‘Everything About My Wife’ REVIEW: A Whole Lot of Kilig and Laughter, For Better or Worse
‘Everything About My Wife’ REVIEW: A Whole Lot of Kilig and Laughter, For Better or Worse
Dennis Trillo as Dominic and Jennylyn Mercado as Imogen Karuhatan / Taken from CreaZion Studios
Everything About My Wife stars Dennis Trillo as Dominic “Dom” Brizuela, a career-driven architect constantly bombarded by his confrontational wife, Imogen “Imo” Karuhatan played by his real-life partner, Jennylyn Mercado. Starring alongside them is renowned heartthrob Sam Milby, playing the role of Miguel, a guy Dom befriended and is challenged to seduce his wife. It is also a local adaptation of All About My Wife, a film released in 2012 in South Korea. It is also a remake of films that are localized in several countries.
After seven years of marriage, Dom doubts that his vows are still worth fighting for. He finds Imo extremely unbearable, as she frequently asserts herself in his business or excessively berates him, at least from his point of view. When Dom gets assigned to Cebu for a work project, he thinks it is a perfectly timed blessing, as he gets to have space and be away from Imo and her all-seeing eyes. Right off the bat, you would already know that Dom is an avoidant person, a polar opposite of Imo, who’s significantly confrontational.
I was not expecting much from the film; however, it had many good moments compared to the bad as it went on. It was not a film that blew my mind, but it was undoubtedly enjoyable. The first act was a bit dragging, as you see how Dom and Imo’s relationship came to be and how it became seven years later.
It was fascinating how this film tackled something I had in mind before watching the film: couples, and what they initially liked about each other, beginning to hate the very same aspects of their significant other’s personality, even finding it bothersome or annoying. This is a refreshing angle to bring up in a romcom, given that most films under the genre, especially in Filipino film, revolve around the meet-cute trope.
However, the first act suffered from going on way too long than it should have, especially with how the movie’s gimmick of a premise was lazily implied (having another man seduce Imo as a plot point). The second act is probably where it began to get better, as it was pleasingly paced with sufficient punch lines. Miguel was introduced as he is essentially the third person of interest in our complicated love triangle. To be frank, I am not a massive fan of Sam Milby as an actor, and dare I say — I am still not a fan of his acting in this film nor am I looking forward to any of his future projects as he can come across as dull or — for the lack of better term — bland. Dennis Trillo was charming. However, I was not as compelled by his acting chops this time, but it would be a disservice if I said he did not do a decent job. It was Jennylyn Mercado who surprised me the most. Sheshined as Imogen Karuhatan, and essentially carried the film on her back.
Regarding how the film was visually presented, I appreciate sneaking in some very artsy sequences with animation and unique visual effects incorporated and wish it could have occurred more since it was just honestly refreshing. The open ending made me feel indifferent to the film as it was right after a time skip and can come across as hasty writing, or you can view it from an angle of how space can make you sort out feelings that you may not know how to handle. Overall, it’s still a fantastic film to watch, and I would recommend it to couples who might be able to relate to the film’s subject of marriage going dull, and losing the spark and respect for each other over time. Despite its flaws and imperfections, it’s at least rewatchable and forgivable if you are viewing it with a critical eye.
‘Everything About My Wife’ is now showing in Philippine cinemas.
