After four years, does John Lloyd and Sarah still have what it takes?
PRINCIPAL photography may have taken just a few months but the core and foundation of the Star Cinema and Viva Films’ joint production It Takes a Man
and A Woman is the result four years’ worth of personal experiences of its two lead stars.
Its director, Cathy Garcia-Molina, observed that it was a blessing in disguise that the third installment of the Laida-Miggy love story ( A Very Special Love and You Changed My Life) was not rushed to capitalize on the box-office tandem.
The rationale is simple—in this third film—the characters of Laida and Miggy have matured just as Sarah Geronimo and John Lloyd Cruz have also matured in real life.
“Nagkataon na ang kwento natin ngayon ay tungkol sa mga taong nag- mature na. It’s a different kind of love and a notch higher than the kilig-kilig kind of love. Nakakabuti na nagpahinga sila ng apat na taon. They grew apart and they grew as individual persons,” she described.
The maturity of both actors, according to Molina, made directing the movie easier because they Sarah and John Lloyd suited their characters perfectly. She added that the past experiences her actors went through in their personal lives, were “exactly what Laida and Miggy went through in the film.”
Despite the long gap between the movies Molina’s actors, Sarah now 24 and John Lloyd, 29, has surprisingly retained their on screen chemistry and might have even grown stronger. This of course only strengthens the said franchise of a love tandem who are and were never involved together romantically in real life. She calls this an unexplainable phenomenon.
“Whatever you see on screen, sila yun, it’s their magic on screen,” the director quipped.
So what could be Sarah and John Lloyd’s secret?
Sarah pointed out that it was simply John Lloyd’s acting talent—that he could be paired with any leading lady and they would click on screen and make the movie a box office hit. And judging from his movies with actresses Bea Alonzo and Angel Locsin, and their respective box office success, Sarah is not far from the truth.
“Iba ‘yung chemistry niya sa iba’t-ibang leading lady niya. Sa bawat tandem, iba yung na- offer niya,” Sarah remarked.
For John Lloyd, the chemistry of their tandem is one of the mysteries why the Laida-Miggy movies have become box-office hits.
“Mahirap ipaliwanag kung papaano kami umabot hanggang ngayon. Chemistry din siguro ang tawag dun pero it is beyond that because it is magical. Hindi ko alam pero pag magkasama kami kung ano- ano ang nangyayari sa mga eksena, yung hindi mga pinaplano biglang lumalabas ng hindi sinasadya. Para sa akin isa yun sa pinakamaganda or the best gift na pwedeng ibigay sa isang tandem,” he explained.
It Takes A Man and A Woman opens on March 30 in theaters nationwide.