‘Ten Little Mistresses’ REVIEW: A larger-than-life ‘kabetpelikula’ every Filipino must see
‘Ten Little Mistresses’ REVIEW: A larger-than-life ‘kabetpelikula’ every Filipino must see
A still from Lana’s “Ten Little Mistresses” exclusively on Prime Video.
This review contains minor spoilers for Jun Lana’s “Ten Little Mistresses.”
Nothing screams Filipino television soap operas than “kabetseryes” or the genre of infidelity and adultery in mostly romance and usually comedic Filipino TV drama. From Monica (Angel Locsin) and Nicole (Maja Salvador) in Rory Quintos and Dado Lumibao’s “The Legal Wife,” to Emma (Sunshine Dizon) and Georgia (Gabby Concepcion) in Laurice Guillen’s “Ika-6 na Utos,” the plot of a married man having a lover behind his wife’s back and the wife enacting her revenge to her cheating husband and mistresses continues to be an effective storyline that hooks Filipinos of all ages. But this recyclable idea comes at a cost: how can you separate and elevate your film or series from what’s already been known and released?
A still from Lana’s “Ten Little Mistresses” exclusively on Prime Video.
Unbeknownst to almost everyone, director Jun Robles Lana was cooking something to spice things up in the kabetseryes genre and thankfully, Prime Video let him cook. Known to be the first Prime Video Filipino-original film, Lana’s “Ten Little Mistresses” claims to be the mistress film to end all mistress films. Born from Lana’s love for the murder-mystery genre, desire to make people laugh during the pandemic, and personal challenge to prove that whodunnit film with queridas can work, the film tells the story of a recently widowed man, Don Valentin Esposo (John Arcilla), his brother Don Constantin (also played by John Arcilla), his 10 queridas, his legal wife-to-be (Eugene Domingo), and the hunt for a suspect when he inexplicably died during the first night of their get-together.
Ten might seem to be a number too high for a man’s mistresses list, but this over-the-top querida count makes an ensemble to remember. From the seasoned actresses of the Philippine entertainment industry—Carmi Martin (Four Sisters and a Wedding, The Panti Sisters), Agot Isidro (Da Best in da West 2: Da Western Pulis Istory, Changing Partners), and Marietta Subong (The Healing, Oda sa Wala)—to the film industry’s rising stars—Sharlene San Pedro, Arci Muñoz, Kris Bernal, Christian Bables, Adrianna So, Kate Alejandrino, and Iana Bernardez—the decuplet of mistresses move as a single unit, while also retaining their individual characteristics. This ensemble is reminiscent of another mystery/thriller film, Rian Johnson’s 2019 film “Knives Out,” which, like “Ten Little Mistresses,” is also an Agatha Christie-inspired murder mystery film.
BTS still from Jun Lana’s “Ten Little Mistresses” exclusively on Prime Video.
While abiding to the conventions of its genre, the film inserts its Filipino twist through its countless pop culture references. From the name of the mistresses—with Adrianna So’s Because from Kris Aquino’s 2014 interview with Kim Chiu, and Christian Bables’ Lady G and Sharlene San Pedro’s Moon Young as a nod to Filipino’s obsession with western and Korean music, respectively—to the iconic opening song “Sampung Mga Kerida,” which is a play on the Filipino nursery rhyme “Sampung mga Daliri,” the film did not run out of popular and iconic Filipino catchphrases that kept the energy high from start to finish. It also did not help that most of the cast are natural in delivering their lines through comedic skits and dramatic dialogues, creating a clear distinction on scenes that will make you laugh in your seats or cry after an internal realization.
The costume design should also not be forgotten, as the great gowns and beautiful headpieces shown on screen somehow manage to always outshine the previous iteration. Costume designers Jaylo Conanan and Jaydee Jasa truly deserve to be recognized for creating such powerful dresses that differentiate each mistress from one another, but also cohesively connecting them to each other to symbolize that they are all in the situation.
BTS still from Lana’s “Ten Little Mistresses” exclusively on Prime Video.
Despite the film being about ten mistresses, it managed to depict women empowerment through small, yet impactful scenes. For instance, the gradual transition of Magenta and Babet’s interactions from almost having a catfight over Don Valentin to finally accepting that they’ve both been conned by the same man they are fighting for attention, are some details that, while cheesy to look at, can have a tremendous effect on the right individual. Mistresses standing up against a chauvinistic man by understanding their worth as a woman is a lesson that is relevant, considering that today is jokingly the Valentines Day for the mistresses.
Lastly, knowing that a once ambitious passion project of a director has turned into a larger-than-life murder-mystery kabetserye-themed rollercoaster-of-emotions of a film should be celebrated. This should not be the first and last Prime Video (or any streaming platform) Filipino original but rather a proof that Filipinos can make anything work, especially a blue-eyed majordomo.
Watch Jun Lana’s “Ten Little Mistresses” exclusively on Prime Video starting February 15.
