‘Always Yours, Never Mine’ Launches Trailer and Questions About Love
‘Always Yours, Never Mine’ Launches Trailer and Questions About Love
“I’m just really excited and proud sa buong cast na, finally, we have a movie.” This is what actor Joshua Garcia said during the Grand Media Day for the Cathy Garcia-Sampana romance film, Always Yours, Never Mine, held last Friday, September 18, at Uptown Mall in Taguig City. Garcia is starring opposite love team partner Julia Barretto. The film follows the romantic push and pull between Apollo (Garcia) and Luna (Barretto) as they navigate personal changes across three decades. Joining the leads are their costars Bianca Umali, Karen Reyes, Migs Almendras, Joy Barcoma in her feature film debut, and Vanessa R. Valdez, who wrote the screenplay and worked on its story with Olivia M. Lamasan and Trishtan Perez.
Always Yours, Never Mine’s Grand Media Day also served as the premiere of its trailer, steeped in late 1990s and 2000s visuals. Amplifying its throwback effect, the film seems to be presented mainly in a 1:37.1 aspect ratio. Seeing the trailer brought out a lot from its cast, who reflected on their time working on the film. Barcoma stated, “Ang ganda lang ng pagkakatahi ng istorya kasi nung ginagawa namin… [It’s beautiful how the story was tied together because when we were making it…] for us, it’s just a story. When we saw it on screen now, it’s more than that. It’s a soul. You’re looking at someone’s story, you’re looking at someone’s life, and you’re looking at the possibility of a lot of things.” While serving as Barcoma’s film debut, the film also hosts another first, being Umali’s first Star Cinema film while being a Sparkle GMA Artist. “Seeing it now on the big screen… it makes you feel nothing but grateful that when you have great people working together, great results come out,” she said.
The trailer also brought out some romantic musings and the belief that it will raise some questions. For Umali, the film will make you ask, “Anong klaseng pagmamahal ang kaya mong panindigan?” [What kind of love can you handle committing to?] Valdez hopes that “Isa sa mga magandang matatanong mo sa sarili mo pag pinanood mo ‘tong pelikulang ‘to, ‘Sa pagmamahal ko ba sa isang tao, napigilan ko siya na maging kung sino siya talaga dapat maging?” [One of the great questions you’ll ask yourself when you watch this film is, “In loving someone, did I stop them from becoming who they were meant to be?”]
Ten years long since first working together as on-screen love interests starting with 2016’s Vince & Kath & James, Barretto contemplates the mutual respect they’ve held across different projects. “Josh and I, who have been in each other’s lives for how many years now working together. I think it’s— there’s something bigger than just, you know… what had transpired in the past. For me, Josh is more than a screen partner. There is something so profound in having shared so many milestones together, having been through so much together that you can always come back together to do that one thing that you both love to do so much. And it just so happens that both Josh and I love our jobs so much and we love doing it together. So, I’m lucky that I have that kind of partnership and friendship in my lifetime. I’m just so grateful for just… everything we’ve shared, the hard work, the teamwork, the effort, the good times, the bad. So I think gratitude above all else is the one that’s really gonna keep the respect open.”
Director Cathy Garcia-Sampana, who was unavailable for the Media Day event along with cast member Ms. Chanda Romero, was busy with the film’s post-production at the time of the event. The host, Robi Domingo, shared an anecdote recalling when he asked Barretto, “Jules, kailan ka ba babalik? She smiled. Laki ng ngiti, without answering any question of mine. And now, a year after, we’re here. So, ang tagal nang hinintay. Now, we’re so excited to see, to resolve that big smile of yours.”
[“Jules, when are you coming back? She smiled. Big smile, without answering any question of mine. And now, a year after, we’re here. So, we’ve waited long. Now, we’re so excited to see, to resolve that big smile of yours.”]
Always Yours, Never Mine begins its local theatrical run on Wednesday, September 30. Upcoming international dates are set on October 22 for UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Australia, and New Zealand, October 23 for North America and Guam, October 31 for the UK and Austria, and November 1 for Spain, France, and Italy.
