‘The Last Beergin’ REVIEW: Tama na ‘yan, inuman na
‘The Last Beergin’ REVIEW: Tama na ‘yan, inuman na
Ang mga bida sa The Last Beergin / Courtesy of CINEKO Productions
May mga bahagi ng review na tumutukoy sa pag-inom ng alak dahil sa tema ng pelikula. Hindi ko layuning hikayatin ang sinuman uminom ng alak.
Ngayong 22 years old na ako, lagi kaming nagbibiruan ng mga kaibigan ko na we’re past our prime lalo na kapag gumigimik. Hindi ako makapaniwala na dati kinakaya namin na pumunta ng bar bago pa sila magbukas tapos uuwi lang kami kapag naubusan na ng kanta ‘yung DJ o kaya naman pinapalabas na kami dahil closing time na raw. Ngayon kasi, pa-cocktail cocktail na lang kami hanggang sa maghawaan ng hikab at antukin.
Pero bago pa ako humantong dito, syempre naranasan ko rin naman maging ganap na kabataan na nalasing at nagising na lang na pinagtatawanan ng tropa dahil sa mga pinaggagawa ko. Noong pandemya ko unang naranasan ito, dahil wala naman tayong ibang pwedeng gawin o puntahan at kumportable rin akong maging makulit kung pamilya ko naman ang makakasama. Diyan ako binalik ng The Last Beergin, sa mga simpleng salu-salo kasama ang mga mahal sa buhay.
Sa direksyon ni Nuel C. Naval at pagsusulat ni Mel Mendoza-del Rosario, ito ay pinagbibidahan nina Cherry Pie Picache, JC Santos, Zaijian Jaranilla, Xyriel Manabat, at Pepe Herrera. Narinig ko pa lang ang cast ay napukaw na ang atensyon ko dahil iba-iba ang atake ng bawat isa sa kanila, mula sa pag-aarte at maging sa kung ano ‘yung kaya nilang ibigay sa proyektong ito. Nakakatuwa rin na nagsama muli sina Jaranilla at Manabat matapos ang serye na Senior High mula sa ABS-CBN.
Simple lang ang takbo ng pelikula — mayroong limang hindi magkakakilala na pinagtagpo dahil pare-parehas silang may kinakaharap na problema sa buhay. Medyo hindi ako nakumbinsi dito dahil hindi ka naman basta-basta sasama sa estranghero na nakilala mo sa convenience store para uminom, pero pinalipas ko na lang at hinayaang magpadala sa kuwento.
Nahahati ang pelikula sa iba’t ibang parte ng inuman, at kung naranasan mo na ito, tiyak na matutuwa ka dahil tatak Pinoy ang paglalarawan nila rito. Unang una, hindi sila nag-bar. Ang inuman nila ay sa tabing karinderya lang. Isang baso lang din ang gamit na pinapaikot sa lamesa. Gaya rin ng pangalan ng pelikula, beer at gin lang ang kanilang ininom. Maya-maya pa ay nilabas na rin ang karaoke para sa sintunadong pagkanta ng “Beer” ng The Itchyworms.
Zaijian Jaranilla bilang Isaac / Courtesy of CINEKO Productions
Isa ito sa mga pelikula na kaya kong patawarin ang pagiging formulaic dahil lahat ng hinahanap ko sa inumang Pinoy ay naipakita naman nila. Nagustuhan ko ‘yung pagka-The Breakfast Club niya, na tipong may limang tao na iba-iba ang pinanggagalingan pero may kanya-kanya ring problema. Si Tere (Picache) na ulirang kapatid at asawa, si RG (Santos) na walang trabaho, si Isaac (Jaranilla) na hindi napapansin ng minamahal niyang si Sandy (Manabat) na siya namang pinagbabawalan ng mga magulang na gumastos, at si Hilo (Herrera) na wala nang mukhang ipapakita sa kanyang pamilya.
Sa karakter din ni Sandy nagkaroon ng diskusyon ang pelikula ukol sa class disparity dahil sa kanyang mga “champagne problems” na sobrang layo sa “gin bilog problems” ng mga kasama niya. Mas maganda sana kung hindi lang siya pinagsasampal at pinarangalan sa pelikula, kundi nabigyan din sana ito ng resolusyon sa ibang paraan dahil parang walang nangyari pagdating sa dulo nang sunduin siya ng kanyang mga magulang.
Pinakamasakit at pinakanaka-relate ako ay kay Isaac. Sobrang galing ni Jaranilla magdala ng emosyon. Para sa akin, ang pagganap nila ni Manabat ay paraan din ng pagkakasundo ng kanilang childhood roles sa kanilang maturidad. Kitang kita mo sa kanyang mga mata ‘yung sakit at pag-asang nadurog habang tinatanong niya si Sandy, “Nasaan na ‘yung mabait na Sandy na nakilala ko?” Minsan ko nang nasambit ito, na pakiramdam ko ay shared experience ng mga martir ng pag-ibig. Simple, pero malalim, kaya ito ang pinakatumatak sa akin sa mga salita ni Mendoza-del Rosario.
Pepe Herrera bilang Hilo / Courtesy of CINEKO Productions
Sa palagay ko, magiging hati ang reaksyon ng mga tao sa wakas nito. Gets ko, kahit ako naman ay medyo nagtaka kung bakit ganoon ang naging desisyon ng mga tao sa likod ng pelikula. Akala ko tapos na, may pahabol pa pala. Ngunit naintindihan ko rin na comedy pa rin ang puso nito, at babalik at babalik ang may akda sa pagpapatawa, kahit isipin man ng iba na korni o hindi kapani-paniwala.
Isang eksena sa The Last Beergin ang siyang pwedeng sumaklaw sa buong mensahe nito. Matapos ang ilang ikot ng alak, nagkuwento si Tere tungkol sa mga kamalasan ng buhay niya na siyang tinawanan naman ni Hilo. Ganoon naman kasi talaga ang buhay, kahit pa sobrang daming alon na dumating, wala tayong magagawa kundi tumawa na lang at magpatuloy. Minsan, idadaan sa maboteng usapan para maibsan ang sakit, ngunit ang pinakamahalaga sa pag-iinom ay ‘yung mga kasama mo na dadamay sa iyo sa hirap at ginhawa, sa gabi hanggang umaga, at sa pag-inom at pagsuka.
Panoorin ang The Last Beergin sa mga piling sinehan simula Oktubre 1, 2025.
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There are parts of the review that mention drinking alcohol because of the film’s theme. It is not my intention to encourage anyone to drink alcohol.
Now that I’m 22, my friends and I like to joke that we’re already past our prime, especially when talking about drinking. It’s funny to think that back then, we could head to a bar even before it opened and only leave when the DJ ran out of songs or when we were finally kicked out because it was closing time. These days, it’s just cocktails until someone starts yawning and infects the rest of the group.
Of course, before I got here, I also had my fair share of youthful nights — getting drunk, doing embarrassing things, and waking up to my friends laughing at me. My first taste of that was during the pandemic, when there was nothing else to do, and I felt comfortable being silly with family around. That’s what The Last Beergin brought me back to: those simple gatherings with people you love.
Directed by Nuel C. Naval and written by Mel Mendoza-del Rosario, the film stars Cherry Pie Picache, JC Santos, Zaijian Jaranilla, Xyriel Manabat, and Pepe Herrera. The cast alone had me curious, since each one brings something different to the table. It was also fun to see Jaranilla and Manabat reunited after the ABS-CBN series Senior High.
The premise is simple — five strangers cross paths, each weighed down by their own problems. I wasn’t entirely sold on the idea; in real life, you probably wouldn’t just agree to drink with someone you met at a convenience store. Still, I let it slide and allowed myself to be carried along by the story.
The movie unfolds in chapters of drinking, and if you’ve ever been part of a Filipino inuman, you’ll appreciate how spot-on the details are. For one, they didn’t drink at a bar — it was outside a small carinderia. They shared a single glass passed around the table. Just beer and gin, as the title suggests. And of course, the classic karaoke complete with an off-key rendition of The Itchyworms’ “Beer.”
This is the kind of film where I can forgive the formulaic parts, because it captures everything I look for in a Pinoy drinking session. It has shades of The Breakfast Club — five people from different walks of life, each with their own battles. Tere (Picache), the devoted sister and wife; RG (Santos), unemployed; Isaac (Jaranilla), pining for Sandy (Manabat), whom her parents forbid from using their money; and Hilo (Herrera), who his family resents.
Through Sandy, the film touches on class differences — her “champagne problems” contrasted against her friends’ “gin bilog problems.” I only wish her arc had been resolved in a deeper way; instead, she was slapped around a bit and got sermoned, and then was simply picked up by her parents at the end as if nothing had happened.
The character who struck me the most was Isaac. Jaranilla delivered an incredible performance, channeling raw emotion. For me, his and Manabat’s roles felt like a reconciliation of their childhood characters with their adult maturity. You could see the heartbreak and crushed hope in his eyes when he asked Sandy, “Where is the kind Sandy I used to know?” I’ve said these lines before as well, and I think it’s a shared experience with the romantics. Mendoza-del Rosario’s writing is just so simple, but it pierces the heart.
I think the ending will be polarizing. I admit I was puzzled too — I thought it was already over, only for the story to tack on a little more. But I also understood that at its heart, the film is a comedy, and so it naturally circles back to laughter — whether you find that corny or not.
One scene in The Last Beergin sums up the whole film for me. After a few rounds, Tere shares the misfortunes of her life, and Hilo just laughs at them. And that’s life, isn’t it? No matter how rough the waves get, sometimes the only thing to do is laugh and keep going. Sure, alcohol can ease the sting, but what really matters in drinking is the people who will sit with you through hardship and joy, from dusk to dawn, through the toasts and even through the hangovers.
Catch ‘The Last Beergin’ in select cinemas starting October 1, 2025.
