Great love stories are hard to come by. This one stands to be a classic and will be remembered by Filipino audiences for a very long time

Ricky Rivera

For a very long time, we have been treated with what I described as “Basura films”—movies that depend more on hugot lines or the wacky antics of their artists instead of truly telling a story. I’ll not cite examples here–you know who you are. You very well know what I meant when I say basura films–films which simply don’t merit spending more time or take a second or third watch.

When I saw the trailer of this latest movie by Cathy Molina, “Hello, Love, Goodbye” and was told that it was a story of an Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW), I surprised my wife by inviting her and my other kids to watch the movie.

For starters, I consider Hongkong as my second home. I love this city. I love it for its modernity and for having a unique identity all of its own. Its a cosmopolitan port city with its own charm. And the charm is truly infectious.

At first, I was attracted by the shot scenes. It was not a travelogue. The movie stands to be a social commentary and a love story bundled into one.

Right now, it has generated more than a half a billion pesos. I will not be a spoiler here.

The story is about Joy, who’s a nurse but decided to go to Hongkong and work as a domestic helper. The movie begins with her last few months spent in the island city, particularly when she needed to break some Hongkong labor laws just to save some money for her eventual trip to Canada for a nice nursing job.

She met the character of Alden Richards who works as a bartender. He was living in Hongkong for most of his life, the first of three of a family of musicians who worked hard for their permanent residency status. Alden was the first to be petitioned, but he bungled it just for love.

When they met, time just simply froze as the two knew of their respective responsibilities for their families but at the same time, knew that they would lose something big if they don’t seize the moment which they knew that it was love.

Sacrifice–this is a word which I simply consider as a synonym for love. No great love that does not involve sacrifices. In this movie, both characters gave up time.

This movie is multifaceted yet does not appear as trying hard. Several layers are there. It is a movie that will make you think, make you ponder on the imponderables of life and make you even cry realising that hundreds, even thousands of Filipinos are encouraging the very same things every single day, just to realise their dreams of a good life for their families.

Watch this, be entertained and get to enjoy how it is to love.

What is most comforting for me is the realisation that, at last, we have a Kathryn Bernardo whose depth reminds one of a Vilma Santos.

And a possible Christopher de Leon in the person of Alden Richards. His underacting makes him an effective actor.