Waves (2015)

Directed by: Don Gerardo Frasco
Country: Philippines

Movie Review: “Waves”, Don Gerardo Frasco’s directorial debut, is a Filipino English-language romance that lives from intimate conversations, fluctuating moods, complications and uncertainties in a revived relationship between two former lovers, Ross (Baron Geisler) and Sofia (Ilona Struzik), who first met in New York years before, and now decide to give another chance on love by spending a few days in a paradisiacal Filipino island resort. He is a lonesome local resident who became jobless and drinks heavily to drown his sorrows. She is an American model who is about to catch a plane to New York, where she lives and works. The couple seems to enjoy the company of each other but is confronted with old feelings, occasional jealousy and the fact that Sofia has a promising career and a boyfriend waiting for her in New York. We can sense a sort of discomfort when the question if they should or should not sleep in the same bed arises. The mystery and vagueness associated to their past worked well, and the script by Scott Curtis Graham is not so bad, even considering that the film drags here and there. Its main problem has to do with the editing, which revealed some amateurism, especially in the moments where the images present annoying hops and sudden light changes. In terms of performances, experienced Geisler was better than Polish/American model, Struzik, who makes the third cinematic appearance since her 2008 debut. Cebuano filmmaker and cinematographer, Don Frasco, presented some awesome shots, culminating with a swim with sharks, in an emotional waving drama that despite the efforts was unable to always genuinely aim straight to the heart.