Do we ever forget the one that got away?
Screenwriter and director Sigrid Andrea Bernardo tackles that feeling of longing, lost affection, and unreciprocated love in her latest film Walang KaParis, set in the romantic city of Paris, France.
Empoy Marquez portrays the character of Jojo, a street artist and mime performer who, for years, is puzzled by the identity of the mysterious woman in one of his early artworks.
One day, a woman named Marie, played by Alessandra de Rossi, appears seemingly from nowhere and claims to be the subject of Jojo’s sketch.
Piece by piece, the origin of Jojo’s puzzling artwork is solved in a series of poignant and touching sequences — one that takes viewers from the beautiful, buzzing streets of Paris to the laidback charms of Baguio here in the Philippines.
emotional rollercoaster
Alessandra is effective as always, subtly capturing the highs and lows of Marie’s shifting emotions as she attempts to bridge the present to the past to remind Jojo of forgotten promises.
Empoy embodies Jojo’s quirks as an erratic artist whose depth and often-misplaced confidence can be quite striking and hilarious at the same time.
As unconventional as their love team is, there really is magic in Alessandra and Empoy’s pairing that translates wonderfully on screen.
Viewers got a taste of that for the first time in the 2017 romantic comedy film Kita Kita, which to date stands as the highest-grossing independent film in Philippine cinema.
Sigrid, who also wrote and directed Kita Kita, feels that Alessandra and Empoy — affectionately dubbed AlEmpoy by viewers — come across as relatable, thus making them appealing to wider audiences.
Like Kita Kita, which was shot in Japan, this latest AlEmpoy movie benefits from the picturesque Paris and Baguio sceneries, lending the narrative great visual storytelling to draw in and seduce viewers.
Walang KaParis has an intriguing plot twist that is both warm and heartbreaking, the kind that leaves viewers with hope and thoughts of what-ifs and might-have-beens.
The reference to the Rey Valera classic hit “Walang Kapalit”—with Marie and Jojo singing parts of the lyrics in two different timelines—is a tearjerker given the song’s message of unconditional and unrequited love.
“At kung hindi man dumating sa 'kin ang panahon / Na ako ay mahalin mo rin / Asahan mong 'di ako magdaramdam kahit ako ay nasasaktan / Huwag mo lang ipagkait na ikaw ay aking mahalin.”
Tissue, please.
Walang KaParis is less whimsical compared to Kita Kita, but it succeeds in stirring a mixed bag of feelings.
The film is an emotional rollercoaster ride that hits the right spots for hopeless romantics.
Walang KaParis streams on Amazon Prime Video and is available for viewing in 240 countries and territories worldwide.