Phillip McSween (751 KP) rated The Debut (2000) in Movies
Jan 18, 2018
The story revolves around Ben Mercado (Dante Basco). Ben is trying to find himself. He's torn between the lines of his Filipino culture and the rest of the majority world. Racism is tackled head-on, self-racism being one of the most central focuses. When you come from a strong, influential culture, it's not unreal to be scrutinized by others within that culture because you don't confine to the norm. There's power in seeing it unfold in front of you.
I thoroughly enjoyed the insight into the Filipino culture and their traditions. As different as cultures and races can be, it's very interesting to see the similarities that bind us. The birthday party that was thrown for Ben's sister had a familiar feel to the cookouts my mom used to host growing up. At the same time, the differences are also glaring. There is a scene where Ben hits up a party with his friends and he's the only minority there. While he was with people he knew, he still felt out of place. Been there. Interestingly enough, he felt most comfortable around the family and culture he spent part of his life running from, even when there was heavy tension afoot. If that's not real life, I don't know what is.
Director Gene Cajayon made it pretty easy for you to become invested in Ben. You've got everyone trying to decide his life for him while he puts his heart and soul into a passion that no one respects. His father wants him to go to medical school and follow in his own footsteps, but Ben has other plans. Everything comes to a head at his sister's birthday party where the story primarily takes place.
I do wish there were subtitles during the scenes were they were speaking Filipino, however I understand the director's choice to keep that barrier up. At the same time, I felt it lessened the impact of what was being said. It was awkward in spots, but awkwardly real.
The film reinforces one thing among many: We still struggle with race issues today and, unfortunately, it's hard for people on the other side of the coin to properly address those issues. Progress is slow, but as long as there is progress of some sort, it's the only way we can really hope to get better as a society.
So glad this film randomly found its way onto my Movies 365 list. I give it a 73.
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Debbiereadsbook (1454 KP) rated Kiss Me Again in Books
Jun 28, 2019
Aiden fell from the tree he was working on, and ended up in hospital. The only person who seemed to be ale to get through to Aiden was Ludo. Ludo is fighting his own demons again, and Aiden seems to make him all . . well . . he doesn;t know the word but Aiden makes him feel good. And GOOD is not a thing Ludo has had for some time. When Aiden is released and Ludo not, things for oth of them spiral downhill. A chance meeting puts bth men back on track, but can they really be HAPPY? Either of them?
I found this a difficult read. But a very good one!
Ludo is bi-polar, and tries to keep up with his meds, but they keep changing his doses, and the type of meds he is taking, and he knows when he is going down, he can feel it. He can equally feel his highs. And these are the bits I struggled with the most. I have someone close to me who is bi-polar, and they are never able to voice how things make them feel. Getting into Ludo's head, difficult as it was, gave me a bit more insight into my friend's head. Scared me a bit, to be honest, but I really did not fully get what my friend was trying to tell me before. I do a bit better now. So hopefully I can be a better friend.
Aiden is GRUMPY! Oh he made me laugh, he really is a grumpy git, and he knows it! Ludo though, Ludo makes him want to NOT be and he tries, he really does. It just takes him time, since he's been so grumpy for so long.
The relationship between Ludo and Aiden moves at an even pace, steady and solid along the book. Its not overly sexy, but their is heat and steam aplenty. But its not about the sex between these two, it's about learning to love another, and what that menas for them.
Both Ludo and Aiden have their say. While both men are difficult to read, I did love them to pieces. I wanted to wrap them both up and be mum to them, I really did!
I loved the way Ms Leigh tells her tales. It takes time for Ludo's full medical history to come clear, and you get hints and snippets to put together your own version, not always correctly, mind!
I've not read anything else by Ms Leigh before, and this is what love most about reviewing for the blog. NEW to me authors pop up all the time. These authors have published many books, but not crossed my path before. So I'd love to read more by this author.
A thoroughly difficult but very enjoyable
4 solid stars
**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
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