Rewind (2023 film)

Rewind is a 2023 Philippine science fiction romantic drama film directed by Mae Cruz-Alviar from a story and screenplay written by Enrico C. Santos, with Joel Mercado co-written the latter. It stars Dingdong Dantes as a man who is given a chance to travel back in time to save his wife (played by Dantes' real-life wife Marian Rivera) from an accident and fix their deteriorating relationship. The supporting cast includes Coney Reyes, Ariel Ureta, Pepe Herrera, Joross Gamboa, and Ina Feleo. It was produced by three film companies: Star Cinema, Agosto Dos Media, and APT Entertainment.

Rewind premiered on December 25, 2023 at the 49th Metro Manila Film Festival to a generally positive critical reception. Upon its release, it has earned ₱1.2 billion at the worldwide box office, making it the highest-grossing Philippine film of all time.

Plot
John is a hard-working office employee who maintains an aloof relationship with his wife Mary and son Austin. Frustrated after his boss Hermie passes him over for promotion in favor of a younger colleague, Vivian, John confronts Hermie and submits his resignation. While clearing his office, John is visited by Vivian who shares a kiss with him. The next day, John and Mary argue on their way to Austin's play over John's resignation and his fling with Vivian, which Mary learns from a video discreetly recorded by John's colleague Hannah. Distracted, John narrowly avoids hitting a pedestrian but loses control of their car, which crashes into a tree, killing Mary at exactly 3:00 PM.

Days later, an intoxicated John lashes out over his predicament at a portrait of Jesus Christ which Austin had named Lods before stumbling upon Jess, an electrician who is also nicknamed Lods and resembles Jesus. After learning that Mary had hired Lods to prepare the lights for his surprise birthday party, John invites him over to share a drink, during which Lods offers him a chance to go back in time, save Mary and fix his mistakes with one condition: someone has to die that day. John offers to do so and seals the deal with Jess. John then finds himself at Hermie's birthday party, during which he was passed over for promotion. Fixing his earlier mistakes, John tells Hermie of his acceptance of his sidelining, wards off Vivian's advances, and checks on Hannah before she can record them. John reconciles with his estranged father. He then goes to his son, giving him his blessing for Austin to pursue his passion as a pianist and take Mary out on a date.

The next morning, John argues with Mary after discovering her plans to enroll at a culinary school in Singapore accompanied by Austin, who was accepted in a music academy there, with Mary saying that she wants to pursue her dreams also. John, who feels that his efforts have been in vain with his family's departure, confronts Lods, who is preparing some lights in the yard. In response, Lods chastises him for being selfish and offers to let Mary die as originally intended, but John refuses. En route to Austin's play, John gives his blessing for her to go with Austin. At the moment of the accident, John avoids colliding with the tree, saving Mary.

While watching Austin’s play, John sees Lods in the audience and realizes that it is nearing 3:00 PM, the time Mary was supposed to have died. After going out and encountering Lods in a hallway, John pleads for his life to be spared, but finally accepts his fate after Lods assures him that his death would inspire Mary to become a successful restaurateur and Austin to become a renowned pianist who dedicates his performances to his name. Lods then allows him to go finish his son's play before dying. At the auditorium, John sees Austin dedicating his play to his parents. John prepares to greet him but is confused after Austin ignores him and runs towards the hall. Following him outside, he sees Austin hovering over his collapsed body, followed by Mary. John realizes that he is already dead and steps into a bright light leading to the afterlife.

At John's wake, Mary eulogizes him as Austin plays the piano in accordance with his final instructions. Years later, Mary and Austin lead successful lives and careers. After seeing off Austin, who now has his own family, an elderly Mary dances with John's spirit.

Cast

 * Dingdong Dantes as John Nuñez, Mary’s husband, who shifted his priorities from being a family man to a workaholic man aspiring for promotion.
 * Jeremiah Cruz as Young John
 * Marian Rivera as Mary Nuñez, John’s wife, who had to give up her promising career as a chef in order to become a full-time housewife.
 * Enicka Xaria Orbe as Young Mary
 * Jordan Lim as Austin Nuñez, Mary and John’s son who has a passion for playing the piano.
 * Alonzo Muhlach as child Austin
 * JC Alcantara plays as the adult version of Austin Nuñez.
 * Pepe Herrera as Lods, who turns out to be Jesus who poses as Jess, an electrician hired by Mary, and who gave John a chance to go back in time, albeit with a caveat.
 * Coney Reyes as Leonora, Mary’s mother.
 * Ariel Ureta as Hermie, John and Mary's godfather at their wedding, who is also the company president where John works.
 * Lito Pimentel as Nestor, John's estranged father.
 * Ina Feleo as Aurora, one of Mary's close friends.
 * Joross Gamboa as Lucio, one of John's subordinates.
 * Sue Ramirez as Vivian Pastrana, John's younger colleague, who is attracted to him.
 * Pamu Pamorada as Hannah, John's assistant.
 * Shanaia Gomez as Austin's future wife.
 * Mary Joy Apostol as Ningning, John and Mary's maid.
 * Via Antonio as Bridgette, one of Mary's close friends.
 * Chamyto Aguedan as Dennis, one of Mary's close friends.

Production
On June 21, 2023, Star Cinema announced through a media press conference that the film Rewind, written by Enrico Santos and directed by Mae Cruz-Alviar, will be top-billed by GMA Network's exclusive talents and celebrity couple Dingdong Dantes and Marian Rivera and to be co-produced with the former's production company Agosto Dos Media and APT Entertainment.

Enrico Santos is the scriptwriter for the film. He said that the material for Rewind was conceptualized prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the script being ready by 2020, filming was delayed due to the pandemic.

On July 10, 2023, the committee chose the film as one of the first four official entries for the 49th Metro Manila Film Festival. On September 21, 2023, lead actor Dingdong Dantes posted on his Instagram account some snippets of the film's wedding scene with captions implying that it was the first day of production.

Release
The official 90-second teaser of the film was released on November 13, 2023. On November 23, 2023, an official poster was unveiled to the public with the presence of the lead couple, and was later uploaded on the social media platform accounts of Star Cinema and other related divisions of ABS-CBN. On December 4, 2023, a full official trailer was released by Star Cinema.

Rewind premiered in cinemas in the Philippines on December 25, 2023, as one of the official entries of the 2023 Metro Manila Film Festival.

On March 25, 2024, Rewind was released on Netflix among other 2023 Metro Manila Film Festival entries on the following scheduled dates, and also the following day, the exclusive deleted scenes of the film were released on Star Cinema's social media accounts.

Box office
Owing to a policy set by the Metro Manila Film Festival, the initial gross for Rewind was not revealed for its first week. On January 7, it was reported that film had grossed over ₱600 million, more than half of the total gross revenue of the entire film festival, which was reported to pass ₱1 billion, passing Gandarrapiddo: The Revenger Squad (2017) to become the fourth highest-grossing Filipino film of all time. ABS-CBN refused to confirm the report at the time. On January 17 however, ABS-CBN and Star Cinema both announced that the film has grossed over ₱815 million domestically and ₱30 million worldwide, for total gross revenue of ₱845 million. It passed the domestic gross of Hello, Love, Goodbye (2019) to become the highest-grossing Filipino film in terms of domestic gross, and the second-highest-grossing Filipino film of all time. On January 30, it became the first Filipino film in Philippine history to pass ₱900 million in combined gross revenue, becoming the highest-grossing Philippine film of all time. As of April 2024, Rewind has surpassed over ₱1.2 billion in worldwide gross, making it the first ever Filipino film to reach this milestone.

Critical reception
Critical reception for the film is mostly positive, with particular praise given to its cast's performances and script. According to review aggregator site Kritikultura, the film obtained a score of 70/100 based on 23 reviews, indicating a generally positive reception.

Many critics have compared its plot to the 2004 film If Only. Bum Tenorio of The Philippine Star wrote in his review, "Rewind is the full stop of the heart that finds it hard to forgive—and later on realizes, albeit late, that forgiveness is not an option but the only choice in order to move on." University of Santo Tomas college newspaper, The Varsitarian, praised Pepe Herrera for his casual performance as Lods, a slang for Jesus Christ, saying that "[a] more serious characterization would have ruined the story." Fred Hawson, writing in his blog, gave the film a seven, praising its director Mae Cruz-Alviar for the film's emotional climaxes, as well as the performances of Dingdong Dantes and Marian Rivera, saying, "it was their affecting performances that gave this film its special radiance beyond its familiar plot." He expressed reservation about the character Lods. Meanwhile, Philbert Dy of Spot.ph gave the film two and a half stars out of five, writing that the film's execution of its main plot about death and tragedy "stands out some shaky ground thematically and theologically." However, Film Circle Reject gave it a positive review, with a rating of 4/5 stating "we can say all we want about how flawed and formulaic the film maybe, but we can all agree that this romantic drama is a pretty damn good tearjerker, propelled by compelling performances from its two stars, Dingdong Dantes and Marian Rivera."