Former flames Claudine Barretto and Mark Anthony Fernandez are reunited in the mystery drama Deception. It’s the project that brought them together again after more than two-and-a-half decades of not sharing the same screen.
The film, directed by Joel Lamangan, tells the story of Rose (Barretto) a famous actress, and Jericho (Fernandez) a stunt double, who fell in love and got married.
As they start their own family, they are blessed with a son and named him Thomas. From the looks of it, it was already a perfect life filled with love, but what could have been a promising future for their family starts spiraling down after Rose became convicted for killing her husband and was sentenced to ten-year imprisonment. With Rose in prison and Jericho’s death, their son is taken to an orphanage and learns to live without his parents.
As Rose’s time in prison ends, she tries to start her life anew, among them is finding and reconnecting with his estranged son, who is now a teenager. But her troubled past starts to catch up with her and reveals all the lies that go with it. She also soon finds out why her almost perfect life went crumbling down.
Speaking to Manila Standard Entertainment, Lamangan sent a virtual tribute to the stars of his film talking about their acting skills, creative process, and professionalism as actors.
“I didn’t have to work on their chemistry because they already have it. Mahusay ang kanilang tambalan at alam mong mayroon silang kahusayang itinatago,” the seasoned director stated.
“When I was told that Claudine and Mark will be my stars in Deception, I asked myself, ‘How will I able to make things work for these two actors who haven’t been together in a project for more than 25 years? Are they still good at what they do, are they still professional like they were at the beginning of their career?” he went on.
Lamangan, the genius behind critically-acclaimed films such as The Flor Contemplacion Story (1995), Sidhi (1999), Deathrow (2000), and Aishte Imasu 1941 (2004), was pleasantly surprised to discover that Barretto and Fernandez have not changed despite the years of not being active in films or television.
“They are still the same. They are still good at understanding their characters. They are intelligent actors that’s why it was easy working with them. Alam nila kung paano bibigyang buhay ang mga character na na-assign sa kanila. Mas malalim sila ngayon because of their experiences in life. Their perception of the harsh reality of life is now much deeper. And they can translate that into acting,” Lamangan related.
Meanwhile, when asked about their reunion project, the former couple could not be more excited to work together again and has nothing but praises for each other.
“What I like about Claudine is she became an independent woman, that’s what I’ve noticed,” said Fernandez.
“The script is very timely. If it weren’t for the script, I don’t think we’d be working together again on a movie project. The story has suspense, drama, and it will make you laugh a little as well,” he added.
In turn, Barretto returned the praises saying it’s such a breeze working with the former Gwapings member.
“Working with Mark is very easy, we really have a good rapport. And he’s very professional now,” Barretto, who is making a movie comeback after her six-year break from acting, stated.
Produced by Viva Films and Borracho Film Production, Deception premieres on Jan. 28 and will stream exclusively on Vivamax Philippines, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Macao, Vietnam, Brunei, Maldives, Australia, New Zealand, the Middle East, Europe, Canada, and the United States.
