“I won’t lie to you and say that if I see a pretty girl, I won’t admire her beauty. But I want you to know that hanggang tingin lang ’yon. No touch,” ani Derek. Pero, dagdag niya, alam niyang lusutan ang mga ganitong sitwasyon.
“I keep my hands to myself. If girls come up to me and flirt, I just smile at them. ’Di ko naman sila pwedeng bastusin. It’s the same way when guys flirt with Angel, I don’t stop them or fight with them. I want Angel to be able to handle the situation on her own. That makes me feel better, more loved.”
Sa pelikulang “No Other Woman,” si Derek ay si Ram Escaler, isang furniture salesman na sabik na sabik nang magtagumpay. Hindi na rin siya makapaghintay na umalis sa bahay na wedding gift ng ama ng kanyang asawang si Charmaine dela Costa (Cristine Reyes).
Nang malaman ni Ram na naghahanap ang Zalderiaga Group of Companies ng furniture supplier para sa bagong resort, nakakita ito ng oportunidad para kumita at makapag-ipon para makabili ng bagong bahay. Dito niya nakilala si Kara Zalderiaga (Anne Curtis), isang liberated na babae.Nilandi siya ni Kara at nagkaroon sila ng relasyon na noong una ay walang “strings attached.”
Sinubukan ni Charmaine na isalba ang kanilang pagsasama pero sumama lamang ang ugali nito. Kung noong dati ay carefree, ngayong naging mistress ay naging possessive si Kara.“It’s been a while since a movie like this was made,” ani Anne. “A lot of people said they could relate to the characters. Many were actually excited to see it. This makes me nervous. I hope we’d be able to live up to their expectations.”
Game na sinagot ng cast members ang mga tanong sa press conference na ginanap kamakailan sa Dolphy Theater sa ABS-CBN compound, Quezon City. Narito ang bahagi ng tanungan:
How would you react if you find out your partner is cheating on you?
Derek: The best thing to do is to make her choose. It’s hard because I don’t know if I’d be able to forgive and forget. You have to be willing not to bring up the issue in the future. I don’t know if I could do that.
Anne: When you’re put in that position, ’di mo talaga kakayanin. You’d want to know na ikaw pa rin ang pipiliin niya. You’d fight for your love. You’d also want to show to the other girl that it’s you he chose and not her.
Cristine: I’ll ask him to choose between the two of us. If he chooses the other girl, it would only mean he’s not for me. If he chooses me, then he should leave the other girl.
Derek: I think you also have to know why your partner did it, baka may pagkukulang ka rin. Put that into consideration, too.
Would you fight for your partner’s love?
Anne: Yes. I’m the type na kapag na-in love nababaliw talaga. I will go all-out for this person and not think about the consequences of my actions.
Derek: I think we’re all created to love. In the movie, I’m with someone who I think is the perfect partner until another person comes into my life and then I find myself torn between them. I hope this doesn’t happen to me.
Cristine: I don’t want to force myself to someone who doesn’t want me anymore. I know that there’s another person who will treat me with respect and will be loyal to me.
What would you like others to learn from your characters’ experiences?
Anne: You should know when enough is enough. If you know from the very beginning that what you’re doing is wrong, don’t push it anymore.
Derek: Life is filled with temptations. The most important thing is how you deal with the consequences of your actions. If you fall in love with a girl and hurt someone else in the process, make sure you have the decency to make amends with the person you hurt.
Will it make you less of a man if you admit that you made a mistake?
Derek: It makes you more of a man if you accept that you’re wrong. I don’t think all men are cheaters.
Have you ever cheated? Do you consider your current relationship the perfect one?
Anne: I’ve never cheated and never want to cheat because I believe in karma. I don’t want it to happen to me. I don’t think anyone can have a perfect relationship, but I’d like to think that my relationship is the closest thing to perfect. (Anne is currently dating Filipino-French model Erwan Heussaff.)
Derek: I disagree with Anne when she said you can’t have a perfect relationship. I think I have one because I’m very happy. Do we have problems? Yes. Do we argue? Yes. But am I happy? Yes I am.
Cristine: Yes, I think it’s already perfect. (That’s why) I don’t want to cheat. (Cristine is dating actor Rayver Cruz.)
What’s it like working on the film?
Anne: It was a pleasure working with smart actors like Derek and Cristine. We went all-out in this movie not only in the physical scenes, but also in helping our characters grow. If we don’t understand a particular scene, we sit down and discuss it.
Derek: I’ve worked with Anne on TV, but it’s my first time to work with her and Cristine on the big screen. At first, I was very nervous. I thought Cristine is mataray. After working with her, I found out that I was completely wrong. She’s a wonderful woman. So is Anne.
Cristine: I feel flattered to have worked with them. I learned a lot. It was hard to do the drama scenes because Derek was cracking jokes. Anne is really sociable. Direk Ruel also gave his input, that’s why lumabas nang maganda ang lahat.—Inquirer
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