🍿 Here Comes the Groom

TL;DR

The movie is shallow except for a few scenes. The most memorable and my only takeaway from the whole movie was when the bride chose her groom's soul over his body.

Does it redeem the whole movie? Not really. It was very quick, almost a throwaway scene.

I know this movie was supposed to be a comedy (it did make me chuckle a few times) but I didn't expect it to be very shallow. It had a lot of characters and ideas it could have pulled from:

• the juxtaposition of a religious family with a queer one
• the obviously gay best friend
• the homophobic father
• the overly attached fiancé
• the infighting between the gay contestants, and
• the one-dimensional saint-wannabe sister

Unfortunately, not a single one was given much depth, just a few lines, but there were -a lot- of scenes that could've been cut without making any real difference in the outcome.

I do want to focus on my favorite scene, when Yumi heard Junior call her with their term of endearment.

Neshama sheli

which translates to "my life, my soul" according to Blesilda. Aside from Miles Ocampo's excellent acting, the idea that someone can recognize you despite your physical appearance, to me, is beyond romantic. The fantasy of being recognized despite everything, of seeing the "real you" beyond what's physical, of someone knowing your soul... I had to pause the first time I watched it and, as I write this, I had to watch it again and again.

One idea of love that I'm particularly biased toward is Plato's: men and women are halves of the same entity cursed to search forever. It just makes sense to me. Not literally, I do believe that each person can be "whole" by one's self, but there will always be moments when we wish someone were there with us. Good times are meant to be shared, bad moments are easier when you're not alone.

Yumi and Junior are lucky to have found each other, to be reunited and made whole. Another thing about the movie that I hate because I do not have nor do I think I will ever have that.

P.S.

These kinds of posts are supposed to be movie reviews but really, they're just a way for me to say/write out loud the things I have no way and no chance to bring up naturally.