''Kung Fu Divas'' is a 2013 Philippine

action comedy Action comedy is a genre that combines aspects of action and comedy. The genre is most prevalent in film with action comedy films, though several TV series fit this genre. Film The action comedy film is a film genre that combines aspects of actio ...

film directed by Onat Diaz and starring

Ai Ai delas Alas Martina Eileen Hernandez delas Alas-Sibayan (born November 11, 1964), known professionally as Ai-Ai delas Alas, is a Filipino actress and comedian. She is widely regarded as the country's "Queen of Comedy" for her comedic talent and best know ...

and

Marian Rivera Marian Rivera Gracia-Dantes (; born 12 August 1984) is a Filipino recording artist, actress, and commercial model. She gained prominence as a widely-acclaimed actress for her roles in '' MariMar'', ''Dyesebel'', '' Amaya'', ''Darna'' and '' Te ...

. The lead stars also co-produced the film which opened in theaters on October 2, 2013 as part of

Star Cinema ABS-CBN Film Productions, Inc. (doing business as Star Cinema or ABS-CBN Films) is a Philippines, Filipino film studio and film and television production company and film distributor headquartered in Quezon City. It is one of the major film ...

's 20th Anniversary presentation. This film is a parody of

Gu Long Xiong Yaohua (7 June 1938 – 21 September 1985), better known by his pen name Gu Long, was a Hong Kong-born Taiwanese novelist, screenwriter, film producer and director. A graduate of Cheng Kung Senior High School and Tamkang University, Xion ...

Wuxia ( ), which literally means "martial heroes", is a genre of Chinese fiction concerning the adventures of martial artists in ancient China. Although is traditionally a form of historical fiction, its popularity has caused it to be adapted f ...

novel

Juedai Shuangjiao ''Juedai Shuangjiao'' () is a wuxia novel by Gu Long first published in 1966. The novel is about a pair of twin brothers who, because of a feud between two formidable martial artists, were separated at birth and raised on opposing sides. , it has ...

Plot

Charlotte ( Ai Ai de las Alas) is from a family of beauty queens, but she has yet to win a title of her own. Her final chance is the ''Hiyas ng Dalampasigan'' Pageant (literally, Seaside Jewel Pageant), and her mother has taken steps to make sure that she wins. But her chances are dashed when the mysterious Samantha (

) suddenly joins the contest. The two become bitter enemies following the contest, but they are soon forced by destiny to team up. It turns out the two have a hidden connection to a mystical past, and must work together to discover the truth about their heritage.

Cast

as Charlotte/Lyna (xiao yu'er?) *

as Samantha/Mena (hua wu que?) *

Roderick Paulate Roderick Mendenilla Paulate (, born April 4, 1960) is a Filipino former actor, TV host, comedian and politician. Paulate had previously hosted TV shows like ''Vilma On 7'', ''Tonight With Dick & Carmi'', ''Magandang Tanghali Bayan'', and ''The ...

Gloria Diaz Gloria Maria Aspillera Diaz (; born 10 March 1951) is a Filipino actress of film and television, model and beauty queen who rose to fame after being crowned Miss Universe 1969, becoming the first Filipino to hold the Miss Universe title. Early ...

as Charlotte's Adoptive Mother *

Edward Mendez Edward is an English given name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortune; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-Sax ...

as Kojic/Kojic's Father *

Nova Villa Novelita Villanueva Gallegos (born April 16, 1946), better known as Nova Villa, is a Filipino actress and a veteran comedian. With a career spanning more than 50 years, Villa is recognized as the original 'Goddess of Comedy' and one of the defi ...

Ruffa Gutierrez Sharmaine Ruffa Rama Gutierrez (born June 24, 1974) is a Filipino Model (person), model, beauty queen, host and actress. She was the 1992 Look of the Year - Philippines, Binibining Pilipinas World, Binibining Pilipinas World 1993 and Second Run ...

Martin Escudero Mart Enrico Escudero (born April 11, 1990) is a Filipino actor, model, and television personality. He rose to fame during his stint at the fourth season of '' StarStruck''. He also starred in the indie film '' Zombadings: Patayin sa Shokot si Re ...

Roy Alvarez Leandro Delantar Alvarez (March 23, 1950 – February 11, 2014), better known by his screen name Roy Alvarez, was a Filipino actor, director and screenwriter for film, television and theater in the Philippines. Biography He was born on March 2 ...

† as Charlotte's Adoptive Father *

Precious Lara Quigaman Precious Lara San Agustin Quigaman-Alcaraz (; born 3 January 1983) is a Filipino actress, multi-product endorser and beauty queen who won the Miss International 2005 beauty pageant held in Tokyo, Japan. She is the fourth Filipino to have won th ...

Bianca Manalo Pamela Bianca Ramos Manalo (born November 28, 1987) is a Filipina actress and beauty pageant titleholder. She was the Binibining Pilipinas Universe 2009 winner, and represented the Philippines at Miss Universe 2009, but she was unplaced. In ...

German Moreno German Molina Moreno (; October 4, 1933 – January 8, 2016), also known as Kuya Germs ( or ) and dubbed as "The Master Showman", was a Filipino television host, presenter, actor, comedian, talent manager, producer, writer, and director. Early ...

† as Hiyas ng Dalampasigan Host (Cameo) *

Vicki Belo Vicky, Vicko, Vick, Vickie or Vicki is a feminine given name, often a hypocorism of Victoria. The feminine name Vicky in Greece comes from the name Vasiliki. Women * Family nickname of Victoria, Princess Royal (1840–1901), wife of Germa ...

as a fictional version of herself (Cameo) * Cacai Bautista as Samantha's original face (Cameo)

Reception

Duane Lucas Pascua of ''Spot.ph'' (a publication of

Summit Media Summit Publishing Co., Inc., trading as Summit Media, is a Filipino digital lifestyle network in the Philippines. It has 15 media brands attracting around 20 million monthly unique visitors and approximately 33 million social media followers ...

) both gave praise to the film and its director, saying: "One of the key strengths of the film is how it pokes fun into the varied facets of modern Filipino culture while managing to stay away from being preachy." Nestor U. Torre of ''

Philippine Daily Inquirer The ''Philippine Daily Inquirer'' (''PDI''), or simply the ''Inquirer'', is an English-language newspaper in the Philippines. Founded in 1985, it is often regarded as the Philippines' newspaper of record. The newspaper is the most awarded bro ...

'' said the film is "visually vivid, doesn't scrimp on production values, and elicit perky performances from its actors," while also pointed out that it "fails to come off as a complete treat, due to deficiencies in its storytelling, and what eventually turns out to be its too varied mix of disparate elements, which fail to harmoniously fuse together by the film’s final fade."

International Film Festivals

*FANTASPORTO 2014-34th Oporto International Film Festival **Official Selection - Orient Express Section *14th Neuchatel International Fantastic Film Festival **Official Selection - New Cinema From Asia *Feratum 2014, Mexico **Exhibition Film

Awards

*62nd

FAMAS The FAMAS (''Fusil d'Assaut de la Manufacture d'Armes de Saint-Étienne'', "Assault Rifle from the Saint-Étienne Weapon Factory") is a bullpup assault rifle designed and manufactured in France by MAS in 1978, a year after the Austrian Steyr ...

Awards 2014 **Best Special Effects - Winner **Best Actress:

- Nominated **Best Cinematography - Nominated **Best Production Design - Nominated **Best Visual Effects - Nominated

References

External links

* *{{IMDb title, 3229762 2013 direct-to-video films Star Cinema films Films based on works by Gu Long 2010s martial arts comedy films Philippine martial arts comedy films Kung fu films Philippine kung fu films 2013 martial arts films 2013 films