Kim has forgiven
her parents

"It’s a beautiful love story that will surely capture the interest of our viewers," says Alfred. "I stayed in Malaysia for one and a half months to tape it with Director Mac Alejandre. It’ll be shown there in March and I have to go back there to help promote it."

Is it true Carrie is the reason why he broke up with LJ Reyes? "No. Walang kinalaman si Carrie. It’s a mutual decision on our part. Hindi naman kami nag-break. Cool off lang. We still communicate with each other. Noong Valentine’s Day nga, magkasama rin kami sa dinner with my family."

Some folks say this is just a gimmick to boost the promo of "Muli." "No, I wouldn’t use my personal life to promote a TV show. What happened was when LJ and I had a vacation in the US last December, araw-araw kaming magkasama kaya we got used to being with each other often. Then when we came home, buong January, we both got busy. I was taping ‘Muli’ and ‘Magic Kamison’ and she’s busy with her own soap and her studies at La Salle. We don’t have time for each other at di na kami nagkikita. The funny thing is nang mag-cool off kami, we became more relaxed as friends, unlike before na may pressure na lagi kaming magkita. But we’re not closing our doors on each other naman."

Alfred is also in the cast of the movie, "Faces of Love", that opens on February 21. "It’s fantastic working with Director Eddie Romero, who’s a National Artist. I thought dahil 82 na siya, mabagal na, pero mabilis pa rin siya mag-shoot and is still a brilliant filmmaker. I play a private detective hired by Christopher de Leon to search for his mysterious admirer who writes him love letters. I meet his niece, Juliana Palermo, at lagi kaming nag-aaway but, in the end, we fall in love. Working with Christopher de Leon, one of our best actors, is also a great privilege for me as I really admire his work."

* * *

Kim Chiu’s rise to stardom is no less than meteoric. Same time last year, she was a total unknown from Cebu who auditioned for PBB Teens. She qualified and was brought to Manila, winning the grand prize. She has since starred in the movie "First Day High" and now stars in her own hit soap, "Sana Maulit Muli." She has also become in demand as an endorser. The new product she’s plugging is PH Care Pure ‘n Fresh for feminine hygiene among teens. But with fame came the usual intrigues in showbiz, like when someone wrote she was caught kissing in the dark with partner Gerald Anderson.

"Ang pangit ng word na ginamit, naglalaplapan daw kami sa dilim," she sighs. "I don’t know why they’re rushing us para maging on. Umamin na raw ako, e wala naman akong aaminin. Magka-love team lang talaga kami. Ayaw ng father ko na magpaligaw ako kasi 16 pa lang ako. And I agree with him. I feel na dapat ko lang samantalahin ang showbiz career ko habang mainit pa ko. Lilipas din ito kaya ang pakikipag-boyfriend, it can wait. When I’m mature na, puede na ko mag-boyfriend anytime. Isa pa, I’m really not ready yet na makipagseryoso sa isang relasyon kasi I’m helping my family."

The fourth of five kids, Kim admits she comes from a poor Chinese family. Now that she is earning, she is helping send her siblings to school. "I still have dreams for them. I want to save enough money to buy our own house kasi we’re just renting now. I bought myself a car na ginagamit ko rito sa Manila sa trabaho, but I also want to buy them their own car."

Kim is really a dutiful child even if her parents broke up when she was still very young. She grew up under the care of "lola" and her dad has a second family in Mindoro. "But the past is past at natanggap ko na ang sitwasyon ng family namin. Mahal ko pa rin ang parents ko. Ang gusto ko, matulungan pa ang mga kapatid ko. Kaya natutuwa ako when a big company like Unilab got me to be their endorser of PH Care Pure ‘n Fresh. Bagay talaga ito for teens like me as it’s mild and gentle."

* * *

Jeannie Wong of California wrote us to say that she is not the same Jenny Lee who reportedly intruded on the website of Ate Guy and attacked her. Noranians are now attacking Jeannie Wong thinking she’s Jenny Lee. Although she’s an avowed Vilmanian, Jeannie says she won’t ever assume another identity and she does not have the time to engage in the word war now going on between Vilmanians and Noranians on the net. She adds in her letter: "If they have proof that Jenny Lee and I are the same person, ilabas nila."

Honestly, we feel sad that the ardent fans of Ate Vi and Ate Guy are fighting on the net when their idols themselves are very cordial to each other. We’re sure Ate Vi and Ate Guy do not like what’s happening to their fans as it cheapens not only the fans but even their idols. Don’t they have anything more worthwhile or constructive to devote their time on? The net was not invented for quarreling like fishwives. It’s time to discard their fan mentality and get a life of their own.

* * *

Hong Kong twin brothers Danny and Oxide Pang were able to get into Hollywood with their 2002 horror flick, "The Eye." They now direct their first American project, "The Messengers," produced by Sam Raimi of "Evil Dead" and "The Grudge." It starts with a prologue showing the brutal massacre of a family in a farm by unseen culprits. The whole sequence is intriguingly effective and promises an absorbing tale of terror and mystery.

The film then shifts to the present in full color. A troubled family moves from Chicago to the lonely farmlands of North Dakota where the father, Roy (Dylan McDermott), hopes to lead a new life planting sunflower seeds. The eldest daughter, Jess (Kristen Stewart of "Panic Room"), is a troubled teener and it’s hinted that she has committed something bad in Chicago leading her family’s transfer to North Dakota.

At first, only her deaf-mute brother, Ben (played by twins Evan and Theodore Hunter), still a toddler, can see the sinister spirits that float around their rundown farmhouse. His eyes follow them and he points up to them looking very much like a delighted child. Soon, Jess herself senses the spooks and tries to inform her dad and mom (Penelope Ann Miller) about it, but no one would believe her. A drifter with a gun, Burwell (John Corbett), shows he’s helpful so Roy hires him to help cultivate the farm.

As maybe expected, the haunting gets worse and violent. When what Jess did in Chicago is finally revealed, it’s actually an anti-climax and does not seem at all totally relevant to the story. What the movie really offers is a tribute to other terror flicks like "The Shining," "The Birds" and even Raimi’s "Evil Dead." But the Pang brothers opt for a happy ending complete with the redemption of the beleaguered family that might not sit well with die-hard horror fans.