Rare is a romance film that is also carefully woven into a coming-of-age tale. Even more peculiar is a story of woeful teens in the digital epoch that resonates beyond all time too. "Ang Babaeng Allergic sa Wi-Fi" is a saga that connects the good old past with the hopeful promise of the future through weaving a lovely process at present. In the movie, a charming Sue Ramirez is Norma -- the quintessential teenager who adores social media. She is in a relationship with Leo, another formulaic romance movie jock as he is relentlessy pursuing his passion in high school basketball. Completing the love triangle is Aries, played by the shockingly effective Jameson Blake in a boyish allure. "Ang Babaeng Allergic sa Wi-Fi" speeds the plot, showing Norma bleeding from her nose because of exaggerated exposure to the internet. Radiation from amplified usage of mobile device has caused Norma to develop Electro-Hypersensitivity Syndrome, hence her allergy to Wi-Fi. She is prompted to live a life digitally disconnected to recover from her condition. Much of the film's pungency is blended in its cinematography and production design. The palette paints a semi-faded photograph that survived to the contemporary age. "Ang Babaeng Allergic sa Wi-Fi" looks retro yet recolored for a post-modern vibe, the vibrant hues correlating with the vintage aura of the movie: cerulean yet delicately coated in sepia. The production set is doused in classic equipment too, from the Polaroid camera to the rustic tape recorder. Most impressive perhaps is the romancing of Norma and Aries. Late in "Ang Babaeng Allergic sa Wi-Fi," the latter's relentless fidelity is made extra evocative when a compulsory albeit cliche moment rewires the drama. From the film's beginning, it is achingly clear that Aries is the centerpiece of the tale. But not until the late deuce ex machina sequence when his character's arc comes full circle, rallying the need for his wooing for Norma into a satisfyingly heartbreaking cliffhanger. It is a fascile cinematic representation of cognitive dissonance, exemplifying the cunning storytelling of director Jun Robles Lana. Just when audiences believe they have decoded the tale, Lana disrupts their collective signal and unloads a new connection to weave the film together. "Ang Babaeng Allergic sa Wi-Fi" is a love story bloomed into a coming-of-digital-age drama. The internet had to happen, so the simpler times could reconnect through the electricity of genuine and mutual passion with smithereens of nostalgia. Sure, the romance movie formula is present, yet "Ang Babaeng Allergic sa Wi-Fi" warps toward the future of sweet cinema. Despite the cliche, it sets up more choices to stir the tale. Viewers have to witness the expected so their beliefs could be rattled for a different set of “happy-endings.” There is no discovering the true finale of the film, only the value of witnessing love unfold in its own supple stride. After all, romance is the hotspot that allows people to freely connect through emotional empathy which heals any weakened signal due to a tired digital fidelity.
Director: Jun Robles Lana
Trailer © The Idea First Company; YouTube.com
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