family matters movie review

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‘Family Matters’ Review: Beautifully moving, existential family drama

FAMILY MATTERS (2022) Review Directed by Nuel Crisostomo Naval

Have you reflected on how you treat or value your family lately? Do you sometimes take something for granted because you feel like there’s always another time? “Your phone will always be there, but I won’t,” one of the lines in Nuel Crisostomo Naval’s latest family drama entry in this year’s Metro Manila Film Festival that will touch your heart and reflect on how you treat others especially your family.

Family Matters is a beautifully moving and existential family drama with a great ensemble. It understands the chaos of a big Filipino family and turns it into something that the audiences can reflect on. You’ll leave the cinema with more wisdom on the meaning of life and how death can be something that drives us to be more connected with the people with love.

I know that Christmas season should be fun and watching a family drama seems not the first thing that would come out as a way to celebrate but Family Matters is us. One way or another, there’s a character in the film you will relate to. You’ll laugh a lot and you’ll even cry more.

The film is such a rewarding experience from a powerhouse cast, impressive direction and beautiful story. It’s worth your time and your money. You may even want to rewatch it again after seeing it for the first time.

4 OUT OF 5 STARS

‘Family Matters’ is now showing in Philippine cinemas nationwide from CineKo Productions. Rated PG by the MTRCB.

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CULTURE MIX

Where Lifestyle Cultures Blend

Review: ‘Family Matters’ (2022), starring Noel Trinidad, Liza Lorena, Nonie Buencamino, Mylene Dizon, Nikki Valdez and JC Santos

Arts and Entertainment

Agot Isidro , Alessandra Romero , Allyana Nicole Goyenechea , Allyson McBride , Anna Luna , drama , Eren Kereci , Family Matters , Gerry O'Hara , Ian Pangilinan , Ina Feleo , JC Santos , Krystal Mejes , Kzhoebe Nicole Baker , Liza Lorena , movies , Mylene Dizon , Nikki Valdez , Noel Trinidad , Nonie Buencamino , Nuel Naval , Philippines , reviews

February 9, 2023

by Carla Hay

“Family Matters” (2022)

Directed by Nuel Naval

Tagalog with subtitles

Culture Representation:  Taking place in the Philippines and briefly in the United States, the dramatic film “Family Matters” features a predominantly Filipino cast of characters (with a few white people) representing the working-class and middle-class.

Culture Clash:  Members of a large Filipino family have various squabbles with each other and other people, while the family patriarch is coping with health issues.

Culture Audience:  “Family Matters” will appeal primarily to people who are interested in watching appealing dramas that show the ups and downs of family relationships and how relatives deal with aging family members.

Despite some flaws, “Family Matters” is a drama with its heart in the right place, featuring good performances from the cast members. The movie drags on a little longer than it should, and some plot developments look forced, but the movie remains watchable. It’s a story that transcends nations and cultures, because there’s probably something relatable to most viewers about the family at the center of this story.

Directed by Nuel Naval and written by Mel Mendoza-del Rosario, “Family Matters” has a sprawling total running time of 134 minutes. Some of the movie tends to ramble and become unfocused, while other aspects of the movie seem too rushed without adequate explanation. It’s the type of movie that has some scenes that look like they’re going to end, but then the scenes keep going with needless repetition.

However, one of the biggest strengths of “Family Matters” (which is about a large family in an unnamed city in the Philippines) is that the adult characters have personalities that make these characters very unique and memorable. One of the biggest pitfalls of movies about large families is when the movie makes it hard to tell the family members apart from each other. “Family Matters” manages to mostly avoid this pitfall, because the family’s adult characters are written and portrayed as fully formed people, not stereotypes. However, the underage children in the family have the most underdeveloped storylines because the movie is really more about how the adults in the family interact with each other.

Here are the members of this large clan:

• Francisco Florencio (played by Noel Trinidad), the family strong-willed patriarch, is having some health issues that land him in a hospital and affect him throughout the entire story.
• Eleonor Florencio (played by Liza Lorena), the family matriarch, is the kind and loving wife of Francisco. They have four adult children, ranging in ages from mid-50s to mid-30s: son Francisco Jr. (nicknamed Kiko), daughter Fortune, daughter Ellen and son Enrico.
• Francisco “Kiko” Jr. (played by Nonie Buencamino), Francisco and Eleonor’s eldest child, works as a building construction engineer. Kiko tends to be bossy and arrogant with his three younger siblings and with his work subordinates.
• Odette (played by Agot Isidro), Kiko’s homemaker wife, patiently puts up with Kiko when he loses his temper and becomes difficult. She usually stays out of the family arguments.
• Kiko and Odette have three children, ranging in ages from about 13 to about 17. The eldest child is son Francis (played by Ian Pangilinan), followed by daughter Frances (played by Beatriz Teves) and daughter Florence (played by Alessandra Romero).
• Fortune (played by Mylene Dizon), Francisco and Eleonor’s second eldest child, is outspoken with her opinions. She gets involved in family arguments, but she is also sometimes a peacemaker. Fortune owns and operates a pet store with her loyal husband Nelson. Fortune and Nelson have three daughters, ranging in ages from about 8 to about 14: Nikki (played by Alexa Macanan), Nina (played by Krystal Mejes) and Nadia (played by Allyana Nicole Goyenechea).
• Nelson (played by James Blanco) is a mild-mannered spouse who gets annoyed whenever Kiko acts superior because Kiko has the highest income of the four siblings. Nelson and Fortune, who love taking care of animals, are proud of their pet store business, even though Kiko looks down on this type of work because it doesn’t require a college education.
• Ellen (played by Nikki Valdez), the third eldest child of Francisco and Eleonor, helps take care of her aging parents. She’s a never-married bachelorette who is insecure about being the only one of her siblings who hasn’t gotten married and who doesn’t have children. Now in her early 40s, Ellen feels she doesn’t have much time left if she wants to find a life partner and start her own family.
• Enrico (played by JC Santos), the youngest child of Francisco and Eleonor, is an entrepreneur who has recently opened his own gym. Enrico grew up being called a “menopause baby” because Eleonor unexpectedly got pregnant and gave birth to Enrico when she was middle-aged. Enrico is a divorced father of a daughter named Ginny (played by Allyson McBride), who’s about 13 or 14 years old. He shares custody of Ginny with his ex-wife Glenda (played by Ina Feleo), who has a tense relationship with Enrico. Enrico also has a daughter named Ivy (played by Kzhoebe Nicole Baker), who is about 6 or 7 years old, with his live-in girlfriend Irene (played by Anna Luna).

“Family Matters” begins with a family emergency: Francisco wakes up in bed with severe chest pains and is unable to breathe. He is rushed to a hospital, while Ellen makes calls to her siblings to tell them about this medical crisis. After all of the siblings and Eleonor have gathered in the hospital and are worried that Francisco might die, the hospital’s Dr. Salvador (played by Gerry O’Hara) tells them that Francisco will be okay. Francisco did not have a heart attack or a stroke, says the doctor. Instead, Francisco has been diagnosed with early onset asthma, so he is prescribed medication and a nebulizer.

Francisco’s health scare motivates the siblings to rethink their lives and start paying more attention to their elderly parents. There is some debate over whether or not Francisco and Eleonor should move to an assisted living retirement home. Francisco and Eleonor adamantly do not want to take that option. Francisco is somewhat in denial about how his medical diagnosis will change his lifestyle, because he would like to think that he will still have the physical strength that he had before the diagnosis.

Meanwhile, Ellen starts to feel more pressure to find her soul mate, because she wants her parents to still be alive if she ever gets married. For the past eight months, Ellen has been talking to a Filipino American named Chris (played by Eren Kereci), who lives in the U.S. and is about the same age as Ellen. Chris is a divorced father who has his own business. Ellen tells her family that Chris is her “boyfriend,” even though she and Chris haven’t met in person yet. Ellen decides to take the plunge and go to the U.S. to visit Chris and see if their relationship will progress.

Ellen’s visit to the U.S. leaves Francisco and Eleonor temporarily without a caretaker, and the siblings don’t want their elderly parents to spend a lot of time alone. And so, the siblings come up with a plan to have Kiko, Fortune and Enrico take turns having Francisco and Eleonor temporarily stay at each of the sibling’s respective homes. The movie shows what happens when this plan is put in motion.

During the course of the movie, the children of Francisco and Eleonor have to come to terms with their insecurities about themselves. Kiko begins to feel guilty because he has let his workaholic ways prevent him from spending better quality time with his family. Fortune also has to re-evaluate how she has been balancing her work life with her personal life. Ellen puts more pressure on herself to find a soul mate. Enrico (who has jumped around from job to job) wants to stop having a reputation for being flaky and change into being a more responsible person.

Meanwhile, Francisco and Eleonor have to face the realities of their own mortality and what type of legacy they want to leave for their family. “Family Matters” shows several occasions where the family members gather for meals. And the inevitable bickering among family members happen, but there is also a lot of love and camaraderie. Enrico has the most turbulence in his personal life, because his ex-wife Glenda doesn’t really trust him and might fight for full custody of Ginny.

Ginny adores her father, but her parents broke up before she was old enough to know what happened. The divorce is something that the family doesn’t really like to talk about. During a family gathering, Ginny asks Irene why Enrico and Glenda split up, and Irene awkwardly says that she’s not the best person to answer that question. Francisco and Eleonor are sitting at the same table. Francisco tactfully says that when Enrico and Glenda were married, Enrico used to be immature. Francisco adds that Enrico and Glenda wanted different things out of life.

“Family Matters” has a lot of “slice of life” scenes that show conversations between the family members. But there are also some scenes that pack in the melodrama. Let’s put it this way: Francisco’s trip to the hospital in the beginning of the movie won’t be the last time that someone in the family ends up in a hospital. The melodrama in the movie looks overly contrived and awkwardly placed. It doesn’t look as convincing and natural as other scenes in “Family Matters.”

With such a large ensemble cast, it’s truly an asset that all of the cast members are very believable as family members. There isn’t any bad acting, which helps make “Family Matters” more enjoyable. Trinidad as Francisco and Lorena and Eleonor have some wonderful moments showing a longtime married couple who are reflecting on their lives and coming to grips with the inevitability of death. Santos as Enrico also stands out for his portrayal of Enrico’s evolution as a parent and as a partner.

“Family Matters” is at its best when it shows the realistic family dynamics within this tight-knit clan. Loyalties and rivalries can stay the same or change over time. A family member’s self-perception can also be very different from what other family members actually think of that person.

For example, in an emotionally moving scene, Ellen (who feels ashamed for being her parents’ only child who hasn’t gotten married or had children) tearfully tells her mother Eleonor that she’s sorry she turned out to be a disappointment. Eleonor lovingly responds that Ellen has always been a blessing. It’s a turning point for Ellen and her self-esteem issues. In another example, Kiko likes to think of himself as a respected alpha male of the family, but certain things happen that make him understand that other family members perceive Kiko to be overbearing and overly judgmental.

The last 30 minutes of “Family Matters” really going into overdrive with sentimentality—but in a way that is endearing, not annoying. The message of the movie is loud and clear: Whatever problems or differences that family members might experience, it’s always best to try to resolve them honestly, and to appreciate loved ones while they are still alive. It’s not an original theme for a family movie, but it’s a timeless and classic theme that “Family Matters” handles in a mostly entertaining way.

Cineko Productions released “Family Matters” in select U.S. cinemas on February 3, 2023. The movie was released in the Philippines on December 25, 2022.

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‘Family Matters’ review: Old tricks, same magic

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This is AI generated summarization, which may have errors. For context, always refer to the full article.

MANILA, Philippines – Going into the cinema for a movie called Family Matters comes off like a gamble precisely because of how wry and bland the title sounds. Fortunately, this family drama clearly knows itself and takes advantage of every material at its disposal – at times, to a fault – making the gamble pay off.

The premise is a no-brainer. Ellen (Nikki Valdez) hopes to fly to the United States for a burgeoning romance, but guilt gets in the way as she frets over leaving her elderly parents Francisco (Noel Trinidad) and Eleanor (Liza Lorena) who she has long taken care of, especially after the patriarch encounters a health scare. 

Ellen then gathers her siblings Kiko (Nonie Buencamino), Fortune (Mylene Dizon), and Enrico (JC Santos) to figure things out. Yet she catches everyone by surprise when she travels to the US without notice, so the three siblings living in the Philippines have to deal with the matter at hand.

Director Nuel Naval hardly reinvents the wheel as the film bears an uncanny resemblance with Leo McCarey’s classic masterpiece Make Way for Tomorrow (1937) and local pieces such as Laurice Guillen’s Tanging Yaman (2000), which was a big hit at the time’s Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF), and Cathy Garcia-Molina’s Seven Sundays (2017). But its contemporary sentiment separates the film from its predecessors, best captured by the third act in which the family attempts to disconnect from a world buoyed by the internet.

Given his roots in ABS-CBN’s Maalaala Mo Kaya , Asia’s longest-running drama anthology, Naval taps into a tried and tested formula that unapologetically places melodrama and sentimentality as the film’s most defining elements, recognizing that its success hinges on pure relatability.

Still, Naval manages to steer the film into a sweeping viewing experience because the director knows better than to bank on cheap histrionics and trivialize the pent-up beef and tension ingrained in family reunions, allowing the audience to settle in before opening the floodgates of emotion.

Yet Family Matters doesn’t solely succumb to plain drama. When a scene registers like it is about to go over the top, Naval insists restraint and injects energetic humor to strike a balance between the heavy scenes and the light ones, and even the banter between the characters reveals something about their own insecurities.

Of course, the film would not succeed without good material. The script, written by Mel Mendoza del Rosario, puts the film’s title to work precisely because of the sheer volume of family matters it unravels, knowledgeable that individual character arcs are just as paramount as the overall narrative, although the subplots could use some more fine-tuning. Where the story ends also requires some more calibration as it feels like the film could have already culminated early on, not only to reduce the runtime but also tighten the impact of the message.

But if one is to point out the film’s biggest merit, it would be the superb ensemble performance that leaves no false note. Trinidad and Lorena’s dynamic as a couple grappling with the perceived burden that comes with old age is a sight to behold, particularly in subdued moments where their silence and facial expressions alone are enough to convey their fragility and uncertainties. Buencamino also proves his acting mettle as the cocky Kiko, knowing when to keep his guard up and let it down, especially in loaded scenes.

The rest of the supporting cast also turn in solid, reliable work. Dizon, Valdez, and Santos are aware of how to make the most out of their characters but never fail to maintain chemistry with each other. Agot Isidro, James Blanco, Anna Luna, and Ina Feleo likewise offer hefty performances that thrive even in brief moments.

What makes this stacked cast far more impressive is how Ian Pangilinan rises to the occasion and delivers a work that easily makes him the MVP of this film. His affectionate acting makes more pronounced the budding pressure that Francis is forced to come to terms with as Kiko’s eldest child. His acting chops are on full display in a confrontation scene with Buencamino, like a dark horse waiting for the perfect time to show what he’s made of and nails it ever so brilliantly, lending the film its most emotionally-charged moment. Pangilinan’s work here is proof that he has a lot more to offer as an actor of his generation.

So what a charade it is to learn that this year’s MMFF jury decided to shut some of these performances out of the acting categories. That some of the actors didn’t even make the cut for the official list of nominees exhibits a lapse in judgment too glaring to go unnoticed — a disservice the MMFF extends in its decision to hand out awards only two days into the festival, when the entries barely relish its theatrical release, save for those deserving to be pulled out.

While Family Matters puts faith in the Filipino family, it also implores us to confront the complexity of a Filipino household replete with intergenerational trauma and overbearing expectations – how unhealthy familial relationships often lead to cutting off ties and how it takes a village to keep someone dear to us. 

Undeniably, Family Matters is best picture material, articulating that, if done tastefully, relying on old tricks can still bear some transfixing magic. But the members of the jury lousily think otherwise (and no, this isn’t a knock on this year’s top prize winner). – Rappler.com

Family Matters is now showing in cinemas nationwide.

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REVIEW: ‘Family Matters’ punumpuno ng positive Filipino values | PUSH.COM.PH

Family Matters

Noel Trinidad (Francisco Florencio) Liza Lorena (Eleonor Florencio) Nonie Buencamino (Francisco 'Kiko' Jr.) Agot Isidro (Odette) Mylene Dizon (Fortune) James Blanco (Nelson) Nikki Valdez (Ellen) JC Santos (Enrico) Anna Luna (Irene) Ina Feleo (Glenda)

Nuel C. Naval

This tear-jerking dramedy centers on a family whose members squabble over who will take care of their stroke-stricken father.

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Family Matters Reviews

Despite some flaws, Family Matters is a drama with its heart in the right place, featuring good performances from the cast members. The movie drags on a little longer than it should, and some plot developments look forced, but the movie remains watchable.

Full Review | Feb 9, 2023

People's Journal

Review of ‘Family Matters’: Snubbed by jurors but now one of the top grossers

‘ FAMILY Matters’ is the only Metro filmfest entry that truly matters, as it mirrors our very own lives and not just another escapist entertainment.

It’s about us, family members who laugh and cry and argue with our parents and siblings. The situations are so real and authentic and we’re sure you can see a reflection of yourself or a relative in any of its many characters.

It ranks with some of the best films about filial relationships that we’ve seen, like “August Osage County”, “The Family Stone”, “Home for the Holidays”, “The Royal Tenenbaums” and the most recent, “Belfast”.

The film starts when the dad (Noel Trinidad) had chest pains and is taken to the hospital. His wife (Liza Lorena) and four kids gather around his bed. It turns out he has late onset asthma.

The eldest son is Nonie Buencamino (married to Agot Isidro and they have a son and two daughters), followed by Mylene Dizon (married to James Blanco and they have three daughters), Nikki Valdez (the spinster who lives with their aging parents) and JC Santos (has a daughter with previous girlfriend Ina Feleo and another daughter with his new partner, Anna Luna.)

Theirs is not a dysfunctional family but more of an ordinary, normal one where members get into disagreements but the love that connects them remains. It also shows realistically how a family grapples with the unexpected changes happening around them.

A problem arises when Nikki suddenly leaves for the U.S. to meet an American suitor she met online. Her remaining siblings want to get a professional caregiver to look after their dad, but Noel is so against the idea.

They try to take turns in taking care of their parents, but the oldies are not used to such an arrangement and would rather be on their own. This plot element reminds us of Lino Brocka’s 1978 Metro Filmfest entry, “Inay”, with Alicia Vergel playing the title role as the widowed mom. She has retired from teaching and now that she is aging, she tries living alternately with her various children that includes Dindo Fernando, Laurice Guillen, Chanda Romero, Orestes Ojeda, Dexter Doria and Ace Vergel.

It’s a well-reviewed film, but the jurors then ignored it and gave most of the filmfest awards to Celso Ad. Castillo’s “Burlesk Queen”. It became controversial because the feisty Brocka chased and challenged the head of the jurors then, Rolando Tinio, into a fight.

We cannot forget the MMFF that year as it also has several other good entries, like “Kung Mangarap Ka’t Magising” by Mike de Leon, “Walang Katapusang Tag-araw” by Ishmael Bernal, “Banta ng Kahapon” by Eddie Romero, “Mga Bilanggong Birhen” by Romy Suzara and “Sa Piling ng mga Sugapa” by Gil Portes, but the jurors became so biased.

Mel Mendoza-del Rosario’s screenplay portrays the conflicts that unavoidably happen in a family in “Family Matters”. Nonie, an engineer who works in construction, is the most successful brother and he feels superior to his siblings and in laws who are not as well off as him, notably to James, who thinks he is “mayabang”.

He is also not that attentive to his own kids and his own son (Ian Pangilinan) is alienated from him. The film shows the generational gap between the oldies and the young grandkids who are so attached to their cellphones and gadgets.

One of the most amusing scenes in the film shows Noel asking his kids and grandkids to surrender their cellphones to him for three days. This forces them to talk and exchange stories with each other and catch on with their lives. The film has many situations that will alternately make you laugh and cry, just like in real life. In the end, there is peace and reconciliation among the characters who are at odds with each other.

One of the most moving scenes is when a friend of Noel died and he laments that he is losing his friends. We’re about the same age and that is also exactly what I feel now. We used to be part of a prayer group of four couples that do volunteer work together.

Now two couples have both departed. My own wife has left us and another good friend has left his widow, Anabelle Quiazon, the only remaining friend of mine in our group.

The film makes us reflect: what is your relationship with your own family right now? And it works because we don’t think we’ve seen a recent local film whose ensemble cast so persuasively portrays a real life family.

The entire ensemble is superb and how they lost the ensemble acting award is beyond us. The fact that “Family Matters” failed to win any major acting plum or best picture award is more a reflection on the kind of cinematic sensibility and integrity that the jurors have. It is the best film of Director Nuel Naval, who’s best known for the blockbuster “Miracle at Cell No. 7” in 2019.

We are sure the injustice that happened to “Family Matters” will be vindicated in the other award-giving bodies next year. It’s just too bad that there was a faux pas in the film’s promotion. Its press preview was held three days after the festival started. We were invited but we had a family affair that day and we got to watch it only in a mall theatre later. We wish we could have come up with this review earlier, before the film opened in theatres, to help spread the word on how good it is. But the good news is that even if the jurors ignored it, ‘Family Matters’ is now one of the three topgrossers at the box office, whereas another favored is ‘nangungulelat sa takilya.’

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Review by Goldwin Reviews

Family matters 2022 ★★★★★.

Watched Dec 25 , 2022

Goldwin Reviews’s review published on Letterboxd:

Nakakaiyak sa ganda. Tumatagos ang bawat linya at eksena. Nag-uumapaw sa puso ang pelikula.

Ramdam mo ang pagmamahal ng pamilya. Hindi man perpekto… ngunit kaninong pamilya ba ang hindi nagkakamali ?

Hindi rin perpekto ang pelikulang ito. Pero ang pagmamahal na ipinakita nila ay higit pa sa sapat para ito’y maibigan mo.

The ensemble is perfect and lovable, embodying a big family with a big heart. The movie has too many actors and actresses, but each one of them was given enough spotlight to impart a message or two.

Every generation, from grandparents to parents to grandchildren, was given importance. Every character has flaws and those flaws were acknowledged.

All the scenes are relatable. Everything feels familar. Filipino culture is highlighted, and love for family is evident. This is one beautiful Filipino movie, made by Filipinos, for Filipinos.

Masarap maging Pilipino sa mga pagkakataong ito. Ipinamukha ng pelikulang ito kung paano tayo magmahal bilang Pilipino at bilang Pamilya.

This movie puts Filipino Family on pedestal while also embracing its imperfections.

Cliché as it may sound — every Filipino should watch this movie, because it values what truly matters… and that is Family.

This movie matters.

#FamilyMatters ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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MMFF Movie Review: Family Matters

• PUBLISHED ON December 29, 2022

By Redentor Lagrimas Lebantino

Movie Rating : ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

TO simply say that Family Matters is a tearjerker does not accord the film justice. There is excellent craftsmanship at work, and a narrative that is deeply personal.

At the center of it is a married couple dealing with the inevitability of old age—the gnawing reality of the body going weaker and one’s own agency becoming unreliable.  The patriarch Francisco (Noel Trinidad) struggles with the fact that it is no longer he who takes care of his children. The matriarch Eleanor (Liza Lorena) assures him that they will always have each other.

The premise is a dramatic precursor, setting off a story that finds family members, the children in particular, caring for their parents while they attend to their personal affairs.

Masterful depiction of a familiar drama

The film hits home as it reminds of other Filipino drama flicks.  Laurice Guillen’s Tanging Yaman (2000) delivers an ode to family devotion amidst unspoken anger exploding at the film’s climax. In Joel Lamangan’s Filipinas (2003), the milieu mirrors the politics of familial relations challenged by differing life principles and values. Cathy Garcia Molina’s Seven Sundays (2017) tells, to a not-so-subtle degree, that family is everything one needs to be truly happy.

Family Matters ticks each of these theses, offering a believable take on how it looks like when children are pressed to express how they genuinely care for their parents. How the film’s director Nuel Naval manages to do this does not call attention to itself. What you see are everyday matters interspersed with emotional triggers brought about by unresolved conflicts, or issues that just need to be dealt with at the moment.

Naval light-handedly orchestrates these things to happen, then he drops stimuli that elicit our own emotional response to the scenes. These stimuli are not only familiar; they are realities that define our core. Naval achieves such feat in this film—his best work to date.

Excellent writing

Ellen (Nikki Valdez) is the third child of Francisco and Eleanor who is unmarried and stays with them. When she decides to see her boyfriend in the States, the other siblings insist on employing a nurse to take care of their parents, specifically Francisco. With Francisco’s objection, they decide to take turns caring for the elders in their own homes. All of them willingly do their share while they continue attending to their own families.

Mel Mendoza Del Rosario’s script zeros in on such dynamics, focusing on the mundane at certain points: how schedules are squeezed in to do errands, how conversations are carried out over Sunday meals, or how the young are preoccupied with the digital times. The more serious scenes are written without appearing to just turn everything emotional. In fact, these scenes remain faithful to the premise and its development, eliciting the kind of reactions the characters are most likely to show.

Naval complements the script with a clear notion of organic and poignant. Confrontations are delivered with much intensity but are not necessarily long, allowing specific emotions to be contained and savored in the scenes. Reconciliations are brief, too, making the moments tender and sweet but not overly sentimental.

A superb ensemble

The ensemble is nothing short of superb. The adult children of Trinidad and Lorena are distinct in their struggles and imperfections. Noni Buencamino is piercing in his restraint, showing his disarming moments of pain. Nikki Valdez effortlessly connects to anyone who just wants to serve their parents. Mylene Dizon shows neutrality necessary for balance. JC Santos comes across as the affectionate and cool Tito . Agot Isidro is the daughter-in-law whose generosity grounds and uplifts.

Even the younger cast is splendid; their performances are just appropriate to their ages. Ian Pangilinan proves to be a promising young actor. In his scenes with Buencamino, he exudes both the innocence and the rebellious spirit typical of a man his age.

Liza Lorena is undoubtedly the ultimate wife and mother in the film, the esteemed actress that consummates and dispenses love like no other—towards her husband for whom she perfectly fits as the better half, and her children whom she cares for without selfless expectations. Noel Trinidad is the kind of father you just want to love despite his quirk and stubbornness.

MMFF’s best

Family Matters , even in its length which some think is a little too much, easily captures what the Filipino family is. It has the devotion of Tanging Yaman, the unifying spirit of Filipinas , and the intimacy of Seven Sundays. It comes with a message that all sons, daughters, mothers, and fathers have always known. But it comes with no imposition. The film simply does it right. No award is necessary to affirm the most pleasant gift it has given its audience: being MMFF’s best.

• TAGGED: family matters , liza lorena , MMFF , movie review , noel trinidad , philippines , republicasia

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Film Review of the Filipino Light Drama “Family Matters”

Film review of the light family drama film that was entered into the 48th Metro Manila Film Festival. It is one of the best entries in the MMFF of 2022, and it depicts a real-life struggle that a family was going through. The film boasts an audience-accessible plot and just the right amount of comedy and drama to appeal to Filipino households. The ideal movie for Filipino families to enjoy together. The narrative is extremely impressive in terms of the way it was put together, which deserves praise.

Photo Edited by Rianne Royce B. Opeña

Family Matters: film review

In spite of the fact that siblings often disagree with one another, the family as a whole depicts in the narrative as being a reasonable. It is their parents’ example of a successful marriage. That has serve as the glue that has keep them together over the years. The overall effect of these seemingly insignificant occurrences is to render the film more lovable and approachable.

You get the sense from watching the movie that the family is struggling to find a way to properly care for their elderly parents. They have a strong focus on the needs of parents. They had a lot of failures under their belts, but every time they did, they found a way to fix the problem. On the other hand. Their parents, who were portray by Noel Trinidad and Liza Lorena, grew weary of living in the city. They longed to return to their previous residence. In which they could both take a deep breath and unwind at the same time. Everyone in the family wants to take care of them. Children who are traditional wanting to look out for their parents’ best interests.

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Sure, there are holidays dedicated to celebrating mom and dad, but you know what? Everyday is parents day. I learned from this film review how hard families work to achieve the ideal for their children and themselves. On top of that, we all make concessions for the sake of the family.

Rianne Royce is a lady who is passionate about writing, and she is now pursuing a degree in Journalism at Bicol University. She first becomes interested in writing when she is a senior in high school and continues to pursue it when she is in college. She writes story pieces and makes sure that what she writes is current and interesting to the audience. She has a strong passion for writing, which she has developed further since joining the school-based organization BONJour and pursuing freelance writing on the side.

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Family Matters

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Family Matters stars reunite to play siblings again in new Christmas movie

Darius McCrary and Kellie Shanygne Williams, who played siblings Eddie and Laura Winslow on the beloved '90s sitcom Family Matters , are reuniting for a new movie in which they once again play siblings.

The film, Christmas in Carolina , is a holiday rom-com that follows Elle ( Atlanta 's Joslyn Y. Hall), a career-driven investment banker who has given up on love (and Christmas) until she meets Wesley (David L. Rowell), a former NBA player and CEO of a small marketing firm. On a whim, Wesley invites Elle home for Christmas in South Carolina with his mom and uncle (Williams and McCrary). With some trepidation, Elle accepts and is given a much bigger gift than she could have imagined.

Shot on location in South Carolina, the film was directed by Peggy Williams working from a script by Stacie Davis. The Legacy Distribution holiday romance will release on demand and digital on Nov. 1.

Check out the trailer for the film above.

This article has been updated to reflect that Williams and McCrary play siblings, not spouses, as the official synopsis originally indicated.

Related content:

• See the Family Matters cast reunite in these exclusive photos
• EW reunited the cast of Family Matters —and they're ready for a series revival
• Family Matters cast discusses their bond—onscreen and off

Related Articles

How ‘Family Matters’ Made One of Its Biggest Characters Disappear

When 'Family Matters' started, the Winslow family had three children, but suddenly, there were only two.

The Big Picture

• Judy Winslow was an integral part of the Family Matters dynamic, portraying a typical child character with relatable struggles and a close relationship with her siblings.
• The show's focus shifted towards Steve Urkel, leading to Judy's sudden removal from the series after Season 4, without any explanation or mention of her character in the remaining seasons.
• This decision was met with backlash from fans and cast members, with actress Jo Marie Payton expressing her frustration and desire for a reunion that would bring Judy back into the storyline.

When Family Matters debuted on ABC in 1989 as part of the network's Friday night TGIF lineup , it was a show much different from the one it would become. As a spinoff of the popular series Perfect Strangers , Family Matters stood out from most other sitcoms of the day by focusing on an all Black cast . These characters didn't fall into 80s stereotypes, but were well-thought-out people. There was Carl Winslow ( Reginald VelJohnson ), a lovable Chicago cop, and his wife, Harriette ( Jo Marie Payton ). With them lived Harriette's widowed sister, Rachel ( Telma Hopkins ), and her young son, Richie ( Bryton James ), as well as Carl's elderly mother, Estelle ( Rosetta LeNoire ).

At the forefront were the Winslow's three children, teenagers Eddie ( Darius McCrary ) and Laura ( Kellie Shanygne Williams ), and their youngest, Judy ( Jaimee Foxworth ). For four popular seasons, these characters fought in the most wholesome of ways, only to make up at the end of each episode in typical sitcom fashion. But then, for the strangest of reasons, Judy disappeared from the series. Her character wasn't killed off or recast. Judy Winslow was suddenly just gone as if she had never existed , and would never be mentioned again. The decision left fans and members of the cast furious.

Family Matters

The Winslow family deals with various misadventures, many of them caused by their pesky next-door neighbor, ultra-nerd Steve Urkel.

Who Was Judy Winslow on 'Family Matters'?

Judy Winslow's character was just nine years old when Family Matters first started. She didn't usually get as much storyline time as the other characters in the Winslow family, but she was far from a background character. She was portrayed as your typical child. She loved to play with dolls, she struggled with school, she loved her big sister, even if they fought, and later on, she found a close friend and play buddy in her cousin, Richie. Sometimes, being the youngest child, Judy didn't receive as much attention from her busy parents. She might act out a time or two, but in the end, Carl and Harriette were there for her and loved her.

Judy Winslow could shine when given the chance. In the Season 2 episode "Ice Station Winslow," Judy is proud of herself after receiving a good grade at school, especially considering how much she struggles. She tells her mom about it, but Harriette is distracted, busy making a costume for Richie. Jealous of the attention the youngest member of the family gets, she rips up the costume. It later leads to a heart-to-heart between Judy and Laura, where Laura calms her sister by telling her she used to feel the same way when Judy was the youngest. She tells Judy all the cool things you can do when you're older, like staying up late. Feeling guilty, Judy apologizes to Richie. It's your typical Family Matters episode, with lighthearted hijinks leading to a heartwarming resolution and a lesson learned , all in thirty minutes.

What Happened to Judy Winslow on 'Family Matters'?

Halfway through the first season, in an episode titled "Laura's First Date," the world was introduced to Steve Urkel ( Jaleel White ). The nerd with the big glasses, suspenders, and high voice was an immediate hit. It was easy to see why. Steve Urkel, with his romantic obsession over Laura Winslow, and the way he constantly frustrated Carl, was hilarious. Unfortunately, he was too funny. Quickly, Family Matters became more and more about Steve Urkel and his shenanigans, with the Winslows playing second fiddle . The wholesome message was still there, but the show was no longer about light humor. It went for the big laughs, with Urkel falling all over himself or destroying the family house on accident, all leading to him uttering his signature catchphrase: "Did I do that?"

Steve Urkel became a pop culture phenomenon. "Did I do that?" became part of the lexicon. By Season 4, Steve Urkel was such an icon that there was little breathing room for anything else. It was then that the showrunners decided to make the most drastic and unnecessary of moves by cutting a valued member of the cast. After the season ended, the horrible idea became a reality when thirteen-year-old Jaimee Foxworth was fired from Family Matters as a way to give more airtime to Steve Urkel . She wasn't given less time, like what usually happens to a character during a changing series. She wasn't written off, killed off, or recast, but simply gone. When Season 5 of Family Matters started, Foxworth and Judy Winslow were nowhere to be seen. For five more seasons, we'd get more stories of Steve Urkel and the Winslows, but there was not one mention of Judy. It was as if she never existed, which was not only an insult to the character and the actress who played her , but to the audience. It told fans that Judy never mattered, we shouldn't care, or worse, that we were so involved in Urkel's antics we wouldn't even notice.

In 2017, Foxworth told The Root ,

“The producers felt that they could do it and no one would notice. They’d done it with previous shows they had. They figured no one would really care. My fans took notice of it. They figured they could just throw me away, no explanation at all. Some of my cast members knew before I did. It affected my self-esteem as an actress. And I started feeling like I wasn’t good at my job."

Foxworth was so completely written out of Family Matter 's history that she wasn't even invited to an Entertainment Weekly cast reunion photoshoot that year:

“I was not invited at all. I wasn’t even contacted... It was a slap in the face from Entertainment Weekly. I don’t think there’s any good explanation."

'Family Matters' Jo Marie Payton Was Upset by Judy Winslow's Removal

Some of the cast of Family Matters , as you can imagine, were not happy about the decision. Not only had a member of their TV family been let go, a person that they had grown close to in real life, but she was a child. Darius McCrary, who played Judy's brother, Eddie, took it well, telling Comedy Hype in 2019 ,

“I just think that what happened to Jamie Foxworth, who is just a beautiful…multitalented individual…I think it was just a casualty of war, and all is fair in war... Whatever happened, whatever took place, it just didn’t work for the producers. In this game, it’s not about what works for you as a talent. It’s about what works for the producers."

Someone who did not take it well was Jo Marie Payton, the acting veteran who played Judy's mother, Harriette Winslow . In a 2022 interview with People , Payton didn't hold back on what she thought about the situation, including what she said to the showrunners at the time:

"I said, You guys need to tell me something that is not only creative, but also politically correct to straighten out this situation because there's nowhere in the world a family … You gave me three kids, you took away my baby. If you had taken away my oldest child, we could have always come up with [various excuses in the episodes] that she was at the mall or with her friends. You took away my baby, and when I asked you, 'Why did you take away my baby girl?,' you said, 'Nobody would notice.' I said, 'You know what, when we're walking down the street, nobody's gonna notice you because they're not going to ask you , they're going to ask me what happened to Judy.'"

Payton did hold on to the idea of a happy ending , thanks to a much hoped-for Family Matters reunion over the years. She said:

"The very first episode has to be that [Judy] comes down those stairs. The worst feeling in the world for a parent is not to know where your child is, so if [a reboot were to happen], and Judy comes back, I will do Family Matters again!"

While it's a nice fantasy to have, a reunion with Jaimee Foxworth, or at all, isn't likely to happen . After Family Matters , Foxworth dropped out of acting, though later in her life she would star in adult films, which she also cited in The Root interview as a reason for her not being invited to the reunion photo shoot. That less-than-wholesome-TGIF past would probably keep her from being invited to any reunion series as well. It's a shame. Family Matters was all about family. Even when it became the nonstop Urkel fest, it was still about his inclusion in the Winslow household and his love for them. To remove Judy Winslow from the series as if she had never been there betrayed what the series was all about , including its title. Family matters, but Judy Winslow did not.

Family Matters is available to stream on Hulu.

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