Villa Estrella

Geoff Eigenmann, Jake Cuenca

The young men and women who star in Villa Estrella have apparently been cast for maximum sex appeal, but what good is that if the only nudity is one scene with a shirtless Jake Cuenca? It’s the kind of horror movie designed to drag and tease, to hold out on gratification. You wish for it, but there’s none – whether it’s sex, answers, or actual frights. Call it horror blue balls.

But the reason the movie slacks more than it satisfies is that the potentially fun B-movie premise – a ghost monster beneath a murky swimming pool – is padded by much ado about tasteful “dimensionality”. Long-time director Rico Maria Ilarde, working for the first time with studio behemoth Star Cinema, has made his most polished film, but also one of his least palpable.

GRADE: C+

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Positive Review by Philbert Dy