Renowned Film Director Erik Matti returns with a ‘steamy romantic drama’, and not a RomCom as others were quick to classify it. A Girl + A Guy will be streamed on Netflix, and it’s a raunchy, fleet-footed look at the social and sexual mores of today’s Gen Z. It’s R-rated, and fully deserves the warning label, given the proliferation of intimate scenes.
But what the film also displays is Matti’s technical acumen, his sophisticated approach to filmmaking, and how in his attempt to understand the milieu his own children live in, he’s managed to produce a film that seduces and turns Gen Z on its head. I’d be curious, though, to hear from the Gen Z themselves, on how accurate they feel the portrayal is. At the heart of the film are two individuals, Fiona (Alexa Miro), and Raf (Rob Gomez). When we first meet the two, they’re in their own toxic relationships; and Matti does a wonderful job of flitting from one protagonist to the other. Fiona is a promising production assistant, with a boyfriend who’s an aspiring film director. Raf works in a marketing services firm, and is constantly being belittled by his girlfriend for having no ambition, sense of responsibility, and drive.
It’s from this promising opening, filled with directorial cuts to animation, and to stylized flourishes that are very Erik Matti, that we get to understand the lifestyles of the two, and how while very different, there’s also much that they share in common. What we see in the first 40 minutes is the obsession with sex - at the very least, on Raf’s part, and how life for him is just a holding pattern until the next escapade.
With Fiona, there seems to be more of an effort in varying the meaning of her current life, beyond the relationships that seem to take center stage of their existence. What’s clever is the ‘local color’ Matti injects in these scenes, as it’s the world of production houses and creative agencies that he himself lives in. The funny part for most of the audience would be that when they think Matti is exaggerating, he may in fact be still underplaying this ‘artistic and creative' scene.
Matti uses relative unknowns for the leads, and that ultimately works in his favor, while also exposing some weaknesses. You don’t have preconceptions or make guarded comments about some ‘star’ when the sex scenes come in succession. It’s almost like we’re watching a creative, stylized documentary. The downside here is that when asked to perform scenes, their ‘baguhan’ status is revealed, and they’re much better when they’re just conversing as friends, as opposed to ‘playing’ roles. You’ll see what I mean, as some acting prompts us to laugh when we shouldn’t be.
As I mentioned, there is admirable brisk pacing at the outset; but after the 60-minute mark, when Fiona and Raf finally meet, we get a sudden change in pacing that I personally felt didn't work as well. From that point on, until the end of the film, which clocks at two hours, six minutes, you begin to anticipate the film coming to it’s close - and whether Fiona and Raf end up together. There’s a narrative sameness to what’s going on, and the film techniques and tricks seem to be covering up this narrative weakness - except for a number of violent surprises.
Still, there’s enough on display here to please many viewers, in more ways than one. If anything, given the pandemic streaming trend for content with a lot of sexual content and graphic sex scenes - think 365 Days and Sex/Life - this Erik Matti film will fit right in. To his credit, he treats the scenes differently, with brisk physical action that borders on comedy, and it will be a source of amusement for the audience.
Skip It or Stream It? - For watching naughty, raunchy, and hyperactive sensual lives, this film fulfills its promise in the first hour; the minor problem crops up when it suddenly changes pace and tries to offer something very different in the last hour. It’s Matti having fun, while trying to wax philosophical about the youth of today. Potentially a controversial film/cult favorite, and I am sure Matti will be happy about that.
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