Movie No. 137. Cinemalaya 2013: QUICK CHANGE

Quick Change (2013)
Director: Eduardo Roy Jr.
Cast: Mimi Juareza, Junjun Quintana, Miggs Cuaderno

Quick Change tells the life or Dorina Pineda, a transvestite who is looking for his niche in the society while engaging into the underworld of 'quick change' operations and vanities that cater to beauty-conscious perpetual contestants in gay pageants. He dreams of living a normal life with his live-in partner and a lovable nephew under his care. We witness Dorina as he endures sufferings, gathers hope, and faces acceptance in what seems to him a cruel world.

When I entered the theater, I didn't expect much from this film. One reason could be that, based on the still for this film displayed at the lobby of CCP, showing some transvestites varied pictures of busyness, I had prejudged the film as nothing different from the cheap gay films that disguise as indie films. That there were no name-actors in the cast was also my other reason to not expect too much from this film. But I was wrong! This films, in my opiinion, is one of the better films of this year's edition of Cinemalaya. The actor who played Dorina did well. The child actor who played Dorina's lovable nephew was a scene-stealer, and he was good, too. The film is unsentimental, matter-of-factly.

Rating: 3.5/4.0

Date seen: July 28, 2013