Is the country's longest running and most
successful horror movie franchise taking a bow? After ten episodes, Shake, Rattle and Roll continues its
annual tradition of scaring the Filipino viewers on Christmas Day. But days
before the 34th Metro Manila Film Festival officially opens, talks are abundant
that the tenth installment of the popular horror flick would be its last.
Many assumed that the buzz stemmed from the fact
that the film production unit reportedly invested a huge amount of money to
bankroll Shake, Rattle and Roll's
tenth anniversary offering—prompting some to speculate that Regal Entertainment
perhaps wants to close out the project with a bang.
In a press conference tendered by Regal
Entertainment last December 9 at the Imperial Palace Suites in Tomas Morato,
Quezon City, executive producer Roselle Monteverde-Teo neither confirmed nor
denied the rumor. It was evident though during the affair that Roselle was
proud and excited to present the film's latest sequel. In fact, from now on,
Ms. Roselle will now be in charge of operations for Regal.
"This
is our biggest Shake, Rattle and Roll
so far, not only because of the grand cast but also because of the
sophisticated storytelling and effects-befitting of a tenth anniversary
offering no less," said Regal matriarch, Mother Lily Monteverde in a statement.
BIGGER SCARE FEST. This year's installment of Shake, Rattle and Roll gathers the biggest names coming from the two rival networks like Marian Rivera, Roxanne Guinoo, JC de Vera, Kim Chiu, Iwa Moto, Gerald Anderson, Mylene Dizon, Wendell Ramos, Jennica Garcia, Jean Garcia, John Lapus, Erich Gonzales, BJ Forbes, IC Mendoza, and Janus del Prado, among others.
Director Mike Tuviera directed two episodes,
"Nieves" and "Emergency" while Topel Lee megged "Class Picture." Both Mike and
Topel commended Regal Entertainment for painstakingly putting together the
project and putting utmost importance to the story all the way to the entire
treatment.
"We really wanted to make the film extra special
since we are also celebrating the tenth anniversary of Shake, Rattle and Roll," said direk Mike to PEP (Philippine
Entertainment Portal) in an interview during a set visit a few months ago.
The son of TAPE Inc. head honcho, Tony Tuviera,
expressed confidence that the viewers would find the stories and plots
interesting as the creative team consciously veered away from the clichés
commonly seen on local horror films.
"The entire horror landscape is changing and we
wanted to incorporate that here to offer something new din siyempre sa viewers
natin," explained Direk Mike, who likewise cited the current modernization of
vampire characters in the international horror scene as a perfect example of
how producers and writers are moving forward.
It doesn't mean though that Shake, Rattle and Roll X departs in incorporating local flavor.
"Very Filipino pa din of course," assured Direk Mike. "We still touched on
Pinoy folklore because 'yon yung kultura natin, e, and you can never take that
away. But again, gusto namin ng fresh na atake to entertain the viewers and to
make everything more interesting and we were able to achieve that."
Even Mother Lily acknowledged the legacy of Shake, Rattle and Roll in Pinoy pop
culture by stating: "I want everyone to be part of this rich horror tradition
in Filipino films. We made Shake, Rattle and Roll X truly special for
all of you."
SYNOPSIS. In the episode "Emergency,"
Kapuso talent JC de Vera and Kapamilya contract star Roxanne Guinoo portray a
paramedic and a doctor, respectively. They struggle with other hospital
residents to save their lives from the wrath of blood hungry creatures played
by Mylene Dizon and Wendell Ramos.
In the episode "Nieves," Marian Rivera plays the title character who is the
town's famous and lone Engkanto Slayer. When strange and unexplainable attacks
began to strike the whole town, Nieves, teams up with her slayer in trainings:
Junie (Robert "Buboy" Villar) and Kaysee (Jennica Garcia) to save the
townsfolk from extinction.
In "Class Picture," ten college students spend the weekend at their school to
prepare an exhibit in exchange for lifting the suspension of their
organization. However, they find themselves haunted by the awakened spirit of a
demented nun, Sr. Maria Belonia (Jean Garcia), who has put a curse on a class
picture of her section in 1898.
Shake, Rattle, and Roll X will open in cinemas nationwide starting December
25, 2008.
