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Kapag Wala Nang Mga Alon, Leonor Will Never Die are the big winners at 2023 Gawad Urian

A SCENE from Kapag Wala Nang Mga Alon.

FILIPINO auteur Lav Diaz’s black-and-white morality drama Kapag Wala Nang Mga Alon was one of the night’s two big winners at the 46th Gawad Urian Awards. From its nine nominations, it won four awards: Best Picture, Best Screenplay, Best Cinematography, and Best Actor for John Lloyd Cruz.

The ceremony was held on Nov. 30 at the University of the Philippines-Diliman’s Cine Adarna in Quezon City.

Kapag Wala Nang Mga Alon shared the same number of wins with Martika Ramirez Escobar’s Leonor Will Never Die, which clinched the Best Director, Best Score, Best Production Design, and Best Editing awards.

Leonor Will Never Die follows the titular retired filmmaker (played by Sheila Francisco) who falls into a coma and is sucked into one of her action films. The film won a Special Jury Prize for Innovative Spirit at last year’s Sundance Film Festival.

The 187-minute Kapag Wala Nang Mga Alon chronicles the inner turmoil of Lieutenant Hermes Papauran (played by Mr. Cruz) in relation to the drug war, the atrocities corroding him spiritually and physically in the form of a severe skin disease.

The film was at the Locarno Film Festival earlier this year, where Mr. Cruz was awarded the Golden Jug for Best Actor. — Brontë H. Lacsamana

And the winner is…

The 46th Gawad Urian Awards were held on Nov. 30 at the University of the Philippines-Diliman’s Cine Adarna in Quezon City. The annual film awards are given by the Manunuri ng Pelikulang Pilipino, a group of film critics.

This year’s winners are:

• Best Film: Kapag Wala Nang Mga Alon
• Best Director: Martika Ramirez Escobar (Leonor Will Never Die)
• Best Actress: Max Eigenmann (12 Weeks)
• Best Actor: John Lloyd Cruz (Kapag Wala Nang Mga Alon)
• Best Supporting Actress: Claudia Enriquez (12 Weeks)
• Best Supporting Actor: Soliman Cruz (Blue Room)
• Best Screenplay: Lav Diaz (Kapag Wala Nang Mga Alon)
• Best Cinematography: Larry Manda  (Kapag Wala Nang Mga Alon)
• Best Documentary: 11,103 by Mike Alcazaren and Jeannette Ifurung
• Best Short Film: Sa Paglupad ka Banog by Elvert Bañares
• Best Editing: Lawrence Ang (Leonor Will Never Die)
• Best Production Design: Eero Yves Francisco (Leonor Will Never Die)
• Best Music: Alyana Cabral, Pan de Coco, and Joseph Salcedo (Leonor Will Never Die)
• Best Sound: Kristian Eidnes Andersen (Nocebo)
• Natatanging Gawad Urian: Jaime Francisco Garcia Fabregas

Daryl is in his house with Todd Rundgren

Concert Review
Daryl Hall and the Daryl’s House Band
Nov. 27
SM MOA Arena

KATHNIEL’S break-up didn’t register on my seismic scale of dismay, but Daryl sowing creative oats without John, though admittedly for years now, was disconcerting. What is the sky without the earth, coffee without cream, water without two doses of Hall’s lead vocals and one dose of the back-up harmonies of Oates?

They never actually legally broke up while crafting their solo careers. (Seriously, have you heard anything either has done, on their own?) But viral headlines have emblazoned a restraining order, one accusing the other of bad faith over the shared custody of their offspring: a multi-million dollar playbook that John Oates seeks to divest and sell to other parties, allegedly without Daryl Hall’s knowledge. Accusations ping pong across legal nets, and one can’t help but think there are deeply personal issues at play here.

Hall developed a loyal following through his music series Live from Daryl’s House, first broadcast online in 2007, now playing on multiple channels on its 89th episode. I’d only heard about this show at a recent whisky sampler evening at home, and amidst a mellow buzz, saw YouTube videos of a very generous Hall opening up his home to musical artists of all genres as he lets them shine singing their own music. They are accompanied by superb musicians known as Daryl’s House Band that also provide the background vocals. Oates appeared in an episode or two as one of the earliest guests, and the title of one of the duets? “Backstabber.” Prophetic?

Featured guests would also sing from the Hall and Oates song catalog and infuse new life with the interpretation. Listen to a more mature rendition of “I Do” by the latest House guest Lisa Loeb with Hall’s gruff second voice, and a completely fresh viewpoint of Loeb as a woman blasting the entitlement of a spoilt brat in “Rich Girl,” one of Hall and Oates’ number one singles.

And if Hall can’t bring you to his house, he brings his House to the world in a multi-country tour called Daryl Hall and the Daryl’s House Band. A one-night show at SM Mall of Asia Arena held a stage recreated to look like you were invited to Daryl’s house. The audience area was three-fourths full, pretty terrific for an artist whose major hits are from the 1970s to the ’90s.

But Hall took his time. Though announcements said that show would start at 8 p.m., Daryl’s fellow Philly BFF Todd Rundgren (sorry, John), who has appeared multiple times on Daryl’s House, came onstage 30 minutes early and commandeered the band for a full hour. Not just a “front act,” for sure, with more than a dozen songs.

Full disclosure. I had no idea the impact that Rundgren had on rock and popular music, and was only familiar with his slower, more commercially accessible hits “Hello It’s Me” (1972), “Can We Still be Friends” (1978), and “I Saw the Light” (1972). Just today, as I write this, I’m stunned to find out that with his former band Utopia he co-wrote “Love is the Answer,” catapulted in the charts by the version of England Dan and John Ford Coley.

I genuinely was happy to see many gray hairs in the audience singing along to his rock collection. Utopia and Rundgen’s earlier albums seemed to have staked a deep claim in many hearts through generations. His particular cover of Marvin Gaye’s “I Want You” was soul-stirring (I was only familiar with the Robert Palmer release), but that does nothing to indicate the diverse range of musical styles that influenced his compositions. Listening to him that night was like his version of Taylor Swift’s Eras tour, straddling the worlds of classic rock, pop ballads, and experimental tripping.

The man of the hour entered his House at half-past eight with his trademark jacket and cowboy hat. The band played the most recognizable over-40-second intro to any song.  “Maneater,” the biggest hit of Hall and now estranged Oates, which shook up the Arena. I tried to shake off the sense that it was a little rude to your ex to start with that, and wondered how the entire Daryl House tour could legally get away with claiming to be a single parent to a stream of hits sired so publicly with a long-time partner. On top of that, many of the band members were intrinsic to the Hall and Oates sound.

But as one hit played after the other, with a smattering of Hall’s own compositions as solo artist, I have to admit that my missing John Oates was for purely sentimental, hanging-on-to-the-past reasons. The renditions morphed from pop songs on the radio to cooler, funkier, back-to-basics arrangements, with musicians that had the best time playing, while playing, and playing off each other. Which is the best part of watching a live concert. Of course, a singer changes register when the notes can’t be managed in a live concert with the same robustness as the recorded version. Age has less to do with it than preserving one’s vocal cords. But Daryl and his band were in total sync with “Say it Isn’t So,” “Out of Touch,” and “Sara Smile,” the last one with a thoroughly enjoyable extended play by lead guitarist Shane Theriot.

When at the piano, Hall proudly reminded the audience that he composed the Paul Young chart-topper “Everytime You Go Away.” Now it was the turn of long-time sax collaborator Charlie DeChant to shine. It may not be an exaggeration to say that DeChant contributed significantly to the success of many Hall and Oates hits.

The evening had many highlights. Rundgren returned for a pair of duets with Hall: his own “Can We Still be Friends” and Hall’s “Wait for Me,” turning the Arena into the biggest karaoke club. The encore was generous, with “Kiss on My List” in a mash up — okay, medley — with “Private Eyes.”

But the rousing point of the evening was an eight-minute “I Can’t Go for That” like you’ve never heard before. There was call-and-response between guitar and sax, gospel-like tones of percussionist Porter Carroll, Jr., and riff upon riff of “No No Nos” that had me head-bopping like The Kiffness’ “Vibe Cat” in a jazz club. (Please look that up!)

So where to from here? What does John Oates get out of Daryl Hall’s House party of mutual friends that he hasn’t been invited to, where they gather round and sing songs that are a part of his DNA? (Looks like I haven’t moved on, after all.) Time will tell if a civil reconciliation is in their future. Meanwhile, we learn to manage our expectations about the inevitability of change. That people grow old and outgrow each other. That you can’t expect those who rocked your world 30, 40 years ago to sound the same, look the same, be the same. Relationships come and go, betrayal may always be in the offing, and that Kath has nine more lives away from Niel. But one thing’s for sure. No matter how much Todd Rundgren has blown his fans’ minds with his songs, he has to stop wearing a vest without a shirt.

KISS avatars go on tour after Paul Stanley, Gene Simmons retire

KISS (@KISS) / X (TWITTER.COM)

WHEN KISS’ veteran rock stars take the stage for the last time after a 50-year career, they’ll hand their legacy over to three-dimensional avatars that will continue playing after they retire.

The band agreed to let avatars created by George Lucas’s visual-effects company Industrial Light & Magic perform “God Gave Rock and Roll to You” as a final song at Madison Square Garden in New York on Saturday.

In this vein, lead singer Paul Stanley and bandmates Gene Simmons, Eric Singer, and Tommy Thayer have something in common with Swedish pop group ABBA. The group is in discussions to let their avatars continue to tour in a deal with Pophouse Entertainment Group AB, the company behind ABBA Voyage. Details are yet to be ironed out.

The band is known for its electrifying live performances, having recorded 44 albums that have sold more than 100 million copies combined.

“What we’ve accomplished has been amazing, but it’s not enough,” Mr. Stanley said in a taped video shared with Bloomberg. “The band deserves to live on because the band is bigger than we are.”

Their digital personas are featured as younger-version fantasy-based superheroes with spectacular powers — including a fire breathing Mr. Simmons with dragon wings.

ABBA Voyage has sold more than 1.9 million tickets, according to Pophouse Chief Executive Officer Per Sundin. The shows rake in more than $2 million a week for performances featuring three-dimensional renderings of Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad, which perform the group’s past hits including “Dancing Queen” and “Fernando.”

A KISS avatar tour will likely take two-to-three years to organize. Before a show materializes, the avatars may also appear on other platforms like gaming, metaverse, or “a totally new vehicle in the entertainment business,” Per Sundin said.

“We couldn’t do this with any artist. It needs to be a band with legacy, with really dedicated super-fans,” Sundin said in an interview. What also makes Kiss so well suited for an avatar version are the members’ strong characters, he said. “Their makeup. They have their personalities. There are even Marvel magazines about them where they have superpowers.” — Bloomberg

Godzilla is back, because so is nuclear angst

GODZILLA Minus One (2023) —IMDB.COM

ALONG with his famed atomic breath, one of Godzilla’s powers is the ability to regenerate. The long-running movie series can revive itself, too.

The latest entry, Godzilla Minus One, is meeting with unprecedented critical acclaim. Hailed as among the best of the nearly seven-decade history, the 30th Japanese-made movie in the series holds a near-perfect 98% rating on movie review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes.

The concept has remarkable (city-smashing) legs — indeed, it’s the longest-running movie franchise in history. After opening in Japan last month, Godzilla Minus One hit theaters in the US last week, and re-imagines the monster’s attack as occurring in the immediate aftermath of World War II, earlier than previously depicted.

Godzilla strikes Tokyo where residents are just beginning to piece their lives back together from the ravages of war, in a country without an army and occupied by the GHQ of Gen. Douglas MacArthur. Like the best entries in the series, it humanizes the disaster through its cast, led by Ryunosuke Kamiki, who plays a kamikaze pilot plagued with guilt after fleeing his duty. Set in 1947, the aftermath of the war is front and center, straddling a line frequently seen in Japanese cinema of deploring the needless sacrifice of human lives, while simultaneously having pride in the Japanese war industry’s ingenuity and engineering.

Indeed, the war has always been core to Godzilla. The monster himself has been seen to represent the US, the academic Chon Noriega argued in a seminal 1987 paper.* He might be the physical manifestation of the “sleeping giant” that Japanese admiral Isoroku Yamamoto was supposed to have warned of waking in the US, prior to the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor.

Over its history, the series has strayed into the ridiculous, casting Godzilla as something of an antihero. But even in the most classic depictions, the monster is rarely portrayed as evil or an object of hate. Instead, he is a force of nature, similar to a typhoon — one we ourselves are responsible for. US actions during the war are often viewed similarly in Japan.

But Godzilla endures, even as US-Japanese relations have been transformed from the era of occupation to today’s age of lockstep alliances to keep China in check. The other thing crucial to the monster’s persistence is how it speaks to our fear of the atomic age. From the first depiction as a beast unleashed due to irresponsible testing of the hydrogen bomb in the Pacific, the specter of thermonuclear annihilation, atomic fallout, and invisible but deadly radiation have been at the center of the kaiju’s space in the public imagination.

Perhaps this is seen nowhere more clearly than in 2016’s Shin Godzilla by Evangelion creator Hideaki Anno, that re-imagined the monster’s march of destruction in a modern era and was a pointed critique of government inaction and incompetence after the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster.

Godzilla Minus One, unfortunately, lacks this deeper subtext — it doesn’t have much fresh to say about nuclear weapons or atomic power. That feels like a dropped ball; there was a post-Oppenheimer chance to say something about Japan’s shifting attitudes toward nuclear energy, which already feels a world away from the skepticism that prevailed when Shin Godzilla was in theaters. The concerns surrounding the release of treated water from the Fukushima plant show that an often-illogical fear of the nuclear remains. In the years since Anno’s movie was released, North Korea is believed to have tested a hydrogen bomb, while a hot war in Asia often feels to be edging closer.

Nonetheless, in its shocking depiction (look away now to avoid mild spoilers) of Godzilla’s atomic breath, which rips through downtown Ginza like a nuclear blast, the movie excels in its visually stunning recreation of destruction. The scene puts paid to the idea of Oppenheimer being somehow too offensive for Japanese sensibilities, although the movie is still yet to receive an official release date in Japan. After the attack, shocked survivors sit as black rain falls, just as in the aftermath of the two nuclear strikes in 1945.

Speaking of its visuals, it’s worth noting Minus One’s astounding effects, all achieved on a reported budget of just $15 million. In a year where Walt Disney Co. has had flop after $200-million flop, there might be lessons for Hollywood studios about how to create a spectacle on a shoestring.

Despite the rave reviews, as a subtitled movie Minus One still feels unlikely to become a breakout overseas hit. But Godzilla continues to generate new forms: Apple TV+ recently began streaming the series Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, the latest entry in Legendary Pictures’ “Monsterverse” attempt to build a shared universe that includes King Kong and other creatures. Next year, cinema’s two most famous giant creatures meet again in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire.

These Hollywood monster mashes probably won’t capture the deeper meaning of the best work in the series — those that play more on profound societal fears, elevating Godzilla beyond disaster porn. But they show how the monster, like Hello Kitty or Mario, has become a symbol of Japanese pop culture that extends well beyond its shores — and is set to regenerate and endure still further.

*While I am referring to Godzilla as “him,” there is quite an intense online debate on Godzilla’s gender. — Bloomberg Opinion

Maynilad sets P227-billion spending plan until 2027

WEST-ZONE CONCESSIONAIRE Maynilad Water Services, Inc. aims  to spend P227 billion between this year and 2027 to enhance water services and coverage, a company official said.

“From 2023 to 2027, we have committed P227 billion, wherein P171 billion is for capital expenditures (capex), and P56 billion is for operating expenses (opex),” Maynilad Chief Operating Officer Randolph T. Estrellado said in Filipino during a public hearing on Monday.

The commitment comes as the water supply company seeks approval for the extension of its revised concession agreement (RCA) with the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS).

The application seeks the extension of RCA’s term from July 31, 2037 to Jan. 21, 2047, to coincide with the term of Maynilad’s legislative franchise.

Republic Act No. 11600, signed into law on Dec. 10, 2021, granted Maynilad a 25-year legislative franchise until 2047.

The company plans an investment of P874 billion from 2023 to 2047, according to Mr. Estrellado. Of the total, about P397 billion is set aside for capex, and P477 billion for opex, he said.

Maynilad aims to expand its service coverage to 95.5% by 2027 and 98.6% by 2047, providing potable water access to 1.8 million consumers.

“Why is it not 100%? It is because there are still other subdivisions that prefer to operate their own deep wells, so we could not commit that we can hit 100% by 2047,” Mr. Estrellado said.

The planned projects include the construction of new water treatment plants and wastewater facilities, rehabilitation and upgrading of pump stations, and laying of primary lines, among others.

In rate rebasing last year, Maynilad and MWSS already assumed the extension of the concession in determining the tariff required to recover expenditures.

This led to a reduced tariff adjustment of 35.61%, calculated as a one-time adjustment, in contrast to 58.56% without assuming the extension.

“The extension represents a mutually beneficial arrangement for Maynilad and our valued customers. Beyond our commitment to ensuring a sustainable water future, it underscores our dedication to making our services more affordable to our consumers,” Maynilad President and Chief Executive Officer Ramoncito S. Fernandez said.

“By reducing the necessary tariff increase, we’re making water services more affordable, making life better for the communities we serve,” he added.

Currently, the company is constructing the P11-billion Pob-lacion Water Treatment Plant, which is designed to produce 150 million liters per day (MLD) of potable water at full capacity.

The water treatment plant is targeted for full operations by the first half of 2024.

At present, Maynilad has two treatment plants in Barangay Putatan, Muntinlupa, that draw water from Laguna Lake and produce a combined 300 MLD of water supply for around 1.7 million customers in the south. The Poblacion Water Treatment Plant will be Maynilad’s third facility to obtain raw water from this same source.

The company serves Manila, except portions of San Andres and Sta. Ana. It also operates in Quezon City, Makati, Caloocan, Pasay, Parañaque, Las Piñas, Muntinlupa, Valenzuela, Navotas, and Malabon.

It also supplies the cities of Cavite, Bacoor, and Imus, and the towns of Kawit, Noveleta, and Rosario, all in Cavite province.

Metro Pacific Investments Corp., which has a majority stake in Maynilad, is one of three Philippine units of Hong Kong-based First Pacific Co. Ltd., the others being Philex Mining Corp. and PLDT Inc.

Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has an interest in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera

Entertainment News (12/05/23)

Fil-Am film Asian Persuasion now in theaters

A MULTICULTURAL Filipino-led film is showing this week — Asian Persuasion, the directorial debut of Filipino-American producer-director Jhett Tolentino. Filmed entirely in New York, it is about down-on-his-luck chef Mickey (played by Dante Basco), who cooks up a crazy scheme to avoid alimony obligations by marrying off his ex-wife Avery (played by KC Concepcion in her acting comeback) through a fake internet dating profile. The film premiered at the SOHO International Film Festival in New York, where it won the Audience Choice Award for full-length feature.

James Taylor set to perform in Manila

OVATION Productions has announced that it will be bringing music legend James Taylor to Manila for a concert, An Evening with James Taylor, on April 8, 2024, at the Mall of Asia Arena. Mr. Taylor has sold over 100 million albums throughout his career and has been inducted into both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. His hits include “Fire and Rain,” “Something in the Way She Moves,” and many more. The presale of tickets for An Evening with James Taylor starts on Dec. 6 at 10 a.m., while the general sale starts on Dec. 8 at 12 p.m. via smtickets.com. Ticket prices range from P2,500 to P12,500.

Korean indie band The Rose to tour in Manila

FOR KOREAN alternative pop-rock band The Rose, 2024 may be the biggest year yet. They will be kicking it off with a multi-city world tour, with the Asia leg featuring shows in Jakarta, Manila, Mumbai, and Seoul. The announcement comes after a successful year of their US Headline tour and festival concerts throughout Europe. Pre-sale tickets for the 2024 concert in Manila will be available on their fan-driven app The Rosarium starting Dec. 7 at 11 a.m., ahead of the general sale on Dec. 11 via Ticketnet.

The Boy and The Heron release pushed to January

THE LONG-AWAITED Hayao Miyazaki film will be seen in Philippine cinemas for the first time on Jan. 8 instead of its initial November release date. A semi-autobiographical fantasy, the animated film follows a young boy yearning for his mother who ventures into a world shared by the living and the dead. For further updates, stay tuned to Encore Films PH.

ATEEZ releases new studio album

GLOBAL chart-topping group ATEEZ have released their long-awaited second studio album, The World Ep.Fin: Will. The full-length album is out now via Sony Music Korea/RCA Records. It contains 12 tracks, including “Crazy Form,” which takes on a dancehall genre infused with an Afrobeat rhythm. The released preview video for the album has already garnered over 3 million views on YouTube. With the wrap of their tour, ATEEZ World Tour The Fellowship: Break The Wall, selling out shows in multiple continents including North America, Europe, Latin America, and Asia, the group is set to start a new musical chapter with the new release. The album is now available on all streaming platforms.

Donny Pangilinan drops new song

SINGER and actor Donny Pangilinan is finally releasing new original music after over two years. Known for his versatility and charisma, Mr. Pangilinan is returning to the music scene with his new single, “Biglaan.” It tells the story of a guy unexpectedly falling in love with a girl, with a light and catchy tune. “Biglaan” was produced by Shadiel Chan and follows his song “Wings,” released in October 2021. It already has over 4 million streams on Spotify. It is now available to stream on all platforms.

NLEX Corp. eyes P15 billion to support projects in 2024

NLEX Corp., a unit of Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC), plans to raise P15 billion for capital expenditures (capex) in 2024, aiming to support existing projects and expansion plans, its president said.

“Next year, it is about P15 billion [to fund] existing and our planned expansion,” NLEX Corp. President and General Manager J. Luigi L. Bautista told reporters on the sidelines of the TranspoCon 2023 last week.

To recall, the company had allocated P10 billion for major road and enhancement projects this year.

The company aims to complete the third Candaba viaduct project, which currently has a 30% progress rate, according to Mr. Bautista.

The P7.89-billion Candaba third viaduct project in Pampanga is initially expected to be operational by November this year.

The project is being implemented in partnership with Hong Kong-based Leighton Asia and is covered by the NLEX concession deal.

The Candaba third viaduct project will feature a new road that will be constructed between the two existing viaducts, thereby increasing the capacity of the Candaba viaduct to three lanes with inner and outer shoulders in each direction.

NLEX will also continue its road widening project in San Fernando, Pampanga, Mr. Bautista said, citing that the pain point on NLEX is the traffic congestion from San Fernando to the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX).

The road widening project, Mr. Bautista said, is valued at P5.5 billion. The construction will begin in the first quarter of 2024 and will take two years to complete.

“We call it NLEX Segment 3 widening. It is going to be from San Fernando all the way to SCTEx. We are going to add one line in each direction,” he said.

MPTC is the tollways unit of Metro Pacific Investments Corp., one of three key Philippine units of Hong Kong-based First Pacific Co. Ltd., the others being Philex Mining Corp. and PLDT Inc.

Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has a majority stake in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. 

‘Mr. Shooli’ Jun Urbano, 84

MANUEL “JUN” URBANO, JR., an actor, comedian, and director best known for the popular satirical character Mr. Shooli, died early on Saturday, Dec. 2. He was 84.

His family confirmed on social media that the cause of death was a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm.

Mr. Urbano was known for elevating satirical comedy in form and content, both on television and film, according to a Facebook post by the University of the Philippines College of Mass Communication (UP-CMC), which awarded him with this year’s Gawad Plaridel just a month ago.

This year, he was also named the Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) Dr. Jose R. Perez Memorial Awardee due to his “outstanding contribution in Philippine Cinema.”

Mr. Urbano’s body of work is best characterized by the persona of Mr. Shooli, star of the 1980s political commentary show Mongolian Barbecue. He was also the director and writer of the 1991 film Juan Tamad at Mr. Shooli: Mongolian Barbecue.

Younger Filipinos may remember him as Sifu in the iconic 1996 fantasy adventure film Magic Temple, where he sends out his three teenage pupils to vanquish the forces of evil in Samadhi.

Aside from film and television, Mr. Urbano worked as an advertising director, responsible for over 2,000 commercials since the 1970s.

Over the past three years, his YouTube channel, under the name “Mr. Shooli,” remained active with uploads surrounding political discourse, sometimes with the character on his own and other times with Filipino politicians as guests.

“I remember what one of our national artists, Manuel Conde, told me. He said, Mr. Shooli, if you want the patient to get well because he’s very sick but does not want to take the bitter medicine, tell him a joke,” Mr. Urbano said in his acceptance speech, where he came as Mr. Shooli, at the Gawad Plaridel awarding in October.

National Artist Manuel Conde, born Manuel Urbano, Sr., was his father.

“When the mouth opens to laugh, that’s when you put the medicine in,” he said. “That’s what I’m doing, so I hope everything Mr. Shooli says leaves an impact.”

His son, Chris Urbano, shared a picture of the two of them together in a Facebook post, with the caption: “I will cherish this moment for the rest of my life. I love you so much dad, until we meet again.” — Brontë H. Lacsamana

Pueblo de Oro allocates P18B for new projects

PUEBLO DE ORO Development Corp. is allocating P18 billion to expand in key locations, including Cagayan de Oro, Batangas, and Cebu.

In a statement, the property development arm of the ICCP Group said it is developing new housing projects as it seeks to capitalize on the “ongoing resurgence” of the real estate market in several regions.

“As these regions undergo economic revitalization and grapple with the persistent housing backlog, Pueblo de Oro anticipates a surge in demand for both residential and commercial properties. The company’s foresight aligns with its dedication to meeting the evolving needs of the market,” the company said.

Earlier this year, Pueblo de Oro officials said it was planning to invest P13.5 billion in projects in Cagayan de Oro, including Masterson Mile Towers.

Masterson Mile Towers is a high-end, high-rise condominium project comprising five buildings. The company tapped Gensler and Associates from Singapore, and Casas+Architects for the project.

The company is also set break ground on the 31-hectare Southridge development, which is patterned after  Silicon Valley in California.

The company is also expanding in Batangas with the P1.8-billion Pueblo de Oro Courtyards Lipa and P1.7-billion Pueblo de Oro Westwoods Heights Batangas City. These projects will offer single detached and single attached houses for the middle-income market.

In Cebu province, Pueblo de Oro is earmarking P1.2 billion for PDO Townhomes Carcar. The economic housing community is scheduled to be launched in October 2024.

Pueblo de Oro is the residential development arm of the ICCP Group, which has business interests in financial services and property management.

DoubleDragon sees further increase in Dragon8 Mall’s customer count

DOUBLEDRAGON CORPORATION

LISTED property developer DoubleDragon Corp. on Monday said its Dragon8 Mall in Divisoria, Manila, expects a further increase in customer count during the holiday rush after reaching a three-year high.

DoubleDragon reported a weekend foot traffic of 67,136 customers, the company said in a statement to the stock exchange. 

“The customer volume… is expected to further increase in the coming weeks,” the company added.

The company also expects its customer foot traffic to surpass 200,000 upon the completion of the North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) urban rail project. 

The Tutuban (Manila)-Malolos (Bulacan) rail project is part of the 163-kilometer NSCR urban rail transit system from Calamba in South Luzon to Clark in Central Luzon. It is expected to carry more than 200,000 commuters daily.

“The upcoming completion of the initial 38-kilometer Malolos-Tutuban rail project, to be followed by the completion of the whole 163 kilometers NSCR urban rail transit project is expected to become a major catalyst in further liven up the economic activity in Divisoria Manila area,” DoubleDragon said.

For the third quarter, DoubleDragon said its net income attributable to the equity holders of the parent company climbed 94% to P626.15 million from P322.64 million last year.

While its third quarter revenues declined 13.8% to P2.2 billion from P2.56 billion but was offset by a 7% decline in costs and expenses to P1.28 billion from P1.38 billion.

Its DoubleDragon8 Mall in Divisoria houses 405 tenants, the company said.

The company’s total assets now stood at P163 billion and has now finished 1.3 million square meters of gross-floor-area portfolio. 

At the local bourse on Monday, shares in the company went down by 21 centavos or 2.53% to end at P8.10 apiece. — Ashley Erika O. Jose

Valuable lessons in preparedness

FILIP ANDREJEVIC-UNSPLASH

There are management lessons to be taken from America’s mismanagement of its security and defense preparedness that rumbled through three decades of wrong turns that have led to its current precarious situation. Here’s what I gathered from my research.

US security officials fear that Beijing fully understands America’s readiness deficiency and may exploit it by attacking or blockading Taiwan within the next few years. They’ve taken note of President Xi Jinping’s orders to the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) to be ready to invade Taiwan by 2027 (or thereabouts), despite his dismay of Russia’s “very poor performance” in Ukraine.

After Taiwan’s President visited the US and obtained pledges from US authorities to arm Taiwan last April, the PLA rehearsed blockading the island for several days. It then released a statement that it is “ready to fight… at any time to resolutely smash any form of ‘Taiwan independence’ and foreign interference attempts.” In recent months, several Chinese fighter jets buzzed American military aircraft over the South China Sea (SCS).

Top US defense officials acknowledge valid concerns over the possibility that Beijing may even act against Taiwan sooner than later. A sense of urgency moved President Joe Biden to invoke the emergency Defense Production Act to rebuild and expand the nation’s domestic hypersonic missile industry, a key area of Chinese advancement that US officials’ fear will be used by Beijing to push US ships and bases out of close range in the Asia-Pacific region.

Many critics say it’s not enough citing that the US is in a “window of maximum danger.” According to them, the US could throw a trillion dollars a year at the defense budget now, but it still won’t get a meaningful increase in military capabilities in the next five years because it doesn’t have the industrial base it once had. China and other countries — not all friendly — produce and supply what the US used to manufacture.

The US heedlessly ceded shipbuilding, aircraft parts, and circuit boards over to China. America’s new F-35 fighter jets, for example, contain a magnet component made with an alloy almost exclusively manufactured in China. China dominates tools and metals essential to missiles and munitions production; lithium used in batteries; cobalt, aluminum, and titanium for semiconductors. China industrialized while the US foolishly deindustrialized.

It took decades of delusional thinking by both political parties about turning China into a friendly “stakeholder” in a peaceful international system. After the Cold War, Washington was lulled into defense doldrums from which it is still not fully awakened. After the Soviet Union disintegrated in 1991, America expected a “peace dividend.” Russia sought US advice in shifting to a market economy. It was cooperating in eliminating nukes. China was brought into the World Trade Organization, with it naively expecting Beijing to observe the US-dominated rules-based international system, a policy that both Republicans and Democrats supported.

After the Gulf War and the advent of the “smart bomb” era in 1991, complacency spread far and wide. In 1993, the US shrank its military-industrial complex that shaped the course of the next 30 years. It precipitated a whole series of consolidations as well as dependence on global supply lines that incorporated China, a possible future adversary. I was surprised during an official visit to Israel in 1995 when a top security official confided that the US was dismissive of Israel’s analysis that China was America’s real foe.

Successive administrations pushed industry to globalize, despite export restrictions on defense technology sharing. Defense spending dropped. Unwinding America’s Cold War defense apparatus went a bridge too far. Its industrial base was reduced to one or two monopoly suppliers for everything from large-scale weapons systems to a whole array of crucial components. More importantly, its liberal democracy allowed easy infiltration and espionage.

So, here we are today after three decades. America’s weaknesses are being fully exploited by its resurging traditional adversaries — China, Russia, North Korea, Iran and its terror networks. It failed to detect and deter North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs; Russia’s invasion of Ukraine; Iranian-backed terror surprise attacks on Israel; and China’s creeping, then rapid, takeover of the South China Sea. China’s been thumbing its nose at America’s Freedom of Navigation Operations and has, in fact, harassed its planes and ships in taunting defiance.

That explains why, despite the US’ declared “iron-clad” support for the Philippines, China continues to escalate its coercive “gray zone” tactics throughout the SCS, especially in our Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), and occupied islands in the Spratlys that we collectively name the West Philippine Sea (WPS). China is aware that the obsolete Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) does not cover gray zone tactics nor asymmetric warfare in its definition of “attack.”

From our national interest and security perspective, this dire situation is truly a cause for alarm, and the raison d’etre to accelerate military and civil defense preparedness for a scenario that’s more likely to happen, than not — a US-China military showdown that I sense both sides want to happen now to exploit what they see as the other side’s weakness before they get any stronger and more difficult to defeat.

If it doesn’t occur, which is what everyone in their right senses would want for the sake of humankind, then good for us. I’d be thankful as a parent and grandparent that my descendants have a chance to help build a long and better future. We would, at the very least, be prepared for other security challenges that may come our way. But if it does happen, preparedness would enable us to mitigate the impacts on our safety, security, and survival.

I maintain that we must still participate in peacebuilding and conflict resolution. But we should also prepare for the worst outcomes that could come our way. The national leadership is now acutely aware of it, and it must harness the whole-of-nation to focus. Situational awareness of lurking dangers; removing all legal and regulatory obstacles in defense procurement and local manufacturing; redesigning Reserve Force Development; updating military and civil defense preparedness; and sanitizing our environment of fifth columnists must be our top of mind.

This article reflects the personal opinion of the author and does not reflect the official stand of the Management Association of the Philippines or MAP.

 

Rafael “Raffy” M. Alunan III is a former governor of MAP. He was secretary of the Interior and Local Government under President Fidel V. Ramos and is a trustee of the Philippine Council for Foreign Relations.

map@map.org.ph

rmalunan@gmail.com

Bradley Cooper’s Maestro a tale of music, marriage and multitasking

BRADLEY COOPER plays Leonard Bernstein in Maestro. — IMDB.COM

LONDON — Co-writing, directing, producing, and starring in his Leonard Bernstein biopic Maestro was a terrifying undertaking for Bradley Cooper that turned into a journey of joy and courage.

A passion project years in the making, Maestro is the follow up to Cooper’s directorial debut, A Star Is Born.

“In the beginning, realizing how much work would be involved, I was terrified. But the more work I put in, and then each day, I became more and more at ease with the idea of being able to ask everybody to go on this journey,” Cooper told Reuters at the film’s premiere in London on Friday.

“By the end of it, it was just joy and fearlessness.”

Bernstein, who died in 1990, was a celebrated US conductor and composer, who wrote classical music and iconic hit musicals like West Side Story.

Maestro focuses on his relationship with his wife, Felicia Montealegre, played by British actress Carey Mulligan, and on his bisexuality.

“Lenny and Felicia were filled with a lot of passion and we were so excited that we were able to put our energy into a story about people that really loved life and lived life in such a dynamic way,” said Cooper.

“At the time there was so much mutual love for them as a couple, everyone referred to them as Lenny and Felicia. It feels so appropriate that the film is their story and their love story,” added Mulligan, who said being directed by her co-star was her “favorite experience ever.”

“I’ve never experienced anything like it,” she said. “It didn’t feel like two separate things. There’s no acting required, you just are in the scene, I think that’s a testament to a truly great director.”

The children of Bernstein and Montealegre were closely involved in the development of the movie. Maestro was made for their family, said Cooper, and everything else, including Oscar talk, is extra.

“We had a really profound relationship with them throughout this whole experience. It really is about serving their parents in this art form and all this other stuff is awesome and it’s fun, but it has nothing to do with why we did it.”

Maestro starts streaming on Netflix on Dec. 20. — Reuters

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