DUMATING KAMAKAILAN SA bansa ang Thai heartthrob na si Mario Maurer para sa shooting ng ad campaign ng kanyang ineendorsong local clothing brand. He was also part of the Philippine Fashion Week na ginanap sa SMX Convention Center.
Sinasabing he was surprised over the reception he received from his fans upon his arrival in the country. “This is the first time I met my fans. Very surprised. I didn’t think I have this amount of fans in the Philippines.”
Mukhang lalong lumalalim ang koneksyon ni Mario sa mga Pinoy. Maliban kasi sa kanyang endorsement ay naka-takda rin siyang gumawa ng pelikula titled Suddenly It’s Magic kasama si Erich Gonzales under Star Cinema.
Kuwento niya, “Very exciting because I have done a number of movies but [doing a] movie for [the] Philippines is the first time.” Dagdag pa niya, “Most of it will be shot in Thailand and a part of it will be shot in the Philippines.” I’m sure marami na’ng mga fans ang naghihintay na muli nilang makita at mapanood si Mario this time sa big screen naman. Ano kayang magic ang hatid ng tambalang Mario at Erich sa takilya?
Mario gained celebrity status in the Philippines when the Tagalized version of his romantic-comedy movie Crazy Little Thing Called Love opposite Pimchanok Luevisadpaibul was shown on ABS-CBN last June. Nagkaroon pa ito ng replay two weeks after it was first shown on the Kapamilya Network. After ipalabas ito sa ABS-CBN ay dumagsa ang sangkaterbang requests from fans na sana raw ay makadalaw o makagawa ng project sa Pilipinas ang young actor. At hindi naman sila binigo ng ABS-CBN.
Pero bago pa ang pelikulang ito ay kinilala na sa bansa ang kakayahan sa pag-arte ni Mario when he won the Best Actor Award mula sa 10th Cinemanila International Film Festival with his debut movie The Love of Siam where he portrayed Tong, a young man who is romantically attracted to his male childhood friend. The Love of Siam was written and directed by Chukiat Sakweerakul. Mario gained rave reviews in his acting both in Thailand and other countries. Although the film has a gay theme, it received critical acclaim and became a box-office hit. Sinasabi ring The Love of Siam dominated Thailand’s 2007 film awards season, winning the Best Picture category in all major events.
For those who can’t get enough of Mario, humanda na kayo sa kanyang muling pagbabalik sa Pilipinas to shoot his new movie. Siguradong lalagnatin na naman ang mga Pinoy fans dahil sa paglaganap this time ng Thai fever sa bansa.
Kaibigan, usap tayo muli!
Points of Boy
by Boy Abunda
