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MMFF review: Intense Dingdong Dantes, John Arcilla wow in 'A Hard Day'

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Fred Hawson

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="Dingdong Dantes and John Arcilla in " A="" Hard="" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2021/life/12/25/img_9143.jpg"/><figcaption>Dingdong Dantes and John Arcilla in &#x27;A Hard Day.&#x27; Handout</figcaption></figure></div><p><br/>One night, Detective Edmund Villon (Dingdong Dantes) was rushing to go to his mother&#x27;s wake. At the same time, his fellow officers at the PNP Intel Dept. were being questioned by Internal Affairs so he needed to be there as well. However, when he was trying to avoid a dog on the road, Villon swerved his car only to hit a man crossing the road, killing him instantly. </p><p>After taking great pains to get rid of the body of the man he accidentally killed, Villon realized that his victim was Apyong, the guy involved in the big drug case they were investigating. Soon after Villon began to receive persistent phone calls from someone who had apparently witnessed what he had done and was threatening to report him to the authorities. </p><p>This story and screenplay of this film was adapted from the South Korean sleeper box-office hit film of the same name which debuted at the Cannes Film Festival in 2014. That film made the rounds of all the Korean award-giving bodies, winning several awards for its director and writer Kim Seong-hun, as well as for its two main actors Lee Sun-kyun and Cho Jin-woong. There had also been citations for its technical merits as well. </p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hiu0vB-iGBE?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div><p>This bountiful awards pedigree may bode good chances for awards for this Filipino remake also, and that is not an empty prediction. Director Law Fajardo hit this action thriller project out of the park with his energetic and engaging direction and editing. Cinematography by Rodolfo Aves, Jr. and musical score by Peter Legaste and Rephael Catap also deserve recognition. Both Dingdong Dantes and John Arcilla both turn in intense and committed portrayals.</p><p>With his corrupt money-making rackets, propensity for getting away with wrongdoing and foul mouth, Villon was certainly no saint. However, Dingdong Dantes and his powerful leading man aura makes Villon a sympathetic character to root for. </p><p>By now there is no doubt how effective a despicable villain John Arcilla can be. Here as the despicable Lt. Ace Franco, Arcilla gleefully went for it all out with his signature evil slime dripping profusely in his every scene. </p><p>Dantes and Arcilla were supported by a gallery of character actors who made a cohesive ensemble behind them. Villon&#x27;s teammates at Intel include Al Tantay (as Chief), Janno Gibbs (as Arturo) and Garry Lim (as Elmer). Villon&#x27;s family include Meg Imperial (as his sister Erica), and Lhiane Key Gimeno (as his daughter Yanni). Notable actors in minor roles include Jelson Bay (as a strict traffic officer) and Lou Veloso (as the funeral parlor manager). </p><p>An intelligent, hard-hitting action film like &quot;A Hard Day&quot; is a very welcome addition to this year&#x27;s MMFF, as 2021 had been dominated by silly comedy films, LGBT indie films and sexy erotic films. </p><p>Fajardo&#x27;s executed the car chases with very impressive driving stunts. Those raw gritty fighting scenes were well-choreographed and looked genuinely painful for Dantes and Arcilla. This surely has mainstream appeal especially for the male audience. </p><p>This review was originally published in the author&#x27;s blog, “<a href="https://said-fred.blogspot.com/2021/12/mmff-2021-review-of-hard-day-perplexing.html">Fred Said</a>.”</p>

This story and screenplay of this film was adapted from the South Korean sleeper box-office hit film of the same name which debuted at the Cannes Film Festival in 2014. 