Metro Manila Film Festival 2025: An insightful picture of annulment

By Brontë H. Lacsamana, Reporter

Movie Review
UnMarry
Directed by Jeffrey Jeturian
Produced by Quantum Films, Cineko Films
MTRCB Rating: PG

ANNULMENT is an unpleasant subject matter, because it involves the end of a marriage and the (usually) bitter fight of two parties to gain custody of children or properties. In a Catholic-majority country like the Philippines, it’s a last resort, because most people would urge couples to stay together and work things out. In UnMarry, we get to see what it’s like for those who have decided it is simply not possible to be together anymore.

Directed by Jeffrey Jeturian, this MMFF Second Best Picture-winning drama follows Celine (played by Angelica Panganiban) and Ivan (Zanjoe Marudo), a couple who separately process the dissolution of their marriages through annulment. While it’s loosely based on real-life annulment cases in the Philippines, it doesn’t take a totally serious route to get there. The film is mainly a meet-cute between the two leads, who arrive together at the law office of their attorney, Jacqueline (Eugene Domingo), their separate appointments mistakenly booked at the same time. By then, the seed for the unmistakable chemistry between these two strangers has been planted.

Before all of that, the film opens with Atty. Jackie, also the host of a law-centered YouTube channel, taking her subscribers through the step-by-step process of getting an annulment. Both the courtroom drama and love story aspects of the film are cute and entertaining, and blend surprisingly well together, which is a testament to the strength of Chris Martinez and Therese Cayaba’s screenplay. The film shines when it goes into the nitty-gritty, where couples are pressured to relive their traumas and tarnish each other’s images, and the children are forced to enter an unfair arrangement of being volleyed back and forth between parents.

Eventually, the chance encounter that introduces Celine and Ivan to each other evolves into a close friendship, where they navigate heartbreak and the possibility of starting over. Jeffrey Jeturian’s direction is able to blend accessible comedic moments with the nuances of a pensive character study — and that’s what makes UnMarry such a smooth ride, even for those who have no real-world knowledge or experience with annulment.

Angelica Panganiban was the stand-out as Celine, a headstrong Caviteña who built a successful bakeshop and now seeks to annul her marriage with the wealthy, elitist snob of a man who funded her dream (Tom Rodriguez in a one-note evil role that wasn’t really Best Supporting Actor-worthy). Though Panganiban didn’t win the MMFF Best Actress award, we think she most likely came very, very close with this excellent performance, where she grapples with how a controlling man molded her into something she’s not and takes steps to extricate herself from him.

Zanjoe Marudo holds his own as the artist Ivan, who is dealing with a failing career and subsequent alcoholism, which has led his beautiful TV reporter wife (played by Solenn Heussaff in a strong comeback role) to seek out an annulment. Things become even more dire when it’s revealed he was a negligent parent at his rock bottom. Marudo plays the pathetic desperation yet heartfelt motivation to do better well, but it’s still Panganiban who carries the film, as she comforts him and confides in him. Her inherent charisma and sympathetic acting choices lead to natural chemistry with every person around her.

Of course, there’s the unflappable Eugene Domingo, whose supporting role as their attorney serves as both the comedic yet logical and informative backbone of the story. Through her, the audience can easily pick apart the legalese and get to the heart of why these annulment cases happen, and what must be done to see them through — on either side of the custody or property battle. Most importantly, we experience it all with the light touch of a drama-ready comedienne. With that said, Domingo doesn’t overpower anyone, her part in the film just enough to let the leads take the limelight.

This courtroom drama/unlikely story of friendship between two struggling souls utilizes the ensemble, each character playing a vital role in Celine and Ivan’s attempt to calmly see through the supposed ends of their respective marriages. A highlight scene would be Celine’s return home to her mother (Shamaine Buencamino), who wistfully yet lovingly embraces her daughter amid the less-than-ideal circumstances that she has found herself in.

As the cross-examination of Celine and Ivan’s marriages continues, the emotional depth becomes clear. In a country where dissolving a marriage is extra painstaking, the film suggests that this escalates the hurt that is caused in everyone involved. It breaks down the strangeness of the process, and the unlikely lessons one learns going through it. There is no doubt whatsoever that UnMarry is one of the strongest MMFF films in recent years.