Did Martin miss Pops?

BY ISAH V. RED

It was undoubtedly like a reunion we all never imagined. The press do at Discovery Suites last Saturday was very much the old Martin-Pops act in the days of Penthouse Live (on GMA-7), witty, nearly naughty, except that both seemed to be holding back a bit. We understood, though, as each of them now has moved on (we hope we?re right!) and trying to forge new relationships?she with Jomari Yllana who is producing the pre-Valentine gig titled Missing You at the Araneta Coliseum on Feb. 6, and he with Katrina Ojeda who now lives with her and Martin?s son Santino in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Yet, after the open forum, we heard Martin broke into tears and so did Pops. It was good for TV, Martin said later when he joined us at the table several feet away where the TV interviews were conducted.

We learned that the two of them were asked if they?d write their own scenarios, what would be the ending. Would it end with the two of them together?

Apparently, Martin couldn?t control his emotions and just let them go as he said how he now admires Pops who has grown to be a woman all her own, taking care of their two sons.

Pops, on the other hand, stayed calm after it, knowing perhaps that she is in a serious situation with the producer, who, Martin said, is a good friend. (Shades of Bruce Willis, Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher, huh! Well, Pops and Jom must first get married to make the parallelism more accurate, right?)

The press do was organized to promote the much-anticipated reunion of the two in the biggest Valentine show so far.

Martin Nievera and Pops Fernandez were actually never dreaming of reteaming until some accident last year at the airport when the singer was about to take a flight to the US with sons Robin and Ram Nievera. Pops was hyperventilating as she said her adieus and Martin never saw her ex-wife in that situation and thought of something to divert her attention and out of nowhere asked her if she?d like to work with him again sometime.

Pops, still sobbing, answered back, ?Really? When are you free?? Or something like that.

By coincidence, Jomari Yllana, who has admitted to all and sundry as being a fan of the couple, had something in mind but didn?t know if it would be realized. Fortunately for him the incident at the airport became the jumpstart for a series of talks and negotiations that led to Missing You.

Well, the show, the first, after Martin and Pops broke million hearts when they separated, will surely make those hearts hoping again for the two to kiss and make up, both on stage and off.

For ticket inquiries and reservations, call Ticketnet at 911-5555.

Status: Single hits theaters

 Status: Single, the much-awaited collaboration of Rufa Mae Quinto and multi-awarded screenwriter and director Joey Reyes, opens in theaters today, the second offering of Viva Films and Rufa Mae?s own On-Q 28 Productions.

Joey describes this romance-comedy romp as an ?intelligent and sexy romantic comedy.? It shows how modern Filipino women deal with the pressure of finding the perfect life partner.

Status: Single stars Rufa Mae Quinto as a 30-year-old virgin who feels pressured to land a man after her friends all get married, one after the other, leaving her the only single woman in the barkada. On her hunt for Mr. Right, she meets not one, but four gorgeous hunks, played by Mark Bautista, Rafael Rosell, Jon Avila, and Alfred Vargas.

Paolo Contis plays her gay best friend who helps her in her search for the perfect guy.

During the movie?s press conference, Rufa Mae was asked what she would do if she had to choose one of them in real life. ?Ang hirap!? she laughed. ?Lahat naman kasi sila, macho, guapo, may career.?

Movie to watch

With the Oscars just less than a month away, many Hollywoodphiles are itching to get a look-see at movies nominated for Best Picture that have never been screened in Manila, or those that have latched one or more nominations for the Feb. 23 awarding show (to be seen on Velvet on SkyCable channel 53.

By sheer accident, we were able to catch Changeling at the PowerPlant in Rockwell last Sunday. Apparently, UIP/Solar Films think the movie is not a box-office hot shot so it is only in that cinema (after consulting the papers? movie guides) where it is being screened.

The movie earned nominations in Cinematography (for Tom Stern), Art Direction (James J. Murakami and Set Decoration for Gary Fettis), and Best Actress for Angelina Jolie. The film was by actor-turned-filmmaker Clint Eastwood and possibly one of his most engaging.

The film is based upon a true story that happened in the late 1920s through mid-1930s in a California City named Wineville (now Mira Loma) where Christine Collins (Angelina Jolie) one night finds that her son Walter is not home, reported him missing to the police.

After nearly a month, a boy claiming to be Walter surfaces and the police treats the missing-boy case closed, except Christine is convinced the boy is not his son and thus begins her ordeal with the police that leads to the many changes that happened in the community a year after.

Angelina?s performance (whether she wins the Oscar or not) is remarkably convincing. Christine Collins is the kind of character that makes her sizzle on screen. We watch her eyes and most especially her lips that have made her the hottest female star in Hollywood.

Sadly, it is being screened in possibly the smallest of theaters in the PowerPlant multiplex and very few know that it is now playing in a theater. We?re reprinting interviews of Eastwood (opposite page) and Jolie (this page) for further elucidation on what the film is all about.

I just hope you still can catch a screening (it is still in the theater) before the Oscars on Feb. 23.