"Bago Lumamig ang Sabaw" (Before the Broth Turns Cold): The Movie That Brought Joseph Estrada and Nida Blanca for the First Time

Bago Lumamig ang Sabaw (Tagalog: Before the Broth Turns Cold)  is a 1976 Filipino romantic comedy film directed by Cesar 'Chat' Gallardo and written by Edgardo M. Reyes.

The film stars Joseph Estrada and Nida Blanca as a garbage truck driver and a teacher who became the accidental guardians of a widower's child. As they took care of the young boy, they unexpectedly fall in love with each other.

The title is inspired by the idiom 'humigop ng mainit na sabaw' (Tagalog: 'to sip some hot broth'), which means to attend a wedding reception or to get married. In Filipino tradition, newlywed couples serve hot broth to the guests.

Photo Credit: Lea Productions / IMDb

PLOT

Jose 'Jo' Nazareno is a garbage truck driver, assisted by Teroy and Bert. They work for the Department of Public Safety - Talimbas. One day, a child stops them to ask for help because his mother is about to give birth. Unable to reach the hospital in time, the mother delivers a baby boy inside the truck.

When Jo returns home, he hears strange noises from the neighboring apartment unit. Peeking through a hole in the wall, he sees a woman spraying insecticide. Her name is Aurea 'Auring' Makahiya. Auring accuses Jo of peeping, but Joe explains that a man used to live there, and they would exchange cigarettes through that hole.

From then on, the Jo and Auring started to quarrel over many things, such as who gets to use the shared bathroom first. Jo also teases Auring for still being single.

One day, Jo sees Auring struggling to get a ride. He offers her a lift, but she refuses. Auring is actually on her way to the home of Mr. Noble, a wealthy widower looking for a private tutor for his son Bombot. Auring gets accepted for the job, though Mr. Noble worries she might not endure the boy's mischief.

The introduction between teacher and student goes poorly. Bombot shakes Auring's hand with a frog hidden in his palm. He later places a banana on her chair. Despite these pranks, Auring remains patient.

Meanwhile, Jo is mugged by drunkards but manages to fight them off. At the Noble mansion, Betty—soon to be Mr. Noble’s wife—is secretly involved with Gildo, a gambler. Betty tells Gildo she will marry Noble, but he dismisses it, seeing Mr. Noble only as a source of money while he provides her "physical needs."

Auring befriends Bombot's nanny, Miding. From Miding, she learns that Bombot used to be kind but became sullen and stubborn after his mother died in an accident years earlier. The same accident left Mr. Noble paralyzed. According to Miding, Bombot refuses to accept anyone replacing his mother.

Betty eventually marries Mr. Noble, who has become impotent due to the accident. Betty understands his condition. But when the couple returns home, Bombot snubs his stepmother.

Meanwhile, Gildo faces problems with Tiger, the syndicate head, for failing to deliver proper gambling accounts. At home, the nanny Inday cooks ginataan for Mr. Noble and Betty, but Bombot sabotages it by adding a dead cockroach. Enraged, Mr. Noble strikes his son, prompting Bombot to run away. He ends up at the garbage dump collected by Joe and his crew. Joe takes him in, and Auring learns of the boy's escape.

Jo brings Bombot along to work, while Auring informs Mr. Noble that the boy is safe. Joe suggests Bombot stay with them for now, as he is still afraid. Joe refuses Noble’s ₱2,000 reward, saying Bombot is simply "hungry for freedom."

Later, Bombot agrees to return home on the condition that Joe picks him up daily with the truck. Betty asks Jo to drive her to the beach. Auring, watching from afar, seems jealous. At the beach, Betty tries to seduce Jo, but he refuses, saying he will not take advantage of someone vulnerable.

Soon after, Jo visits Auring in her apartment unit, saying he has something to confess. Auring grows annoyed when Jo admits he is simply hungry and asks if she has food. Rico, a former co-teacher turned successful businessman and referee, also visits Auring. To provoke Joe's jealousy, Auring claims she and Rico will picnic in Tagaytay.

The picnic is not a romantic meeting; Auring's other former co-teachers also joined her and Rico. Joe and Bombot suddenly arrive, pretending to be Auring's husband and child. Tensions rise, and Joe fights with Rico, but later apologizes when he learns Auring and Rico are not romantically involved. Rico's wife even breaks up the fight. As days went by, Joe and Auring grew closer to each other. At the party of the Department of Public Safety - Talimbas, Joe chose Auring as his date.

Meanwhile, Gildo suffers repeated gambling losses. He demands money from Betty and becomes disappointed with the ₱1,000 she gives from her allowance. He needs ₱30,000 to pay Tiger. He repeatedly calls Betty, and went to the point of threatening blackmail. Betty then calmly told him she has confessed everything to Mr. Noble, who has forgiven her.

At a time that Bombot begins to soften toward his stepmother, a desperate Gildo orders his men to kidnap the child. Auring is caught in the attempt to save him. 

Tiger gots arrested, so Gildo lowers the ransom from ₱100,000 to ₱70,000. Joe, along with Teroy and Bert, rescued Bombot and Auring. They were also able to return the ransom money to Mr. Noble.

In the end, Joe and Auring marry in a civil ceremony. Their bridal car is Joe's garbage truck, unknowingly carrying a stowaway—Bombot. The movie ends with Bombot surprising the newlywed couple with his presence in the matrimonial bed.

MAIN CAST

Joseph Estrada    ...    Jo

Nida Blanca ... Auring

Ric Rodrigo ... Mr. Noble

Paquito Diaz ... Gildo

Vivian Velez ... Betty

Czar 'Bong Che' Victor ... Bombot

Teroy De Guzman ... Teroy

Bert 'Tawa' Marcelo ... Bert

Lorli Villanueva ... Pregnant Woman

Ruben Rustia ... Judge

Carlos Padilla Jr. ... Rico

Estrella Kuenzler ... Miding

SELECTED CREW

Direction    ...    Cesar 'Chat' Gallardo

Story and Screenplay ... Edgardo M. Reyes

Cinematography ... Ricardo Periodica

Musical Direction ... Ernani Cuenco

Full Movie: Lea Productions / Cinema One / YouTube

"Maharot" (Flirty): An Erotic Romantic Drama Film from 2005

Maharot (Tagalog: Flirty) is a 2005 Philippine erotic romantic drama film directed by Cesar S.B. Abella. The film is about Cecil (Kuhdet Honasan) and her romantic entanglements with the brothers Venel (Clark Concepcion) and Bong (Dann De Dios), as well as the police officer James (Jon Romano).

Scene featuring Kuhdet Honasan as Cecil

Screen Capture: El Niño Films / Cinemo / YouTube 

PLOT

Cecil is a fish vendor in the town of Bagac. Her husband is Bong, a fisherman. One day, Venel, a soldier and Bong's brother, returned from Mindanao and found Bong drinking with friends. Venel tells his brother that he has separated from his wife Tina and has asked for leave from the camp.

Cecil and Venel had once been lovers, but they parted ways when Venel was forced to marry Tina, the daughter of his commanding officer. In Venel's absence, Cecil and Bong grew close and eventually got married. However, Cecil later entered into a relationship with James, a police officer who is the son of Estela and brother of Neneng.

At Estela's eatery, Neneng works alongside Rey. One evening, Venel sees Rey and Neneng kissing by the shore, which stirs his emotions. When he returns home, he finds Cecil alone, and they end up kissing and making love.

The next day, Venel goes to Cecil's stall, but James arrives, seemingly wanting to meet Cecil again. Venel invites both Cecil and James to eat out, but James refuses. Alone with Cecil, Venel's idea of "eating out" turns out to be staying in a motel, where they sleep together once more and talk what transpired during their time apart.

Cecil and Venel saw Bong drinking at Estela's eatery with James, Primo, and Turo. Later, Bong and Cecil go home and make love, while Venel briefly drinks with James before leaving. Left behind with Neneng, Venel gives her unsolicited advice about relationships. That night, Venel and Cecil sleep together again while Bong is asleep. The following day, Venel picks Neneng up from school, and the two begin to fall for each other.

At a small store, James meets Patrick. They discover that Primo and Turo ran off with money from a drug deal and lost it gambling. At the eatery, Rey confronts Neneng after seeing Venel pick her up from school, leading to their breakup. Troubled and unable to sleep, Neneng goes to Venel's house and agrees to his invitation to "eat out."

Cecil meets James at a motel, intending to end their affair out of pity for Bong. James refuses, claiming he has fallen for her, and threatens Bong's life. In the next room, Venel and Neneng are together. James becomes furious upon learning of Venel's involvement with his sister, but before he can attack Venel, an unidentified gunman arrives and fatally shoots him.

Time passes and Venel has to go back to Mindanao to fulfill his duty. Aside from hoping for Cecil and Bong to have their own child, Venel promised to marry Neneng upon his return.

Eight months later, Venel comes back to Bagac. He has lost an arm in an encounter in Mindanao. With both Cecil and Neneng pregnant, the brothers agree to stand as godfathers to the children soon to be born.

MAIN CAST

Kuhdet Honasan ... Cecil

Clark Concepcion ... Venel

Dann De Dions ... Bong

Jon Romano ... James

Shane Villarama ... Neneng

Kryven Lacson ... Rey

Boy Ranay ... Primo

Pilo Loreto ... Turo

Tess Orias ... Estela

SELECTED CREW

Direction, Story, and Screenplay ... Cesar S.B. Abella

Cinematography ... Jun Linda

Production Designer ... Erick Dela Cruz

Editing ... Tony Sy

Musical Direction ... Willy Islao

Full Movie: El Niño Films / Cinemo / YouTube

Reflection on the Tagalog Version of "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" Anime Series

It was already the 1990s when I first watched the Tagalog version of the anime TV series The Adventures of Tom Sawyer on ABS-CBN. 

At the time, I thought the series was new. But when I eventually gained access to Google, I learned that it had actually first aired in Japan back in 1980.

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer was part of the World Masterpiece Theater timeslot on Fuji Television. 

In December 2025, the series' final episode marked its 45th anniversary.

Its age and setting did not hinder its popularity, especially among the Batang '90s (Kids of the '90s.)

Many viewers, including the young-at-heart, were able to relate to Tom's curiosity and adventurous spirit.

Even in the original series’ opening theme song, these aspects were already encapsulated. 

The title was "Dare yori mo tooku he"—which, if translated into Tagalog, means "farther than anyone has reached."

Meanwhile, the opening lyrics of the Tagalized version’s theme song were: 

"Humayo ka, Kaibigang Tom Sawyer / Maglakbay kung saan mo man naisin ..."

("Go forth, my friend Tom Sawyer / Travel wherever you wish ...")

Now let's discuss the show itself. The protagonist Tom seems trapped within the social norms imposed by family and the education system. 

Aunt Polly and his teacher Mr. Dobbins serve as the gatekeepers of these norms. 

Injun Joe, on the other hand, is a representation of danger. At a young age, Tom experienced an existential threat.

Aunt Polly, Mr. Dobbins, and Injun Joe were all adults—there was an element of intergenerational conflict.

Looking at characters closer to Tom's age: Huckleberry "Huck" Finn and Becky Thatcher. Tom had rapport with each of them.

Huck is Tom's best friend, his partner in mischief. Even though Huck was marginalized in the conservative town of St. Petersburg, he and Tom bonded over their shared curiosity and adventurousness.

Becky is Tom’s love interest. Tom's crush on Becky is relatable to all viewers, young or old. They  might deny it, but viewing Tom and Becky brought memories of first crushes.

The friendship between Tom and Huck, and the puppy love between Tom and Becky, provided balance to the intergenerational conflict I mentioned earlier.

Because of this nostalgic and entertaining series, I developed an interest in reading the source novel written by Mark Twain.

There's still much more to discuss about the anime TV series and the novel, but perhaps I'll save that for another time.

Tom Sawyer with Huckleberry Finn and Becky Thatcher

Photo Credit: Nippon Animation