K-dramas adapted for Pinoy taste

Director Dado Lumibao of “Always” says the local version has been adapted to Pinoy sensibilities.

XIAN Lim and girlfriend Kim Chiu are reunited on the big screen after eight long years. Their last film was “All You Need is Pagibig.” Now, they’re together again in Viva’s “Always,” a remake of a hit 2011 Korean film that was also remade in Japan, Turkey and India.

Kim plays Ana, a blind girl, just like the leading lady in the classic Chaplin film, “City Lights,” and Xian plays Lino, a boxer who will help her see again. “Always” is about love and sacrifice. It’s directed by Dado Lumibao, who has also completed another movie for Viva, “The Wedding Dress” starring Cristine Reyes. So what are the changes they made in the local version?

“We were faithful sa flow ng narrative ng original,” says Direk Dado Lumibao. “But we put in more kilig factor and also, mas ginawa namin siyang dramatic toward the end to adapt it for the Filipino sensibility.”

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How are Kim and Xian in the lead roles? “They are both very good in the movie. It helps na sila talaga in real life so comfortable na talaga sa isa’t isa. They give their most mature performance in ‘Always’ and I’m so happy that so far, lahat ng nakapanood ng film, ang feedback is napakagaling nilang dalawa. Their acting is so natural and it’s fun working with them.”

We ask Xian how it feels to be reunited with Kim in “Always”?  “First shooting day namin, parang nagkahiyaan pa kami kasi iba talaga ang environment ng filmmaking kaysa teleserye,” he says. “But once naumpisahan, we both felt good to be back doing something for the big screen.”

How did Xian prepare for the movie and his role as boxer? “Most of our movies before were romantic comedies, like ‘Bakit Di Ka Crush ng Crush Mo?’ and ‘Bride for Sale.’ Now, we’re doing something very dramatic at maraming iyakan. First, we watched the Korean version. Siempre, we don’t want our movie to be just a copy of the original. We put in our personal flavor. For my role as a boxer who goes to underground street fighting, I had to work out hard to make sure ready ang katawan ko, kasi I want to do all the fight scenes myself in the Laban ni Lino sequences.”

Direk Dado says he tried to stop Xian in doing the fight scenes. “Kasi natatakot ako dahil binabalibag siya sa sahig, sabi ko baka mabalian. Ayaw paawat, gusto siya mismo ang gumawa so sabi ko, bahala ka, malaki ka na. In all fairness, na-carry naman niya lahat ng mahirap na eksena.”

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Gina Alajar is one talent who switches easily from acting to directing. In “Start Up Ph,” she plays the pivotal role of Lola Joy who is dear to both Alden Richards and Bea Alonzo in the story. And we noticed that she is also given credit as a director, aside from Jeffrey Sineneng and Dominic Zapata.

“I saw the original Korean version and I really enjoyed it,” she says. “So when they asked for my photo, talagang nag-ayos ako, in character ako as Lola Joy, as I really want to be part of the local version. At nang mapanood ko ang scenes that we shot, I felt so proud. Hindi tayo pahuhuli sa mga Korean! Totoo ‘yan!”

She believes the Pinoy adaptation will be a big hit. “Ang tambalan nina Alden and Bea is really something to look forward to. Maski ako, kinikilig kapag kasama ko sila sa eksena. They really have very good chemistry, pareho silang looking good and radiant on screen. At hindi lang sila as all the actors in the show are very good, like Yasmien Kurdi as Bea’s sister, Jeric Gonzales as Dave na third wheel sa relasyon nina Bea and Alden, pati sina Boy2 Quizon and Royce Cabrera na comic relief as Jeric’s best friends.”

How did she interpret the role of Lola Joy who is a well-loved character in the original? “I will admit na nahirapan ako nung una. At first, I thought parang may mali ako sa mga ginawa kong eksena as Lola Joy and I even asked Direk Jerry kung puedeng mag-reshoot.  But he said, don’t worry kasi okay naman daw ang trabaho ko and I just have to trust him.”

She realized she should not compare herself to the original Korean actress who played the role. “Well loved character si Lola Joy so may pressure talaga for me. Lola naman ako in real life but maliliit pa ang mga apo ko. The eldest is Catalina na 12 lang, anak ni Ryan. So iniisip ko, hindi ko puedeng basta gayahin si Lola Joy na Korean. To begin with, Filipino ako, so I have to maintain my own emotions as a Filipina grandmother.”

And she’s right. We’ve seen the pilot episode of “Start Up PH” and she is really able to hold her own as Lola Joy. We never doubted that Gina will deliver as she is one of our most seasoned actresses. She is really one reason why you have to watch every episode of “Start Up PH” that starts airing this Monday at 8:50 p.m., right after “Lolong.”

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The new AllTV has now officially replaced ABS-CBN on Channel 2. Their banner show is Willie Revillame’s variety show, “Wowowin,” that gives away lots of big prizes everyday.

Apart from Willie Revillame, celebrities who have signed up as exclusive AllTV stars include Toni Gonzaga and her husband, Paul Soriano; TV host-actress Mariel Rodriguez-Padilla; broadcaster Anthony Taberna, and accomplished theater and movie actress, Ciara Sotto. They’re now preparing their own TV programs aimed to please the moviegoing public.

AllTV has also teamed up with CNN Philippines for the airing of its flagship news program, “News Night,” at 6 p.m. from Monday to Friday.

AllTV is available on Channel 2 on free-to-air TV and Planet Cable, Channel 16 on digital TV, and Channel 35 on Cignal TV and Sky Cable. With their operations going full blast, there’s no doubt more jobs will be available for people in the showbiz industry.