Words by Glenniedel Terania
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WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD
Joshua Garcia and Julia Barretto are back with their second movie together—Love You To The Stars And Back—and this time, they’ve partnered with top-billed local rom-com director, Antoinette Jadaone.
WATCH: Love You to the Stars and Back Trailer
Love You To The Stars and Back is a rom-com movie about Caloy (Joshua Garcia), a boy with cancer, and Mika, (Julia Barretto) a girl who believes in aliens, who both goes on a road trip that will change their lives forever. The movie was refreshing since it is a break from our usual cliché rom-com. It touched on deeper concepts and, unexpectedly, the extra-terrestrial theme was a good touch.
The undeniable chemistry of JoshLia plus the direction of Jadaone is a sure-hit formula that gave us an out-of-this-world kilig. But while the movie had me laughing from Caloy’s jokes, there were enough share of dramatic scenes that had me reaching for tissues. And while most of you are looking forward to watching the movie because of kilig, I promise you that there is more to this movie than just that.
So if you’re still undecided whether you should watch Love You to the Stars and Back, here are four more reasons why you should watch it:
4. It highlights the Filipino family
The movie portrayed the tight-knit culture of a Filipino family where each member is willing to sacrifice just to support a sick member. Yet they try to act as if they are okay, because they don’t want Caloy to feel like he is a burden to the family. It portrayed how a Filipino family stays strong amidst adversities.
3. It will make you think that nothing is impossible
If you’ve watched the trailer, I’m sure you’ve heard Mika telling Caloy that “nothing is impossible” (walang imposible)—and honestly, I wanted to join them when they had a debate regarding the phrase’s validity. The movie showed us how some seemingly impossible things can be possible as long as you are determined to do it. It threw trivial questions (such as whether carabaos eat humans or not) that you will find yourself thinking about the millions of possibilities in this world.
2. It encourages us to live our lives to the fullest
Caloy having cancer did not stop him from having a sunny disposition. He did what he wanted to do, making sure that he will not regret anything when he dies. Caloy totally understood YOLO (You Only Live Once) and he will surely make you want to try out new things (like maybe try carabao tapa).
1. It teaches us not to give up
While it was not explicitly said, when Mika said she wants to be abducted by aliens, I got the idea that she was actually referring to dying because she used the phrase “abducted by aliens” to explain to Caloy that her mom is dead. And this might be true because before Mika decided to get abducted by aliens, she had a lot of problems and only wanted to be with her mom. So when she and Caloy agreed to go to Mt. Milagros to get abducted by aliens, they may mean that they want to die. Given that they both had their “last” phone calls to their parents, it only strengthens the argument. But in the end, both decided that they will fight until the end.
I love how, ultimately, they realized that there are still a lot of reasons to live despite life’s pains.
Aside from the life lessons, the amazing portrayal of Julia and Joshua of their characters are to watch out for. And of course, the sound track will have you singing “Torete” even after the movie.
Have you watched #LYTSB? Tell us your thoughts!
