Bromance: My Brother’s Romance hit theaters in the Philippines. Did it offer a nuanced portrayal of queer life and move the conversation around representation forward in a positive direction? No, absolutely not.But! Bromance: My Brother’s Romance was popular enough to becomes the second highest-grossing Pinoy film of 2013, so our curiosity got the best of us and we decided to check it out for ourselves.From late director Wenn V.
Deramas, the comedy—apparently based on a true story???—is about estranged twins, Brando and Brandy, who always fight and feel they have nothing in common. Well, aside from the beautiful Erika (Cristine Reyes), who Brando has a crush on and who is BFFs with his gay brother, Brandy.But, one day, Brandy is hit by an ambulance and falls into a coma (this is a comedy, we promise!), so Brando does what any sensible identical twin would do: He impersonates his brother in an effort to pay his debts and keep his family business afloat….
and, sure, maybe also to see if he can get closer to Erika.Model-turned-actor-turned-Filipino A-lister Zanjoe Marudo pulls The Parent Trap-style (shout out to Lindsay Lohan) double duty here as both Brando and Brandy, with the added wrinkle that he also plays Brandy as played by Brando. Confused yet?A post shared by zanjoe marudo (@onlyzanjoemarudo)Well, don’t be, because Bromance works overtime to make sure you see the siblings as very different people, mainly by making Brandy a walking, talking stereotype of femme gays.
He’s loud and sassy, he’s an interior decorator, he has a fashionable (for 2013) asymmetrical haircut, he wears bright and bold colors, and he surrounds himself with similar gay. You get the picture.Actually, Brandy’s portrayal speaks to the vibe of the
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