Heartthrobs vs. househelp

Reynaldo Gianecchini vs. Tom Cruise vs. Troy Montero

Last week, a photo collage of a guy who supposedly won the title "Best-Looking Guy in the World" was being passed around through e-mail. Now, how could you ignore a subject like that? I wondered: Who voted? How did he get the title? Why wasn’t I informed?

In the split second between reading the subject and seeing the actual pictures, I had some doubts. I’m so hard to please when it comes to male beauty (GQ was my bible when I was 13).

Well, I looked, and I have to say I wasn’t disappointed. Here’s a good-looking, tall version of Tom Cruise. This guy is so hot, he makes Troy Montero look like a truck driver.

At first., a friend of mine thought the guy was Indian. This was scandalous to me because Indians always sweep beauty titles like Miss Universe and Miss World – please don’t tell me Indian guys are winning them, too.

Turns out the guy is 32-year-old Brazilian/Italian actor Reynaldo Gianecchini. A quick check on a website (http://www.gianecchini.us/bio.php) reveals a listing of his theater and telenovela work, a feature film, and a song recorded with his girlfriend of seven years, journalist and TV personality Marília Gabriela.

Further research shows that God is fair. Not only is his girlfriend 24 years older than him, she is also NOT the best-looking chick in the world. I’m so intrigued when the cute guy doesn’t get the cute girl. Think Jude Law and Sadie Frost (although that’s over), Prince Andrew and Fergie (over, too), Christopher de Leon and Nora Aunor (okay, I’ve made my point).

I just find it clichéd when good-looking people get together, like Enrique Iglesias and Anna Kournikova. Or Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston. But that’s over, too.

Johnny Depp vs. Gene Wilder vs. Michael Jackson

You know it’s a sad day when your three-year-old sees the brown Pasig River for the first time and says, "Look, Mommy, Willy Wonka!"

Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory is one of my favorite movies, and I super love Gene Wilder. I have a collection of his movies, including Young Frankenstein, Silver Streak, and World’s Greatest Lover.

I really hate it when they redo classics that do NOT need to be redone, for instance, bastardized remakes of The Shining and Sabrina. But I thought I shouldn’t miss Tim Burton’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory with Johnny Depp.

Johnny Depp is like a heartthrob. I feel romantic when I think about Vanessa Paradis, what it’s like to be living in Paris, married to Johnny Depp of Edward Scissorhands and What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, dining in candlelit restaurants and going home early. Johnny Depp buying fresh bread in the morning and changing his baby’s diapers.

As Willy Wonka, I was so disappointed when they made Johnny look and sound like Michael Jackson with capped teeth. Why did they do that to him? If they needed a funny-looking guy with a voice like that, why not Adam Sandler? (Hey, I love Adam Sandler.)

First half of the movie I thought, this Tim Burton is such a good storyteller, spinning subplots not found in the original, like the childhood of Willy Wonka. But when the first (second, third and fourth) bad song and dance number came out with this photoshopped Oompa Loompa, I just lost it and started waiting for the end.

Not only did they bastardize Johnny Depp, they also screwed up the Oompa Loompas and the wonderful songs.

Jericho Rosales vs. Piolo Pascual vs. househelp

Jericho Rosales and Piolo Pascual are literally household names in our home. Last May, Piolo came over to shoot a Timex ad; in June, Jericho was here to shoot a Metro Him cover for their third issue.

What do you do when two of the country’s hottest actors are coming over? You do not tell the maids. With today’s technology, maids are bound to text each other, and before you know it, the whole village is at your doorstep.

When Piolo was here, I was very excited but also distracted because I was trying to hook up with Boy George who was also in town. In between shots, while Piolo rested in the guest room, I had no idea the yayas and the kids had gone in to take photos while the kids jumped on his back. (I later found out in horror when their photos were developed.)

True to his reputation, Piolo was an angel. Like Piolo, I heard from stylists and makeup artists who worked with them that Jericho was super nice, too. In addition, my sister and I had seen him once at NAIA and thought he looked cute. So when Carlo Tadiar of Metro asked if they could shoot Jericho in our house, I readily agreed.

There was no visiting foreign act to distract me when Jericho was here; I simply couldn’t look at him. He was the distraction. I was also intimidated by the presence of photographer Giampiero Gastaldi, for I had my own camera on standby.

Stylist Michael Salientes arrived with a bunch of clothes on loan from Homme et Femme. Seeing two of the maids quietly huddled in the kitchen, Michael told them they were the luckiest maids on the street, to have their picture taken with Piolo, and later, Jericho.

What we didn’t know was that in the next room, a legion of yayas and maids from the neighborhood was already gathered in the kids’ room. When Jericho had to pose in the hallway, we were surprised when the delirious househelp spilled out of the kids’ room, armed with paper and pens.

Jericho was such a sport. After the shoot, he took some time to take photos with the kids, maids and yayas, and the neighbor’s kids, maids and yayas. The hallway shot of gorgeous Jericho in Dior Homme (taken sometime before or after The Attack of the Chiminy Crickets) is what you’ll see on the cover of Metro Him out this week.