We’re still not over 2018! And while it gave us unforgettable memes and news headlines, it truly delivered in the film department with a slew of movies made by Filipinos for Filipinos. The frustrating thing is that we did not catch them all at the cinemas.
A piece of good news, though, before you go watching your first movie this New Year: You can watch all of the best Pinoy movies released last year on iWant, ABS-CBN’s streaming service, in your own home or when you’re on your way to work or school!
Here are just some of the 2018 films you can stream on iWant:
1. Ang Dalawang Mrs. Reyes
Star Cinema made this Judy Ann Santos-Agoncillo and Angelica Panganiban movie its opening salvo for 2018, and boy, was it a riot! The two actresses are at their best here, switching between drama and comedy as their characters discover that their husbands are in a secret relationship. While the film tackles infidelity and cheating spouses, it strays from campy cat fights and melodramatic confrontations, but instead attempts to shed a light on the complexities of love and sexuality.
2. Everybody Loves Baby Wendy
Everybody loves Wenn Deramas’ movies, especially during the holiday season. That’s why when iWant dropped its original movie “Everybody Loves Baby Wendy,” the beloved director’s last film, we couldn’t help but tell our friends and relatives about it. No actress could have played the title role quite as effectively as Alex Gonzaga, who injects enthusiasm into her character as an entitled former child star who is obsessed with classic Filipino films and can’t help but cling to her bygone fame and glory.
3. My Perfect You
After winning Miss Universe 2015, we finally got to see Pia Wurtzbach as a leading lady in a movie. Helmed by none other than the country’s go-to romcom blockbuster director Cathy Garcia-Molina, “My Perfect You” features the beauty queen playing the charming, ray-of-sunshine resort owner Abi, who meets Burn, a deeply depressed man, portrayed by Gerald Anderson. This is not your typical bright-and-shiny romcom, because it tackles a timely, sensitive issue and the plot offers a surprising twist! Be sure to have your tissues ready when watching this.
4. Never Not Love You
While JaDine is used to bringing “kilig” to viewers, their latest film “Never Not Love You” serves up the realities of being in a long-term committed relationship – the clashing of egos and ambitions, the uncertainties that come with the changes in each individual. This is straight-up “realness,” and James Reid and Nadine Lustre do justice to their roles as lovers who want to make their relationship work.
5. Meet Me in St. Gallen
What could be more romantic than meeting your potential “the one” at a coffee shop in a foreign country? This is the story of Celeste (Bela Padilla) and Jesse (Carlo Aquino) in “Meet Me in St. Gallen,” which references a town in Switzerland. Their initial meeting sparks an instant connection that leads to a one-night stand, but they will leave the town as complete strangers. However, fate plays a trick on them as they reunite again years later where they first met.
6. Glorious
If you haven’t heard of “Glorious,” what have you even been doing? Tony Labrusca and Angel Aquino’s hot new team-up was the talk of the town when its trailer was released, mostly because of Tony’s now viral tongue action. But more than the sizzling love scenes, the iWant original movie explores what it truly means to choose yourself.
7. Ang Larawan
Set in a mansion in Intramuros, Manila just before World War II, “Ang Larawan,” which is based on the 1950 literary play “A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino” by National Artist Nick Joaquin, reveals another side of Paulo Avelino. Sure, we all know him because of that beautiful face, but Paulo Avelino playing the piano and singing in the 1940s? Now, that’s something different. Let’s not take away anything from his co-leads, Joanna Ampil and Rachel Alejandro, who play sisters Candida and Paula. Ampil even won Best Actress at the 43rd Metro Manila Film Festival for her performance in the movie, which also awarded Best Picture.
8. Si Chedeng at Si Apple
Two senior citizens trying to get away from a murder they committed may sound gruesome, but Elizabeth Oropesa and Gloria Diaz make it enjoyable in this laugh-out-loud road trip comedy. This award-winning 2017 Cinema One Originals Film Festival entry, which was commercially released in 2018, has all the elements that will have you in stitches: a woman in her 60s comes out as lesbian to her family after her husband dies, then goes on searching for an ex-girlfriend.
9. Ma
A child willing to kill innocent people for the sake of his mother? Now that’s an intriguing and unconventional plot in Philippine cinema. That’s enough to make you watch this iWant original movie that premiered in last year’s Cinema One Originals Festival. However, this horror-gore offering got even creepier and more disturbing when we watched it at home on our own laptop.
10. Walwal
Drinking with your friends to forget your problems – we’ve all done it. Today’s millennials have their own version, or at least a term of it – “walwal.” Heartthrobs Donny Pangilinan, Elmo Magalona, Jerome Ponce, and Kiko Estrada play four friends all trying to figure out their place in the world, including their future careers, love lives, identities, and families. They take viewers through the frustrations and hopes that come with transitioning into being an adult, all while letting loose and having fun.
11. Sid & Aya
The director of “Meet Me in St. Gallen” dropped another blockbuster hit last year, this time starring Anne Curtis and Dingdong Dantes. Again, the two meet in Japan at a coffee shop – probably the most romantic setting in film aside from bookstores – but the movie’s title specifically states that it isn’t a love story. So what is it then? Watch it to find out!
12. I Love You, Hater
Stressed out and craving to watch a feel-good movie that will make you chuckle? Try JoshLia and Kris Aquino’s “I Love You, Hater,” the love team’s fourth big screen project and the Queen of All Media’s comeback film. The ever-reliable tandem of Julia Barretto and Joshua Garcia both take on romance, drama, and comedy in their nuanced performances as two young people competing – and eventually falling for each other – to become the personal assistant of Sasha, played by the charismatic Kris.
13. Changing Partners
Simply put, “Changing Partners” is a musical drama about four characters intertwined in gender-bending relationship variations. It is a breakthrough film because of many reasons: it’s technically and structurally superb, its four main stars Agot Isidro, Jojit Lorenzo, Sandino Martin, and Anna Luna stretch their acting prowess to accommodate varying emotions required by their characters, and it shows the ugly parts and wrenching pain caused by love.
14. Kasal
Love and truth take center stage in this movie, which served as Star Cinema's 25th Anniversary offering. Today’s Queen of Philippine movies, Bea Alonzo, once again shines in her role as a simple woman who desires to be loved faithfully. It’s all rainbows and sunshine when she becomes engaged to aspiring mayor Philip (Paulo Avelino), until her ex-boyfriend Wado (Derek Ramsay) enters the picture to get her back again. A major, unexpected twist sets the story apart from other love triangle dramas, and that is the magic of director Ruel S. Bayani, who also helmed the generation-defining films “No Other Woman” and “One More Try.”
15. Sin Island
“Sin Island” will forever be remembered as the film that launched Nathalie Hart’s career. We love some good old movie about infidelity with attractive lead stars, and this one oozes with sensuality thanks to Nathalie, Coleen Garcia, and Xian Lim. But this isn’t your classic erotic drama, and you might as well get ready for when the story becomes a full-blown thriller.
16. The Day After Valentine’s
If you’re broken-hearted and need more reasons to cry, watch Bela Padilla and JC Santos rekindle their chemistry in this movie – their follow-up to “100 Tula Para Kay Stella.” Their characters meet in an ukay-ukay store, where Kai (JC) shows up and ends up talking non-stop with the saleslady Lani (Bela). This sounds like the beginning of a fairy tale, but Kai still can’t get over his past relationship, while Lani tries to “fix” him – manic-pixie-dream-girl style. Will they or will they not end up together? Stream it on iWant soon!
17. Exes Baggage
Nostalgia hit us real hard last year when former couple and love team partners Angelica Panganiban and Carlo Aquino reunited on the big screen for “Exes Baggage,” the first offering from Black Sheep, Star Cinema’s production outfit that caters to millennials. As expected, many 90s babies flocked the cinemas to watch the highly anticipated return of CarGel. However, the movie feels current, relevant, and relatable, because we all fall in love with our hearts already broken. “Exes Baggage” drops on iWant soon.
These movies can be streamed on iWant via its iOS or Android apps or via web browser on iwant.ph. More subscribers can also get their iWant craving in the comfort of their own homes as they can already connect the streaming service to their TVs via Chromecast and Apple Airplay.
Mobile subscribers can also enjoy their favorite movies and shows on iWant whenever and wherever they are by subscribing to the telco providers’ respective promos. Smart, TNT, and Sun subscribers can now stream iWant videos via Smart Gigasurf 99 with Video Every Day for only P99, which comes with 2 GB data for surfing and all apps and an additional 1 GB per day to watch up to one hour of videos every day, valid for seven days. Globe mobile customers, meanwhile, can enjoy video streaming of their favorite Kapamilya movies and TV shows on iWant for as low as P29 with GoWATCH. To register, just text GOWATCH29 to 8080 and get 2 GB or up to five hours of streaming for iWant and other video apps & sites valid for one day.
For updates, like
www.facebook.com/iWant, and follow @iwant on Twitter and @iwantofficial on Instagram, and subscribe to
www.youtube.com/iWantPH.