D' Kilabots

This movie tries too hard to be liked. It takes itself very seriously, and it loses its humor as a result. D' Kilabots Pogi Brothers... Weh!? feels bipolar as a whole. There are two stories in the movie, and each is treated differently. Bruno (Wally Bayola) and Justine (Jose Manalo) are brothers who don't exactly like each other. The two are business rivals--Bruno sells lugaw (rice porridge), while Justine sells BBQ. The rivalry started when Bruno married Kitty (Pokwang), who was Justine's first love. As a result of the heartbreak, Justine grew a weird allergy to women. When a pretty balikbayan named Lulu (Solenn Heussaff) comes to the brothers' community, Justine is immediately smitten. Fortunately, Lulu also falls for him. Will this cure Justine's allergy? The story above already sounds complete, and should result in some hilarious sequences. And yet... This is where the movie falls apart: Lulu's dad Donald (Tirso Cruz III) is trying to settle a large debt with bigshot Mr. Lucio (Michael de Mesa). Desperate, Donald agrees to give Mr. Lucio his property. The problem is that the land has been paid for by its occupants, one of which is Justine's family. This second plot point is treated too seriously, and it does not fit the movie. In this narrative thread, the comedic tone the movie employs whenever Justine and Bruno are on screen is abandoned. Instead, we get a pseudo tragic treatment, as if we are watching an advocacy film about the injustices faced by informal settlers. I watched this movie in a half-packed theater, and I only heard a few laughs. The convoluted plot surely helped in watering down the comedy, but it's not the only reason. This movie was made after Jose Manalo and Wally Bayola hit it big with a sold-out concert. The two are now some of the country's largest comedians, and it is easy to see why when you watch them in Eat Bulaga! Yet, they never feel as good in D' Kilabots Pogi Brothers... Weh!?. This is because they were not given a lot of legroom to work their magic. In Eat Bulaga!, they are funny because they are spontaneous and command their jokes. Why were they then forced to act around a lousy script? If the land-grabbing scenario was abandoned, perhaps the two could have much space to inject their kind of humor. Fortunately, a few bright spots exist to brighten the picture. Paolo Ballesteros is surprisingly marvelous as a gay character named Tweety, and he steals each scene he's in. Solenn Heussaff also has funny moments as well. Still, these bright spots are not enough to mask how awful D' Kilabots Pogi Brothers... Weh!? really is.