A Secret Affair

♣♣♣♣/♣♣♣♣♣

After just two months and a half into the relationship, Anton (Derek Ramsay) proposes marriage. Raffy (Anne Curtis) says yes, but gets cold feet and leaves for a while to reflect on her life, something that Sam (Andi Eigenmann) takes advantage of through a series of flings which apparently began even before Anton and Raffy even met. When Raffy returns, she is ready to take her man back, something that Sam would not allow even if it is clear to her that Anton does not love her. What follows is a silent war that gradually erupts into something scandalous, making them all question if the fight is actually worth it.

I honestly thought that this was going to be a rehash of No Other Woman, which is half true. As such, comparisons are inevitable also due to plenty of similarities that the two share. Let us begin with the characters and the actors who play them.

Anne Curtis. And so she becomes the aggrieved party. Coming from No Other Woman, her acting here does not pale in comparison, but rather seems to relatively lack spice because of the less fiery demeanor of the character. Most of the time it is the daring one that gets the attention. Nonetheless, she still gets to bare her claws and engage in petty banter with Eigenmann, and she sure delivers. The crying scenes, however, seem to be more dragging this time around. In any case, it is always a joy to watch her onscreen, but maybe she could and should choose something different for her next movie project.

Derek Ramsay. There is some improvement in that he no longer disappears when doing an emotionally intense scene with Anne Curtis. He is now able to channel emotions more effectively through his face, although there is always room for improvement. In terms of acting style, it seems as though his attack of the character is just recycled from No Other Woman, which would have been bad if the film flopped, but since it actually hit 100 million, then it would just add to his list of box office hits. That is a good thing because bankability means more projects, and more projects means more opportunities to improve his acting repertoire.

Andi Eigenmann. As the persistent third party, she gets to shine because she steps up to the challenge of the role, eventhough Curtis' take on such in No Other Woman is a bit difficult to top. Nonetheless, Eigenmann does get the attention necessary for her to leave a dent noticeable enough for her not to be forgotten easily. This movie just sealed the deal and would do wonders to her career in terms of longevity. It is also a good thing that she gets to tame her diction and peculiar speech pattern for this movie. At least, she is believable. As a side note, KC Concepcion should have never let go of this role. It could have been the best antidote to the string of bad movie role choices that poisoned her career.

To some extent, this movie appears to be better made than No Other Woman. Here, the subplots in which the minor characters are involved are given enough focus for the actions to be justified. The third party has sufficient back story that deems her actions understandable. The lines are catchy but delivered in a more natural manner by which they do not come across as too gimmicky, except maybe those of Jaclyn Jose, which is part of the characterization anyway. Sure, the ending is a bit unpopular and even preachy, but perhaps the director is just not pressured to come up with a more suitable resolution because the situation does not call for one anyway. In effect, the conclusion is even kind of realistic.

In the end, it is still one of those movies about third parties that saturate the industry until people get tired of watching after a while. Give them two or three of the same genre and then offer something new, until the time comes when they want a similar kid of offering again. The genre peaked with No Other Woman last year. It seems to have reached its denouement with A Secret Affair. Offer another one and it might end up as a flop, unless it really offers something new.