Imelda Papin’s ‘Loyalista’ resorts to block screenings

If a new movie company finds it difficult to get its product booked by theater circuits in the period it believes is most ideal for the film’s release, it can resort to so-called “block screening” in the cineplexes mostly owned by SM. 

Imelda Papin, actor-producer of her own biopic Loyalista, has resorted to such block screening, which simply means showing a film at particular hours and dates in a specific movie theater. 

Loyalista had such a deal with SM Megamall about a week ago. Papin had three movie theaters simultaneously blocked off for her biopic’s gala premiere. Two of them were full. The third one, where we watched, was only half-occupied.

ALICE Dixson as Imelda Marcos and ER Ejercito as the late Ferdinand Marcos Sr.

In Loyalista, Papin appeared only briefly in scenes near the end of the movie. Her character was mainly portrayed by Claudine Barretto, who looked slimmer here than in her ongoing GMA 7 series Lovers/Liars.

The movie is mainly about Papin’s sojourn with Ferdinand Marcos and wife Imelda Marcos in Hawaii after the family was booted out during the People Power Revolution in February 1986. The First Lady was already in her ‘60s when that happened — but in Loyalista, she was made to look elegantly and youthfully middle-aged via Alice Dixson’s portrayal.

The weak, sickly Ferdinand Marcos Sr. was played by ER Ejercito, billed as George Estregan Jr. 

The Ejercitos-Estradas must really be Marcos loyalists themselves: Gary Estrada played Bong Carrion, Papin’s husband. Papin and Carrion’s only child, Maffi Carrion, portrayed herself in her grown-up years. 

There’s a young newcomer who portrays the singing Imelda Papin. I was told she is a sister of actor-singer LA Santos, who portrays the young man with autism in the recently shown In His Mother’s Eyes, topbilled by Maricel Soriano and Roderick Paulate. 

Loyalista has block screening schedules practically all over the country, according to one of its publicists. The block screenings can sporadically go on till 24 December, because on Christmas Day the 49th Metro Manila Film Festival begins nationwide (despite its geographically bound name). 

There are other Pinoy films frantically trying to have regular runs in moviehouses before the MMFF hoards the cinemas to itself. One of them is Viva Films’ Ikaw at Ako, headlined by Rhian Ramos and Paolo Contis, who are together for the first time in a movie.