going on? Then you start thinking, ‘Man, they’re after me!’”

“But then you’re like supply and demand. You start learning consumer stuff and then you’re like, ‘Oh it’s because all these people want to get drunk, that’s why. They want to smoke cigarettes and they actually enjoy shooting people, so they join the military.’”

Michelle had a spectacular debut in Hollywood when she was cast in the critically-acclaimed independent movie Girlfi ght more than a decade ago. But the acclaim did not bring her immediate stardom. She had a rough career, no thanks to her erratic temperament. Today, she considers herself all changed and grown-up.

“I learned a lot! I grew this fi lter between my brain and my mouth. I am a lot more careful before I say stuff, of course, I still say things but not as bad when I was in my 20s so I am very proud of that. When you are dumb and you’ve got nothing really smart to say, it’s like, you know (she halts and laughs)… So I am, kind of, glad that, after years of having a big mouth, I have friends who are like, ‘You know what, you should read a couple of books before you talk so much shit!’”

She acknowledges that she’s “very, very happy and satisfi ed” with her career now but she aims for more.
“If I had nothing more for, I’d just do drugs and kill myself. What’s the point of living? Just have sex and die!” She declares in typical unfi ltered fashion. What Michelle aims for does not include winning an Oscar but to have more money. “I’ve gone through stages where I’ve been so broke. It’s really sad! I’ve been doing this s--t for 13 years and the fact that I am not making money, that’s sad. It really is pathetic! And I got a fan base — I can’t go to any country anywhere in the world without being recognized and it’s sad that I don’t make any money doing this because I don’t rip my clothes off or play somebody’s girlfriend. It’s F-ked up, you know, but that’s changing now.” It may be sometime before we see Michelle in a cosmetic or lingerie campaign, and she would certainly benefi t if she consults with her co-star, Milla, who, with her classic Hollywood beauty, is one of the recognizable faces gracing the global cosmetic giant L’Oreal’s ad campaign.

Their differences aside, Michelle and Milla bring a different sort of female power to Hollywood these days. In a genre dominated by men, they portray two tough ladies taking on monsters, zombies and men double their sizes in Resident Evil: Retribution.

The stars, however, play character on opposing ends of the conflict: Milla, who plays the lead, is on the good side while Michelle is the villain who was killed off in the first movie but is surprisingly back in action in this bloody and ultra-violent sequel and her character could be more powerful this time.

The toughness that their characters required suited Michelle’s persona best. “I didn’t have to do much acting!” she says. Milla considers herself not as tough as Alice, her character in the movie, though but only “in some ways, definitely.”

“I relate to Alice the most in the sense that she keeps her promises. I am a very loyal person,” Milla says. “Alice is the kind of person that would swear an oath and she could die before she would break it and I admire that because I feel like oaths means nothing today and they should because it’s our honor that’s at stake.”

There is a reason why Milla is a little particular with people who don’t keep their words: She’s been stung by a few people who she thought were her friends only to turn their backs on her later. She now surrounds herself with a few trusted and loyal friends.

“The few friends I have make fun of me every time I am gonna do a get-together, it’s like, ‘Oh, who are you going to invite, your mom and your dad and your three friends?’”

The star admits that she’s “never been a kind of person that had too many acquaintances.” She meets people at parties, says hi and that’s it. Over the last two years, there are only two people she’s met who she imagines being friends with: Actresses Chelsea Handler and Elizabeth Banks.

“For the most part, I keep my distance. I am very private.”

But Milla insists that she’s not shy. “I am just a bit hesitant with who I allow to know me because I feel like I started so young in this industry and the friends that I made when I was a kid knew me before I had success and after being in this industry and meeting people who are like, ‘Oh yeah, call me’ and they never call or whatever it is, I, kind of, (realized) at an early age that, ‘Oh, this is fake’ and the people that I knew before are real because my movie could bomb and I could lose all my money but I could still sleep on my friend’s couch and they would still support me whether I am famous or not.”

She also shares a surprising revelation: “Movie stars don’t have many friends at all. They have acquaintances and publicists who make it look like they have friends.”

“Who wants to be friends with actors?” Milla muses.

Her fans would most certainly exclaim in unison: We do! (Resident Evil: Retribution opens Sept. 12.)

My Story from the Philippines' TV5 Big Launch in Sanfo

Dish brings GMA, TV5 together By Raymond de Asis Lo, L.A. Correspondent (The Philippine Star) Updated June 05, 2012 12:00 AM Comments (0)

Big Kapatid Manny V. Pangilinan (seated, rightmost) during the signing of the contract witnessed by, among others Kapatid stars Aga Muhlach, Nora Aunor, Willie Revillame, Ruffa Gutierrez and Derek Ramsay.
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Manila, Philippines -  No, this writer didn’t mean for Filipino heartthrob Derek Ramsay to shed a tear or for Superstar Nora Aunor to stifle a cry during yesterday’s press conference to formally launch Kapatid TV5 in Northern California at the Mandarin Oriental in San Francisco.

The boisterous press conference was highlighted by revelations and admissions that even had Ruffa Gutierrez taking to herTwitter account in the middle of the proceedings to tweet about an explosive revelation that may or may not have something to do with the acquisition of GMA 7 by the cash-rich TV5 management. Even a text message from Kris Aquino to TV5 chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan, who is known simply as MVP, asking about the GMA 7 subject figured at some point during the press conference.

Perhaps, it was the presence of the surprisingly funny MVP, whose candor and humor brought a noticeable energy and enthusiasm in the room that highlighted the easy rapport between the Bay Area-based Filipino journalists and the superstars of TV5, who didn’t hold back from answering the questions that ranged from the mundane to the socially-charged commentaries about the role of Philippine television in the lives of Filipino expatriates all over the world.

Aside from Ruffa, Derek and Nora, the Philippines’ top TV game show host Willie Revillame, whose trademark knack for instantaneous and wry humor was in full display again, also graced the star-studded press conference along with newcomer Camille Villar and the eternally boyish Aga Muhlach who shared a bombshell of his own in a separate interview.

The good-looking actor who hosts Pinoy Explorer has finally admitted that he is almost certain that he will run for congress come next elections in the home province of his father in Camarines Sur.

“The governor is a good friend of mine,” shared Aga. “Pinag-usapan namin minsan, ‘Aga, you want to run?’ Sabi ko, ‘Ano ang gagawin ko?’ ‘There’s so much you can do,’ sabi nya sa akin. ‘It’s a poor district and konti lang na magawa mo, they will really appreciate it.’ I want to do it. I really want to do it!”

Aga explained that before he makes the official announcement, “I just want to make sure na meron akong gagawin na mabuti talaga so ang dami kong ginagawa ngayon. I want to make sure first kasi sabi nga nila tatakbo tayo, pag nanalo ka, ano ang gagawin mo? So, I want to make sure na kahit ngayon pa lang may magawa na akong maganda talaga.”

The decision to run will be Aga’s personal decision to make. “Whatever I decide, the family will support me, too. I spoke to them already. We talked about it already. I talked to my wife and sinabi nga nya sa akin, ‘My love, in case you decide, ipikit mo ang mata mo, kahit ano ang paninira na marinig mo, huwag mo nang pakinggan yun. Go back to your desire and the desire of helping.’”

Aga stated that, at this state in his life, he has realized that it’s about time that he gives back to the people and the community. He does not promise that it will be a lifetime career choice for him. He will not give up acting and, if after one term, he discovers that politics is not for him, he will willingly step aside for the next set of candidates who is willing to help his home province.

Willie, Aga’s ever-loyal friend, was most vocal about his support for Aga’s political ambition. But he insisted that he would never run for a political position ever.

The press conference was highlighted by the formal signing of the partnership agreement betweenKapatid TV5 and Dish Network, a leading provider of satellite television in the US. The Dish Network created a new programming brand aimed at promoting the combined channels of GMA Pinoy TV andKapatid TV5 called Dish ko ‘to.
The contract was signed by MVP and Dish execs Jennifer Lesley and Izabela Slowikowska, the director for international programming of the American network.

TV5 execs headed by Claro Ramirez and Bobby Barreiro were present for the occasion. Viva Entertainment president Vic del Rosario, who was asked if Sarah Geronimo would move to TV5 soon but only replied with a curious, “That’s always a possibility,” was also present. Sen. Manny Villar also flew to support his daughter Camille.

The Kapatid TV5 launch in the US had a grand kick-off in Los Angeles a week earlier with more than 5,000 people attending the Wil Time Bigtime show at the Shrine Auditorium. The two-week road show will be capped by another presentation of Willie’s hit TV game show at the Bill Graham auditorium in the heart of San Francisco on June 2. The final show promises to be bigger than the L.A. edition with prizes ranging from a house and lot in the Philippines, a car and a host of other electronic gadgets.

The show will mark Willie’s triumphant return to the Bay Area after an absence of a couple of years. It will feature the signature style that made Willie the most popular TV personality among Filipino audiences worldwide. Kapatid stars Rufa Mae Quinto and Mariel Rodriguez, both of whom missed yesterday’s press conference, will be performing during the show along with Nora, Aga, Ruffa, Camille and Derek.

The Q&A ran for more than an hour and when this writer was finally called to field the final question, I immediately asked my two-part question:

The first part of the question was addressed to MVP and I asked: “Apart from the acquisition of GMA 7, how do you plan on expanding the coverage of TV5 in the Philippines?”

The second part was addressed to the TV5 stars: “What is your level of commitment to TV5. What if there’s a new network that comes up and offers you better opportunity — creativity-wise and not money-wise — how is your commitment to TV5 going to be measured?”

MVP responded to my first question by emphasizing his commitment to always support the top-caliber talents that have made TV5 their new home: “I am very grateful to them, hindi namin sila tatalikuran, hindi namin sila pababayaan.”

He added that the board has just approved another P6B investment in TV5 to help the network finish the various studios being built for all its shows.

“I think the Philippine market is really quite small eventually for the talents and for any two or three television stations that’s why it’s important for the country to export its expertise and talents abroad.”

MVP is initially eyeing an expansion in Vietnam and Indonesia.

Among the stars, Ruffa was the first to offer her commitment to TV5: “I was among the first that moved to TV5 before Willie, Aga, Derek. So that goes to show my commitment. I said two years ago that the reason I moved to TV5 is because I wanted to be part of a growing network and because our boss is MVP and I know that everything MVP touches turns to gold and diamonds!”

For Aga, he stressed that it was not his nature to just switch channels on a whim. “Wala naman sa ugali ko na palipat-lipat ako and in fairness sa aming mga artista, marami ang naglalabasan na malaki ang binabayad sa amin kaya kami lumipat. I moved out of ABS before I joined TV5. I moved out of ABS because I wasn’t happy. I have nothing against them but nakita ko sa TV5 kung paano nila sinalo si Willie. Kung ano-ano ang mga ginawa kay Willie pero sinalo ng TV5.”


“Ang hirap lang kasi, we have so much to offer pero wala yung venue and TV5 came in. We are so happy that TV5 is here because we have the freedom to choose and act on our own,” Aga added before offering his thanks to MVP and the rest of the TV5 bosses in attendance.

The unexpected thing happened when Derek turned a tad bit emotional when he was sharing how he started in the business and how MVP played a big part in his showbiz break.

“Not a lot of people know this but I actually started my career, my name with Sir Manny Pangilinan,” he said. “He gave me the chance to be a Smart endorser a long time ago when I had no name. And another thing that many don’t know is that Channel 5 is actually the only network that’s given me a contract this long. Much longer than what ABS has given me. Yes, I worked with ABS for a majority of my career — it has been five, six years but I had no contract with them until recently.”

It was when Derek started recalling how MVP invited him and his parents to dinner at MVP’s house that his voice started to break. “To those who know me, my family is the most important thing for me, so the respect that they gave me — respect is very, very important to me. Yeah, they say that malaki ang bayad and it’s all about the money. I want to kill that already because it’s actually really annoying and I get very emotional when it comes to stuff like these…” he struggled to finish before finally addressing MVP directly by saying, “Boss, dito na ako sa’yo.” The room erupted in cheers in support of Derek soon after he finished.

Nora turned emotional, too, when she had her turn at the mike. She recalled the hardship she experienced in the US and acknowledged a few people in the room who helped her when she was practically begging for help. She thanked MVP and declared her commitment to TV5 as well. The honesty and candidness from the Superstar, along with her unwavering humility, earned her a huge applause from everyone in the room.

For someone who is relatively new in the industry, Camille said that she would stay in the network as long as she is welcome to stay. “Why will you be anywhere else than in the network that’s so filled with love and respect with the people that you work with?”

Willie was the last to speak and the unofficial TV5 goodwill ambassador reiterated what the others said but added that “there is no dictatorship in this company — walang diktador, walang faction-faction.”

The TV host-comedian related the instances when MVP would personally text him to tell that he was watching the show. “It is an honor,” he said. “It is an inspiration. Yung success ni MVP, success ng mga Pilipino!”

From a two percent market share a year ago to 16 percent this year, it won’t be a surprise if TV5 would lead the charge in revolutionizing Philippine television as it gears towards digital technology — an area that TV5 has clear edge with — and bring an era of high-quality digital television for the Filipino audience.