Produced and distributed by Star Cinema, in association with Agosto Dos Media and APT Entertainment, it serves as Marian's second film project and Dingdong's eighth film project for the film studio. It also marks the second film collaboration of Dingdong Dantes with director Mae Cruz-Alviar, with whom they worked together in the film She's the One ten years prior.
The film revolves around a man who is given a chance to go back in time by a day to save his relationship with his wife.[2]
The film opens with Mary reminiscing her relationship with her husband John. The two were childhood friends that eventually developed into a romantic relationship upon their adulthood. They both get married and have a son named Austin.
Over time, John and Mary's relationship deteriorated. John, who had become alcoholic and smoker, starts to shift his focus away from his family and towards his promotion at his godfather's whisky company. There, he had a rivalry with Vivian, a newcomer who quickly rose in the company hierarchy. At one such incident, the two argued at a meeting to discuss the company's eventual expansion to Asia.
A birthday party is held for Mary and John's godfather, who is the company's president. There, he announced his retirement next year and his successor. John and a number of his co-workers had anticipated that he will be promoted, as he was favored by the president. However, the president chooses Vivian, to the shock of everyone, especially John. Drunk, he angrily confronts his godfather at the restroom. His godfather defended his choice, stating that his short temperament was one of his main reasons why he didn't chose him over Vivian. Visibly dismayed, he resigns at the company. At his office, while packing his things, Vivian visited him, who offered him a drink. They had a short conversation that ended with John kissing Vivian as a way to bid her goodbye. John leaves Vivian in a state of shock, not knowing that Hannah, a confidant of his wife Mary, had recorded the encounter. On his way home, he tried to reconcile with his estranged father but hesitated at the last moment. Back home, Austin convinces his father John to go see his school play, which he both directed and plays the piano as its background music. John accepts his invitation.
The next day, John is clearly not in a good mood. Mary tries to comfort him to no success. The atmosphere between the two increases as they prepare to go to their son's play. On the car en route to the school, the two had an argument regarding John's sudden resignation. This further escalates into a verbal fight as Hannah sent the video recording of the events last night to her. John tries to explain his position, but Mary interprets it as cheating. She demanded that she leave the car immediately, removing her seatbelt. Meanwhile, a man crosses the street, forcing John, who was driving the car, to make a sudden maneuver, causing him to lose the control of the car. They crashed at a tree at high speed. John survives the crash, but he soon found out that Mary plunges forward unconscious. He managed to get her to the hospital, but she was declared dead on arrival by 3:00 PM.
During Mary's funeral, John delivers his eulogy with great difficulty. He falls into a mental breakdown, which continued after the funeral. Mary's mother informs him that she'll be taking care of Austin. Alone at his home, he drinks alcohol and has a conversation with an image of "Lods", which was given to him by Austin before they left. He then meets Jess, an electrician whom Mary had contracted weeks prior to fix the lights in preparation for her surprise birthday party for John the following week. Jess, who had realized that Mary had already died, attempts to go when he was stopped by John. John offered him a drink and both have a conversation. John soon found out that Jess is Lods. Lods, who is actually Jesus, offered him to go back in time with one caveat: someone has to die that day. John offers himself to die, to which Lods accepts.
John found himself waking up to the birthday party for his godfather, which had happened the night before the accident. He tried to explain to his co-worker what happened, which his co-worker dismisses as him being way too drunk. He then tried to convince him by accurately telling the events that are about to happen at the party, including Vivian's promotion. He then meets his godfather at the restroom, and happily accepts the decision to promote Vivian and not him, much to the surprise of his godfather. At the office, he happily packs his things as he was visited by Vivian. He congratulated her on her promotion and gave an advice to her. He stopped Vivian from kissing him, and alerts Hannah who was also at the office. On the way home, he reconciles with his estranged father, who gave him his watch as a gift. Back home, John decides to take Mary out on the evening to a park. Mary starts to notice John's strange behavior, but she ultimately did not mind.
The next morning, Mary learns that John had cooked breakfast for her and Austin. Some time later, John found out that Mary plans to go to Singapore to enroll at a culinary school. She also revealed to him that Austin was accepted in a music academy there. The two had a quarrel, with John visibly frustrated. He then saw Lods, posing as Jess once more, and confronts him. Lods told him that, while he plans to go ahead with the original events, the choice on who will die still rests at John.
En route to the play, John decides that he'll still die in place for his wife. Mary looks at John, who was visibly terrified, and strikes a conversation with him. John advises Mary to go follow her dreams and guide their son. They soon saw a man crossing the street. John turns the car anticipating an accident, but to his surprise, nothing happened.
John and Mary watch the play their son directed. John gives Austin the watch that his estranged father had given him last night. While the play goes on, John becomes increasingly worried as he soon realized that it was nearing 3:00 PM. He then saw Lods at the back, posing as a janitor. He went outside the auditorium to speak with him. Outside, he pleads him to let him live. Lods refuses, saying that he should honor the deal. He further explains that his death will serve as his son's inspiration. He told John the future of Mary and Austin: Mary will open a restaurant and that Austin will become a renowned pianist who will dedicate all his performances to his father. John finally gives in and accepts his fate. Lods told him to go finish his son's play.
John went back to see his son's play, which had just finished. Austin dedicates his play to his parents. He saw his mother, but not his father. His father was at the back, waving at him. He runs towards the back. John attempts to go meet him, but Austin did not stop, continuing to run outside the auditorium. John gets a realization and heads back outside. He saw Austin seeing his father laying unconscious on the ground — he had already died due to a heart attack.
The film then reveals that Mary's narration at the start of the film was in fact a eulogy she gives for her husband. Several years later, both Mary and Austin gained achievements in their careers. Austin, who already has a family, visits his mother. They let her play with their newborn son John-John, named after Austin's father, shortly before leaving. After Austin and his wife leaves, Mary holds an old image of his husband John, and reminisces the good old days together with her husband, which started in their childhood.
Cast
Main
Dingdong Dantes as John Nuñez, Mary’s husband, who shifted his priorities from being a family man to a workaholic man aspiring promotion.
Marian Rivera as Mary Nuñez, John’s wife, who had to give up her promising career as a chef in order to become a full-time housewife.
Supporting
Jordan Lim as Austin Nuñez, Mary and John’s son who has a passion for playing the piano.
JC Alcantara plays as the adult version of Austin Nuñez.
Pepe Herrera as Lods, a Jesus figure who poses as Jess, an electrician hired by Mary, and who gave John a chance to go back in time, albeit with a caveat.
Mary Joy Apostol as Ningning, John and Mary's maid.
Via Antonio as Bridgette, one of Mary's close friends.
Chamyto Aguedan as Dennis, one of Mary's close friends.
Production
On June 21, 2023, Star Cinema announced through a media press conference that the film Rewind, written by Enrico Santos and directed by Mae Cruz-Alviar, will be top-billed by GMA Network's exclusive talents and celebrity couple Dingdong Dantes and Marian Rivera and to be co-produced with the former's production company Agosto Dos Media and APT Entertainment.[4]
Enrico Santos is the scriptwriter for the film. He said that the material for Rewind was conceptualized prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.[5] Despite the script being ready by 2020, filming was delayed due to the pandemic.[6]
On July 10, 2023, the committee chose the film as one of the first four official entries for the then-incoming 49th Metro Manila Film Festival. [7] On September 21, 2023, lead actor Dingdong Dantes posted on his Instagram account some snippets of the film's wedding scene with captions implying that it was the first day of production.[8]
Promotions and marketing
The official 90-second teaser of the film was released on November 13, 2023.[9] On November 23, 2023, an official poster was unveiled to the public with the presence of the lead couple, and later, it uploaded on the social media platform accounts of Star Cinema and other related divisions of ABS-CBN.[10]
On December 4, 2023, a full official trailer was released by Star Cinema through various social media platforms.[11]
Owing to a policy set by the Metro Manila Film Festival, the initial gross for Rewind was not revealed for its first week. On January 7, it was reported that film had grossed over ₱600 million, more than half of the total gross revenue of the entire film festival, which was reported to passed ₱1 billion, passing Gandarrapiddo: The Revenger Squad (2017) to become the fourth highest-grossing Filipino film of all time. ABS-CBN refused to confirm the report at the time. On January 17 however, ABS-CBN and Star Cinema both announced that the film has grossed over ₱815 million domestically and ₱30 million worldwide, for a total gross revenue of ₱845 million. It passed the domestic gross of Hello, Love, Goodbye (2019) to become the highest-grossing Filipino film in terms of domestic gross, and become the second-highest grossing Filipino film of all time.[13][14][1]
Critical reception
Critical reception for the film is mostly positive, with particular praises given to the performance of its cast and its script. Its plot has been compared by many critics to the 2004 film If Only.[15] Bum Tenorio of The Philippine Star wrote in his review, "Rewind is the full stop of the heart that finds it hard to forgive—and later on realizes, albeit late, that forgiveness is not an option but the only choice in order to move on."[16]University of Santo Tomas college newspaper, The Varsitarian, praised Pepe Herrera for his casual performance as Lods, a slang for Jesus Christ, saying that "[a] more serious characterization would have ruined the story."[17][15] Fred Hawson, writing in his blog, gave the film a seven, praising its director Mae Cruz-Alviar for the film's emotional climaxes, as well as the performances of Dingdong Dantes and Marian Rivera, saying, "it was their affecting performances that gave this film its special radiance beyond its familiar plot." He expressed reservation about the character Lods .[18] Meanwhile, Philbert Dy of Spot.ph gave the film two and a half stars out of five, writing that the film's execution of its main plot about death and tragedy "stands out some shaky ground thematically and theologically."[17] However, review page Film Circle Reject gave it a positive review, with a rating of 4/5 stating "we can say all we want about how flawed and formulaic the film maybe, but we can all agree that this romantic drama is a pretty damn good tearjerker, propelled by compelling performances from its two stars, Dingdong Dantes and Marian Rivera."[19]
