It’s been decades since I last watched a movie during the Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF)! I could no longer remember the last time. This year, though, there are several movies that caught my eye. The movie Rewind was one of them. This is the first Filipino/Tagalog movie that I watched with my husband in a cinema in a very long time. I think the first Filipino movie we watched together was Heneral Luna. Even at home, we only watch English movies, because that is his preference. I’m glad I convinced him to accompany me to watch this as our date on Christmas Day. Special thanks to my mom who watched over our kids so that my husband and I could have our movie date.

Let me tell you why.

Why I Recommend the Movie Rewind

1. Just watching the movie trailer has made me teary-eyed.

2. The story has substance. It’s not something put together to simply make people laugh or entertain.

3. I love many of the lessons the movie tried to impart to viewers.

4. There were some scenes that were moving and would make you think and reflect on how you are living your life. There are lines from the characters of the movie that will pierce your heart or make you pause and think.

5. It’s a family movie. Families can bond by watching it during the Christmas season. It’s perfect for couples and families with relatively older children. (There are many scenes with cursing. There are scenes where a woman is skimpily dressed. It tackles death of a parent. There are scenes that need to be explained and processed with children. And if you are devout Christians, there are sinful scenes that you need to again explain and process for children to understand why these are wrong.)

6. I love the official soundtrack. It’s perfect for the movie’s main theme or message.

7. It’s not all drama. There are also light and funny moments.

8. Last but not the least, I love that it included God in the story. Many people forget that God’s great love for us was the reason we have CHRISTmas. Many people forget to even remember to thank God at Christmastime for sending His Son to the world to save us. Christmas has become so commercialized and materialistic. People forget that it’s Jesus’s birthday. That is the main reason I wrote my latest children’s book Pasko Pa Rin. This movie has somehow helped people remember God during the Christmas season. I’m thankful that there are still film makers who make these kinds of movies.

Now, let me share or highlight the lessons that I loved from the movie. If you have not yet watched the movie, I hope that you’ll include this in your list of choices at least, especially if you are married and have children or aging parents.

20 Lessons From the Movie Rewind

Many of the lessons from the movie are things that many of us already know. But sometimes, we forget or we are challenged to live them out consistently. It’s good that there is a movie like Rewind that reminds us of these important life lessons.

• We don’t know when we will die. Thus, we should live each day of our life as if it’s our last. A rewind can only happen in movies.
• We should know our priorities and strive to live our lives based on our priorities if we do not want to have lots of regrets at the end of our lives.
• Husbands and wives need to support each other and allow each other to grow and succeed.
• Husbands should also allow their wives to pursue their dreams by supporting them either financially, emotionally (with their words of affirmation), and by giving them time to do what makes their hearts soar. If you wnat your wife to be happy and fulfilled, give her time to step out of her role as a wife and mother from time to time.
• God, sometimes, allows us to experience pain to make us stronger.
• In moments of difficulties, let us ask for the extra grace to believe and continue to trust in God’s perfect plan for our lives.
• It’s not easy to forgive when you have been hurt deeply. But, by the grace of God, it’s still possible to offer forgiveness to someone who has hurt you.
• We need to be sensitive to the needs and feelings of our family members.
• Parents need to make time for their children, especially when they have special school events. It makes them really happy and proud when they see their parents watching them and supporting them.
• Sometimes, even if you give your all to your job, it’s still possible that you will not achieve your goals or dreams. There are other factors that can affect the outcome.
• Don’t spend too much time at work such that you are already sacrificing your relationships in your family. Don’t let your work be the reason your marriage will fail or your relationship with your children will be strained. Don’t get yourself killed by working too much! Take care of your health.
• People are more important than position, money or fame/prestige.
• We would be happier if we have a family to share our successes with.
• Parents should allow their children to follow their own interests or passions.
• Do not fight in a vehicle. If you will have a difficult argument, it would be best not to do it while one of the parties involved is driving.
• Always wear your seatbelt. It can save your life.
• In our anger, we can say mean words that we would regret or words that we do not really mean. Let us be slow to speak particularly when we are angry.
• Not all opportunities for career advancement should be accepted or grabbed. These opportunities should be considered along with our priorities in life. We shoudl ask how a promotion will impact our family life, our relationships, our health and our spiritual life.
• The most precious gift we can give our family members, spouse or children, is our time, our presence. Not money. Not gifts. Moreover, we should seize every opportunity to show our love to them and how important they are to us because we don’t know if we will have another chance to do so.
• Every new day that God gives us is an opportunity to change for the better. We may not have the chance to rewind our lives like in the movie. But we have a chance to live better lives each day that we are given. Let’s not wait before it’s too late.

This is just a quick review. I’d like to be more detailed, but I need to sleep already. It’s almost midnight. I might just update this blog post.

But, all in all, I would recommend this movie to parents or couples. And to make the most of the movie experience, I suggest that you discuss what moved you and in what scenes you can relate. Share with each other what lessons you learned or what you were reminded of. It’s a great date movie, fellow parents!

If you can afford to watch more movies this MMFF season, I suggest that you also watch Firefly, Family of Two and GomBurZa. I also plan to watch these movies if I can squeeze them into my hectic schedule and if I can find someone to watch these movies with me.