TEXT  VOTES  PLAY  A BIG  ROLE IN LOCAL REALITY SHOWS

MANILA, March 4, 2006 (MALAYA) by  MARIO BAUTISTA (‘But the final judging comes from text votes and Iwa made it, ousting Jana Roxas who understandably cried torrents of tears.’) Text votes play a big role in local reality shows

And then there were four. We were at Broadway Centrum last Sunday for the selection of the final four in “StarStruck Nationwide Invasion” and the telecast got so delayed due to the crisis among the marines in Fort Bonifacio that turned out to be much ado about nothing. The four survivors are Jackie Rice of Olongapo, Marky Cielo of Mt. Province, Iwa Moto of Las Pinas and Gian Carlos of Iloilo.

The inclusion of Iwa was a big surprise as she turned off a lot of people during their show in Davao when she called everyone plastic and said she’d quit the show. Even the judges (particularly director Louie Ignacio and Lorna Tolentino) were very vocal in saying they’re scared of Iwa getting into showbiz as she sounds so self-centered and arrogant. But the final judging comes from text votes and Iwa made it, ousting Jana Roxas who understandably cried torrents of tears.

Also a surprise is Gian Carlos besting Chuck Allie of Davao who seems to be a better choice as he has more star quality on screen. But again, it’s the texters who won and they say the entire province of Iloilo supported Gian. Most writers who attended the affair believe both Marky and Gian are not movie star handsome and they’re just following in the footsteps of CJ Muere. As writer Nitz Miralles said: "Ano ba ‘yung mga pumipili? Ang daming ibang guwapo sa Pilipinas, a." Maybe text votes should no longer be given that much importance. Look at what happened even to ABS-CBN’s "Star Circle Quest." Most of those who won are no longer visible especially in their batch 2 two where the likes of Erich, Aaron, DM, etc. show very little promise.

At any rate, the "StarStruck Final Judgment" is slated on March 12 at the new Marikina Sports Park. This will be shown on GMA-7 after "Daddy Di Do Du." Admission is free but you have to get tickets from GMA-7. The winning pair of Ultimate Survivors (in all probability, they’ll be Jackie Rice and Marky Cielo) will win P2 million worth of exclusive GMA management contract and P1 million cash. But the "StarStruck" sole survivor (we hope it’s Jackie as she seems to be the only one who has real star potential) will win a whopping package worth P10 million, the biggest jackpot to be given in any local contest.

In the first eviction night of "Pinoy Big Brother Celebrity Edition" last Saturday, Mang Rudy Fernandez was voted out by texters and Rico Robles and Keanna Reeves were retained. But Mang Rudy is not really the first one to leave Kuya’s house as TV host Angela Calina left after only ten days since she’s worried about the safety of her daughter after their house in Cebu was burglarized.

More recently, fashion designer Mich Dulce had to be taken to the hospital after she suffered from severe anxiety attack. She was not able to return to Kuya’s house anymore as she stayed out for more than 24 hours. This happened after she had a conflict with Keanna Reeves who gave her a piece of her mind for acting so much like a spoiled brat who wanted to be pleased by her housemates all the time. Most viewers sided with Keanna as they felt Mich was really nag-iinarte most of the time. Even her friend, John Prats, was turned off by her being so self-centered and praised Keanna in a private conversation with Rustom Padilla for standing up against Mich. Hopefully, this will give her a lesson in cultivating better interpersonal relationships.

Going back to Mang Rudy, most viewers said he would be better off going back to his family since his leg is suffering while they are doing all the challenges inside Kuya’s house. The skin attached on his metal leg got so irritated and developed some sores than can be infected. Also, they say Mang Rudy is sort of OP (out of place) in the company of the much younger housemates.

So now, three are gone and only 11 housemates are left inside Kuya’s house. Wonder who will be the next to come out. Last Sunday, it was nomination night once again. Christian Vasquez and Rustom were automatically nominated for violations, making hand signals and with Rustom covering his mike while talking. He said he wasn’t aware he did so. Rico was again nominated by his housemates.

A lot of viewers tell us they’re glad the old theme song, "Pinoy Ako" by Orange and Lemons, was brought back as intro to the show. They say the new "Sikat ang Pinoy" theme song composed by Sam Milby and Toni Gonzaga was not as effective and lacks the impact of the Orange and Lemons song and we agree with that.

Also, we’d like to commend Rico and Aleck Bovick for agreeing to go bald as part of their sacrifice for a charitable cause. Her new look certainly becomes Aleck and this is apparent in the photos taken during a special pictorial after they had after their haircutting session.

Jet Li is one international action star who is also an acclaimed martial arts master, starting his training at the Beijing Martial Arts Academy when he was only 9 years old. By 18, he was won the title of National Martial Arts Champion for five times, from 1975 to 79, a record that has yet to be broken. He made his first in 1979, "Shaolin Temple," a hit that had two sequels. He made two dozen films in Hongkong and China like "Once Upon a Time in China" and "Bodyguard from Beijing."

He was introduced in Hollywood as villain to Mel Gibson in "Lethal Weapon 4" (1998). He then went solo in "Romeo Must Die" and did more hits like "The One," "Kiss of the Dragon," "Unleashed" and "Hero." He now stars in what will be his last martial arts film, "Fearless," the true story of Huo Yuanjia, a patriotic figurehead and hero in Chinese history as he was the one who united all the different schools of martial arts under one roof and introduced its fights to the virtue of good sportsmanship. After doing films in English, he also returns here to speaking in Chinese, with English subtitles.

The movie starts in 1910 while Huo is facing four bigger opponents from various countries. From there, his personal life story is told in flashback. He has wanted to study martial arts as a boy but his father was against it. He then studies his father’s wushu manual on his own and learns to fight by himself, beating up school bullies successfully. He grows up to be a swellheaded and arrogant fighter who throws his weight around. But he is only second to the great champion, Chin.

When one of his students is reportedly mauled by Chin, he dares Chin to fight him and kills Chin in the process. It turns out Chin is not really guilty, after all. Chin’s men then retaliate and kill Hou’s own mother and daughter. His life ruined and full of remorse, he leaves their place and wanders around until an old woman, Sun, and her blind granddaughter, Moon, pity him, take good care of him, and he slowly recovers. He settles down as a farmer but after saving a village boy from a merciless boxer, his love for the martial arts returns but this time, he modifies it and realizes that it should be used in the spirit of good sportsmanship and not for violence to who the better fighter is.

He returns to his town which was by then already occupied by foreign powers and faces a much bigger American wrestler named O’Brien who had earlier beaten up many Asian fighters. The members of the Foreign Chamber of Commerce, afraid that his triumph would foster anti-Western sentiments among the Chinese people, then set him up against four fighters from England, Spain, Belgium and Japan. Huo, who has by then established the Jingwu Sports Federation, thinks this is a good chance to show the spirit of good sportsmanship, but his foes are plotting something against him that will ultimately spell his doom.

As the true story of man who learns the value of humility and the real meaning of having a fighting spirit, "Fearless" is an absorbing film about the transformation and redemption of Huo from being an arrogant bully to an enlightened man of peace and discipline who shuns senseless violence. Directed by Ronny Yu, it is full of great fight sequences made without the use of computer special effects.

The film also introduces a delicately beautiful Chinese actress, Sun Li, in the role of the blind Moon. Given the right breaks, she can give Ziyi Zhang a run for her money. Playing Jet Li’s opponents are real life international champs like Olympic gold medalist Somluck Kamsing, seven time World Kickboxing champ Jean Claude Leuyer, and World Wrestling All Stars hero Nathan Jones. Chinese fight director Yuen Wo Ping choreographed the action sequences which are performed mostly on a limited stage or arena so they have to come up with truly inventive movements and clashes.