‘Mr. and Mrs. Cruz’ REVIEW: Palawan becomes a romantic force in heartwarming comedy
‘Mr. and Mrs. Cruz’ REVIEW: Palawan becomes a romantic force in heartwarming comedy
Gela and Raffy in Mr. and Mrs. Cruz. Taken from Osaka International Film Festival 2018.
Sigrid Andrea Bernardo’s 2018 romantic comedy Mr. and Mrs. Cruz is a work of cinema that shows how a place molds a relationship. We follow two strangers Raffy Cruz (JC Santos) and Gela Cruz (Ryza Cenon) who meet each other through a group vacation tour in Palawan. They eventually find each other getting closer in more unexpected coincidences, one of which is having to share a hotel room, but what makes it so pleasing to watch is how gradual and natural their relationship develops.
Of course, there is the biggest coincidence of them all — both of them having identical surnames despite not knowing each other prior to this vacation. It makes for such interesting conversations within the rest of their group who assume they are husband and wife, simulating the “kilig” (for lack of a better word) felt when “shipped” (for a lack of a better word again) with “just friends” back in middle school, plus, the comedy that comes with the common surnames we often joke about as Filipinos.
Gela and Raffy enjoying the sunset landscape of Palawan in Mr. and Mrs. Cruz. Taken from the Official Trailer.
Palawan as a setting becomes a character in the film, arguably the third person in the relationship, as their bond grows as they engage in different activities signature to the island. Similar to how Shibuya plays a significant role in shaping the relationship of Bob and Charlotte in Sofia Coppola’s Lost in Translation, we watch the island play a similar role for Raffy and Gela, but what makes it even more of a heartwarming experience is how familiar the place is to us as the audience. Drinking in crowded bars isn’t what people usually look forward to when visiting beaches around the world, but it’s what we usually look forward to in places like Palawan and Boracay.
Cinematographer Boy Yniguez frames all of this beautifully. He presents us with flat shots that capture the ever changing dynamic between Raffy and Gela with emphasis on the spaces between them getting smaller and smaller as their relationship becomes more intimate, accompanied with backdrops of colorful skies and serene mountains that give us a feeling of how beautiful their lives must feel in these moments.
Speaking as an introvert, this film makes me want to travel and be open to making new friends despite having different outlooks on life, which convinces me that this film makes quite an impact on its audience.
Mr. and Mrs. Cruz is now showing as part of the IdeaFirst Film Festival.
