Movie Review: The magic is gone in 'Si Agimat, Si Enteng Kabisote, at si Ako'

For a certain generation, the release of a new “Enteng Kabisote” film brings about mixed emotions. Chances are, if you were growing up in the eighties or nineties, your memories of “Okay Ka, Fairy Ko!” are – rose-tinted as they may be – among your most cherished formative TV experiences. 

 

While never straying far from the formula of the American show it was imitating (“Bewitched,” 1964-1972), series star Vic Sotto and his cohorts were able to carve out a comfortable niche for their creation in local pop culture. Two theatrical films released in the early nineties expanded on the formula by adding elements of fantasy adventure to their established sitcom setup. 

 

When the first “Enteng Kabisote” film was announced as an entry in the 2004 Metro Manila Film Fest (nine years after “Okay Ka Fairy Ko!” went off the air), old fans approached the news with an air of cautious optimism and a barrage of curious questions. 

 

Would the old formula hold up? Would Kristine Hermosa as Faye hold a candle to Alice Dixson, Tweetie de Leon, Dawn Zulueta, and, yes, even Roderick Paulate’s portrayals? Would the theme music still be shamelessly cribbed from Disney’s “The Little Mermaid” soundtrack? 

 

Ye olde runaway hit

 

In the end, the questions proved to be moot, as “Enteng Kabisote” went on to become a runaway hit, as did its three sequels and two spin-off crossover films. Today, for better or worse, “Enteng” has become the de facto face of the MMFF, symbolizing everything wrong (and, occasionally, right) with the annual Festival.

 

Where the first two “Entengs” banked on nostalgia and subsequent entries fed off the mass appeal of mindless spectacle, “Si Agimat, si Enteng Kabisote, at si Ako” is a film so completely devoid of direction or purpose, it is stupefying in its ineptitude.   

The “story” sees Judy Ann Santos’ Angelina Kalinisan Orteza (saddled with the nickname, “AKO,” for the purposes of putting a pun in the film’s title), heading up the Philippine arm of a Greenpeace-like organization (the initials of which are also “A.K.O”). She crosses paths, first with everyman Enteng Kabisote and his fairy bride, Faye (Gwen Zamora, her third time in the role) and, soon after, warrior Agimat (Senator Bong Revilla, consistent as ever in his inability to slim down to play fantasy heroes) and his bride-to-be, Samara (Sam Pinto). 

 

Almost immediately, Ako is smitten with Enteng and Agimat, a fact that is exploited in a number of scenes where she foregoes dignity to get the two in a group hug, to the dismay of Faye and Samara. While the main characters concern themselves with Agimat and Samara’s nuptials and relocation to Earth from their enchanted kingdom, an oversized octopus from outer space is on the way to Earth with an army of four-armed (50 percent cheaper to animate than with eight arms?) minions to consume our natural resources.

 

Fortunately, Ako is an undercover fairy specializing in high technology, who ends up teaming up with Enteng and Agimat to defeat the invaders.

 

Santos shines as plot fades

 

If the preceding summary threw you off, don’t dwell on it too much. There’s really no good reason you should, if the filmmakers didn’t. 

 

The plot—such as it is—is merely an excuse to string together a series of sophomore gags and one-liners that invariably end with Sotto and/or Revilla hugging and/or kissing their significant others. 

 

Of the cast, Santos does her best with the material, never coming as close to annoying as her character would have been in the hands of a lesser performer. Ako’s dual infatuation with Enteng and Agimat comes across as genuine hero-worship, a testament to Santos’ abilities as an actor. 

 

Meanwhile, Revilla alternates between squinting heroically and mugging for the light(er)-hearted sequences while Sotto, at this point, can play Enteng in his sleep. Pinto and Zamora have little to do aside from looking pretty, a task for which both are eminently qualified.

 

Fantasy trappings aside, the main draw of the “Enteng” series (and “Okay Ka, Fairy Ko!” before it) has been the overriding notion that love of family and faith in God (yes, fairies believe in God) can push the Filipino familial unit (as represented by Enteng, Faye and friends) to triumph over whatever odds they find themselves facing, be it Luca, Satana or noxious octopi from outer space. 

 

Fairies and a pink Hulk

 

In this film, that notion is turned on its head as, while Amy Perez’ Ina Magenta and Aiza Seguerra’s Aiza do lead a contingent of fairies in fervent prayer for the fate of the world, it is the enchanted weapons wielded by Enteng and Agimat, along with Ako’s fairy powers, that win the day.  

   

Even the series’ commitment to family values is forgotten, with umpteen sequences serving as excuses for Sotto and Revilla to get Zamora and Pinto into bed, including a cringe-worthy scene featuring adjacent tents. That such sequences are played for laughs (showing that misogyny is alive and well in mainstream society) is disturbing enough to me. That Pinto and Zamora are willing to be objectified in such manner is even more so.

 

Lacking anything resembling internal logic, the film resorts to numerous winks and nods to previous entries and cast members, as though to remind viewers that this used to be fun. At this point, even John Lapus as a pink (yes, pink) Hulk and a cameo by Jimmy Santos (and his generous midsection) aren’t enough to keep anyone other than very small children awake.

 

Now, there are those who would (and regularly do) posit the misfortunes that befall the Philippines as a justification for the escapist absurdity on display here. Those people are overlooking the fact that just because something is meant to entertain, nowhere is it written that it must also be inane.

 

With this latest entry having failed to live up to the box office records set by its predecessors, perhaps the filmmakers will get the hint that it may be time to put this series, mercifully, to a long overdue sleep. – KDM/KG, GMA News Photo courtesy of GMA Films

---

Mikhail Lecaros is a professional magazine editor and freelance writer. The views expressed in this article are solely his own.