Old Movies and a Boy Next Door

I caught a cold over the weekend—it was either from my one-year-old niece or the bug that has been going around the office finally caught up with me. It’s always terrible when I catch a cold because my sinuses get affected. For days I look like I’ve been crying over something horrible. Then there’s the matter of sleeping, which is next to impossible, because I can’t breathe well, no matter what position I twist and turn to. So, whenever I’ve got clogged nasal passages, I always end up watching television late into the wee hours of the morning, or when the medicine I’ve taken as a last resort weaves its spell of slumber over me, whichever comes first. Last night, it was Cinema One that kept me company.

After watching the tail end of Sigaw in Cinema One, I expected an action flick to follow, so I channel-surfed as soon as the credits rolled. I was watching the pilot episode of Mark Burnett’s newest reality show Pirate Master (I’ll write a review about this soon) for the third time this week already, when, even more annoyed with the current Captain Joe Don, I decided to check out Cinema One again. One look at the screen, and I was hooked.

Nang Iniwan Mo Ako (1997) was being shown. It was not my first time to watch this film, which happens to be one of my favorites from Jose Javier Reyes. It stars Sharon Cuneta and Albert Martinez, who portray a couple who, as you can guess from the title, split up. Anton leaves his wife Amy for another woman (Dindi Gallardo). Amy is left to care for their young son and deal with some of their conjugal debts. The movie is about how she picks up the pieces of her life, finds herself and a potential new love to boot.

There are many  memorable things about this film. For example, a full decade later, I still can’t get over Amy’s triumphant magnanimity in the end, where she gets to comfort Albert’s repentant character. You don’t see endings like that in Pinoy movies anymore. But one other reason I find this film unforgettable is Matt Mendoza, who plays Amy’s new love interest—her very supportive, patient, and boy-next-door-type Attorney (I didn’t get the name; he’s always Matt to me) who loves kids and whose only vice is driving to Los Baños on not-so-busy Sundays to buy expensive plants. He sees Amy for the catch that she is, and when he proposes to her and she asks for some more me-time, he warns her that he is very patient, especially when he knows how special someone is.

Somebody catch me while I swoon. Actually, I was sniffling, coughing and swooning, all at the same time.

I’ve always had a big crush on Matt Mendoza (and his boy-next-door characters) ever since I first saw him on TV. There is a lot to be said about his acting, but I’ve always found his onscreen presence quite captivating. He was the next big thing back in the 1990s, but he stayed away from the limelight when the new decade rolled in. I’m not quite sure why—but I suppose it had a lot to do with the boom in sexy films back then, a trend which Matt didn’t take part in. He last appeared Inang Yaya (2006) and a television series (also in 2006). I haven’t heard much about him since then—only that he was married, and based in Puerto Princesa, Palawan, where he manages a family resort.

Outside of what I’ve already written above, I don’t know anything else about Matt. My impression of him, however, is that he was a nice guy who cared about his name. There’s not too many of actors like him these days, even the younger ones trying hard to convince viewers they are the boy-next-door types.

That Attorney-Boy-Next-Door really ruined me for life. He’s the man I still measure all boy-next-door types by. 

Old movie nostalgia and a cute boy forever captured on cinema. Best comfort for a cold with no cure.

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