A beautiful cast, a beautiful film

Only Regal Entertainment can assemble the country’s finest actresses in one triumphant tearjerker. Coming to theaters on July 28 is a touching film, the ensemble drama A Beautiful Life directed by Gil Portes. A Beautiful Life stars the most beautiful, most captivating faces of Philippine cinema in an uplifting film that will touch lives and warm even the coldest of hearts.

Dina Bonnevie, Amy Austria, Aubrey Miles, Angel Aquino, Maxene Magalona, Michelle Bayle, Cristine Reyes, Iya Villana, and Gloria Romero star in A Beautiful Life as women whose lives are forever changed when they lose loved ones in a terrorist bombing at the domestic airport. The cast members play women from varied social classes—granddaughters and grandmothers, wives and mistresses, who suddenly have to cope with heartbreaking loss.

Gloria Romero, or Tita Glo as she is lovingly called in the industry, is a true movie queen. In the ’50s and ’60s, she reigned supreme as a contract star of Sampaguita Pictures. She danced, sang and acted alongside the handsomest matinee idols of that generation: Ramon Revilla, Ric Rodrigo, Luis Gonzales and Juancho Gutierrez, whom she married.

This living screen legend has appeared in more than 150 feature films, but A Beautiful Life marks the first time she has worked with the uncompromising director Gil Portes. Gloria plays Magda, a woman who tries to convince herself that her husband is still alive even though he died during a terrorist incident on the day they celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary.

Even though she’s been acting for more than 54 years, Gloria confesses she still had butterflies in her stomach on the first day of shooting with Portes. She notes, "Mabait si direk Gil at sobrang mabilis magtrabaho. There’s always a different energy when I work with a director for the first time." The actress confesses that the scene she found hardest to do was the one where she dances with an invisible partner in her living room. That shot is now the film’s signature image in the trailer.

Dina Bonnevie is one of the few women who proudly declare her age–which is 42 – because it doesn’t show. Thanks to a healthy lifestyle and conscientious workout program, Ms. D. looks even more youthful than when she was crowned Miss Magnolia as a teenager. Dina is included among the 100 Sexiest Women Poll of FHM (For Him Magazine) Philippines, the No. 1 glossy publication for men. She has graced the cover of FHM twice.

During a recent FHM party that feted the sexiest women of the Philippines, Miss D. was so surprised when photographers circled her. "There were so many other girls who were sexier and younger," Ms. D gushed. There’s no denying the Ms. D. charisma that has smitten many younger men.

In Gil Portes’ new film, she plays Carmen, a mother who blames the death of her only son (newcomer Marco Alcaraz) on his fiancé (newcomer Iya Villana).

All it takes for the wonderful talented Amy Austria to move viewers to tears is a look or a gesture. In Mano Po, she made millions cry with her when she held the hand of the men she has searched for many years. In A Beautiful Life, Amy will again tug at your heartstrings with her wrenching portrayal of Benita, a simple provincial woman whose son Abel (Jeffrey Hildalgo) is killed in a bombing which he allegedly masterminded.

Whether she’s walking across a bridge or riding a train with a defeated look on her face, Amy’s performances are always riveting to behold, and they rarely rely on dialogue for their potency. Her work in Beautiful Life is as powerful as anything she’s ever done. And that’s saying a lot considering her filmography.

Here’s a sampling of some of the most significant films to be produced by the Philippine movie industry in recent years: Magnifico, Babae Sa Breakwater, Munting Tinig, Mano Po, Anak, Bagong Buwan, Muro Ami.What do these films have a common? They each feature a stand-out performance by Amy Austria.

The sensuous Aubrey Miles has been described by Cosmopolitan Magazine as "the sexy star even girls like." More than her enviable vital statistics and attractive face, Aubrey is multi-talented and versatile. She can host, sing and act for drama and comedy. Audiences were delighted with Aubrey’s role as a clueless girl in search of true love in the naughty Singles.

In A Beautiful Life Aubrey will surprise her admirers with another colorful performance. She plays Daisy, the mistress of Daniel (Raymond Bagatsing), who is married to Dolor (Angel Aquino). The childless Dolor doesn’t know that Daniel has a mistress on the side. Making things even worse is that Daniel sired a child with Daisy. This plot leads to several charged confrontations between Aubrey and Angel.

Comliplicating things is another female in the movie who professes her love for Daisy. And would Aubrey entertain a tomboy suitor in real life? "Actually may nag-propose na sa akin na ganyan," she confesses, "pero sabi ko ayaw kong makipag-relasyon sa babae din."

A Beautiful Life is Maxene Magalona’s sixth film, having appeared in blockbuster like Bahay Ni Lola and Kuya. The head-turner is about to turn 18 and is now a freshman in the Ateneo de Manila University where she is taking Theater Arts.

In A Beautiful Life Maxene plays Ira, the granddaughter of Magda (Gloria). Ira is worried Magda may be losing her mind because she often sees her Lola conversing and even dancing with her deceased husband.

Like the character she plays in A Beautiful Life Maxene is a responsible and a caring family member. She doesn’t have a grandmother to look after, but her hands are busy caring for her seven siblings, whose ages range from three to 21. It’s not unusual for Maxene to give her younger siblings a bath, or to cook breakfast for them.

Does she have any more dreams for her enviable showbiz career? "I hope to improve my problem with crying," Maxene says matter-of-factly. "It used to take me more than 45 minutes to cry. But on A Beautiful Life, I was able to do it in 10 minutes. I’m not a sad person kasi, so I’m glad direk Gil was patient with me."

Angel Aquino, actress, model and host of the fashion and lifestyle show F is considered by designers and beauty editors as one of the loveliest women in the Philippines today. YES! Magazine and MEGA have included Angel in their Most Beautiful List. A favorite magazine cover girl, Angel’s face is as arresting on print as it is on the big screen. In A Beautiful Life, she plays Raymond Bagatsing’s wife. When he dies in a terrorist bombing at the airport, his secrets come spilling out, as Angel realizes her husband kept many things from her, including a boy he sired with a mistress, played by Aubrey.

Angel and Aubrey’s charged confrontations make for some of the most gripping dramatic highlights in A Beautiful Life.

Michelle Bayle plays what promises to be the only amusing character in A Beautiful Life– that of the "Black Widow" Noemi who has had the extreme bad luck of losing three husbands in a very short time. On the bright side their deaths have made her a multi-millionaire! This is why those around Noemi suspect there’s more to the deaths of her husbands than meets the eye.

In real life, however, Michelle can never be mistaken for anything other than a caring and loving person. She reveals that she was supposed to be in the recent romantic drama All My Life but because Michelle had to take care of her sick mother in Canada, the role went to another actress.

There’s a lot about this sexy comedienne that surprises one. She claims to be obsessive-compulsive, so afraid of germs that she always washes her hands with alcohol after she holds something dirty. Michelle is one clean girl. No wonder there’s no dirt being dug up about her.

She describes the Beautiful Life set as revealing that she tried to bring laughter to work. "When you’re working on a movie about how death affects those they’ve left behind, you have to lighten things up," she explains.

Cristine Reyes is out to prove she’s not just the younger sister of Ara Mina. The 15-year old plays Kim, Daisy’s (Aubrey Miles) best friend. Kim doesn’t lose anyone in the tragic bombing which opens the movie, but she does die a little everyday when she can’t confess her true feelings for Daisy.

Cristine is amused at repeatedly being cast as a tomboy. Recently, she portrayed a "masculine female" in some memorable episodes of Starstruck Playhouse. Cristine claims she knows many tomboys in the school she attends, and it is they whom she patterned her portrayal of "Kim" on.

Cristine says direk Gil made her nervous. "Parati akong take three," she confesses, "at parati akong sinasabihan ni direk Gil na malikot daw ako!

Iya Villana is a VJ whose star continues to rise. Once a mainstay of program Click, Iya set tongues wagging recently when it was discovered that she is moving from GMA to ABS-CBN.

This pretty lady graces the big screen for the first time in A Beautiful Life. She is one of the Regal Idols, the newest batch of exclusive talents of Regal Entertainment. This young woman whom we have seen in countless TV commercials, print ads, and magazine covers will earn more fans with her work in A Beautiful Life where she shows great potential as Janice, whom Dina Bonnevie blames for her son’s death. "She photographs very well," Gil Portes declares, " and the camera just loves her. She just has to work on losing her Australian accent."

A Beautiful Life is produced by Regal Entertainment. The men in the cast include Ricky Davao and Raymond Bagatsing in special roles. Also lending crucial support are veteran Ernie Zarate and heartthrob newcomer Marco Alcaraz. The film is written by award-winning writer Senedy Que.