‘Ang Babae Sa Septic Tank 2: #ForeverIsNotEnough’ now in US theaters

Eugene Domingo and Jericho Rosales play histrionic versions of themselves in “Ang Babae Sa Septic Tank 2: #ForeverIsNotEnough SCREENGRAB/ Youtube/Quantum Films

DALY CITY, California — Before the Filipino indie blockbuster hit, “That Thing Called Tadhana” (That Thing Called Fate), became the highest grossing Filipino independent film of all time in 2015, there was a film described by Richard Kuipers of Variety as “a lively laffer about cynical filmmakers planning a ‘poverty porn’ drama solely for the purpose of scoring free travel to international film festivals.”

That movie, “Ang Babae Sa Septic Tank” (The Woman in the Septic Tank), claimed the highest grossing Filipino indie film crown in 2011.  In fact, it became the official entry of the Philippines in the Best Foreign Language Film category of the 84^th Academy Awards.

The movie stars JM De Guzman, Kean Cipriano and Cai Cortez as three film school graduates who, thirsty for fame, are dead-set on making the ultimate Filipino misery movie for the sole purpose of winning international recognition and awards and all the perks that go with these.  Their muse is actress Eugene Domingo (who plays an exaggerated version of herself).  The satire, directed by Marlon Rivera from the screenplay of Chris Martinez, was a critical and commercial success.

The good news is that this hilarious filmmaking team is back for the sequel called, “Ang Babae Sa Septic Tank 2: #ForeverisNotEnough.”  After lampooning the independent filmmakers in the first film, the funny sequel satirizes the mainstream film industry.  The film will be shown in U.S. theaters starting this Friday, January 27.

This time, Eugene Domingo (who again plays an over-the-top version of herself), is ready for a comeback after a long sabbatical from moviemaking.

Rainier (Kean Cipriano), who was Eugene’s ambitious director in the first film, is now an award-winning director.  He and his formerly quiet-assistant-turned-excessively-glib producer Jocelyn (Cai Cortez) propose to Eugene a love story – a heartbreaking anatomy of a crumbling marriage – inspired by Rainier’s own marital situation.  Eugene is thrilled and has her eyes set on Jericho Rosales (a fictionalized version of the actor played by Jericho Rosales himself) as her leading man in the movie.

But the misadventures begin to trickle in when fickle-minded Eugene starts making suggestions and recommendations that morph Rainier’s script into absurdity, countering his artistic and personal intentions for the movie.

As Rappler.com movie critic Oggs Cruz says, “Domingo… wholeheartedly commits to Chris Martinez’s cleverly designed script that spells out his stark observations on how commercial romantic movies are so formulaic that even the performances in those films can be categorized.”

Cruz adds: “If there is one thing that most viewers will remember from Marlon Rivera’s Ang Babae sa Septic Tank 2: #ForeverIsNotEnough, it is that scene where Eugene Domingo, covered only by a towel, tells her 3-person audience the 3 ways to act heartbroken.”

“This movie is a worthy follow-up to the classic first film,” says John-D Lazatin, ABS-CBN global head of theatricals.  “The script is smart, the acting is precise and the direction is even.  It’s a clever comedy: people will die laughing because they will see the truth in all humor.  We’re proud to have brought this film to the international moviegoing public.”

Completing the cast are Joel Torre, Khalil Ramos, Iñigo Pascual, Agot Isidro, Hannah Ledesma, Gui Adorno and director Joyce E. Bernal. For a complete list of theaters where “Ang Babae Sa Septic Tank 2: #ForeverisNotEnough” is shown, visit https://www.tfc-usa.com/septictank2/