In real life, people always anticipate what Annabelle Rama will say next.
She’s feisty, she’s frank, and oftentimes, downright abrasive. Didn’t she announce on national television that she considers her unica hija Ruffa Gutierrez as “plastic”?
The lady simply speaks her mind, and whether the showbiz denizens would admit it or not, they would not want to make Annabelle their foe.
And that’s exactly what she is in Monster Mom as Esmeralda Fajardo—nagtatalak, naninindak, at kasindak-sindak.
ANG KASINDAK-SINDAK. Annabelle Rama does the monster mom role effortlessly. Whether she’s just issuing an order, or giving advice, or sharing a light moment with her daughter or lying in a hospital bed—her screen presence is indeed formidable. The visual cues, like her gigantic diamonds and large rollers, and even the way she calls her kids, all add up to her intimidating personality.
As an actress, the matriarch of the Gutierrezs is a natural. The comic timing is good, her audio is perfect, and there are only a few scenes where Annabelle becomes a bit camera-conscious. No one would have thought it’s her first movie and that it’s her comeback movie after 37 years of not appearing on the silver screen.
She’s a “monster” to the people around her, and undoubtedly a comedienne to the moviegoers.
ANG HINDI NASINDAK. Ruffa plays the role of Abby, Esme’s long-lost daughter and “Baby Girl.” She’s laking Tate, and in Esme’s own words, she’s “maarte and malandi.”
She is a fashionista (her choice of wardrobe is really fabulous), sosyal, kikay, and is quite aloof with her new surroundings. Baby Girl is the exact opposite of Esme when it comes to taste, and especially, views. She’s a typical American-bred kid who argues with her mom if she feels she has a point. Of all the characters in the story, she’s the only one who’s not rattled by Annabelle’s character. In fact, she’s more annoyed than scared of her mom.
Ruffa’s onscreen tandem with her mom is a sure-winner! Their scenes together are utterly spontaneous and hilarious. It’s like seeing the two argue in real life.
ANG MGA NASINDAK. Baby girl’sbrothers, Pipo (Mart Escudero) and Boboy (JC De Vera), are completely used to Esme’s pagtatalak—from the moment they wake up, while eating breakfast, to the time they go to sleep. They are nice kids, meek, and they get the flak for their mom’s monstrous attitude.
Michelle Madrigal is the love interest of JC in the movie, while Iwa Moto is Mart’s lady love. Michelle has a mom who despises Esme, and Iwa is a GRO who’s also palaban pero si Esme ay inurungan.
Other characters who have to put up with Esme’s katarayan are her amigas Eugene Domingo and Khryss Adalia, her neighbors Sam Lagmay and Vangie Labalan, Abby’s friend Karen (Bubbles Paraiso), her maid Chariz Solomon, and even the kanto boys.
ANG MGA EKSENA. The plot revolves around Esme. Rhian Ramos portrays the young character of Annabelle.
She fell in love with Waldo (played by Richard Gutierrez), got pregnant at the age of 16, and was disowned by her family in Cebu. She caught Waldo with another girl, slammed the guitar on his head thrice, and that’s the last time she saw the dad of her firstborn. Circumstances forced her to give away Baby Girl to her brother, who relocated to New Jersey. Twenty-seven years later, Esme’s Baby Girl resurfaced to meet her biological mother, who turned into a monster mom.
Majority of the lines uttered by Annabelle had the people laughing. The script is very good. A showbiz editor said, “Magaling talaga ang punch lines.”
Among my favorite scenes is the dinner with Karen, Abby’s friend, at a posh restaurant. Upon entering the door, Esme’s first question, “Sinong magbabayad?” But the classic line she delivered was, “Ang mahal-mahal naman dito! Bakit, puwede mo bang iuwi ang plato?”
Other portions which are bentang-benta to the viewers: the confrontation with the kapitbahays, the “sugod” moment with her sons and the policemen, and Esme’s heart-to-heart talk with her sons and Ruffa.
The only part which I found quite redundant was the prologue. It was a bit long, and the transformation of the young and sweet-faced Esme to a fearsome mom was not clearly established and shown.
If I were to rate the movie’s overall impact in a scale of 1 to five, with 5 being the highest, I’ll give it a 4. But if I were to look at its entertainment value, it deserves a 4.9.
During the movie, people anticipated what Annabelle Rama would say next, and they laughed their heart out.