4. Movies Based on Song Titles

Examples: Kung Ako Na Lang Sana, Pagdating ng Panahon, Sana Maulit Muli, Bakit Labis Kitang Mahal, Paano Na Kaya.

Yes, this also counts.

This is the item on this list that doesn’t really need any explanation, especially since there are a lot of soap operas out there that still  use song titles. Yet for some reason, with very few examples here and there, what used to be the go-to way to title romantic films or Andrew E comedies just doesn’t happen anymore.

Why It’s No Longer Popular: We can only guess, but it seems that we’ve gotten a lot more experimental with movie titles lately.

3. Affair Films

Examples: No Other Woman, A Secret Affair, The Love Affair, One More Try, The Mistress

AKA the reason why Derek Ramsay had a long career.

Thankfully, he moved on to law enforcement.

We’ve talked about this before, too, when Affair films were all the rage at the time. It was the perfect storm for the genre for a while: guaranteed box office draws, a storyline that writes itself, and just enough salaciousness to entice viewers but keep the moral guardians at bay. Then, suddenly, that stuff ended up mainly on TV, and staying on TV. Just ask Sunshine Dizon, seeing as that did wonders for her career.

Why It’s No Longer Popular: Oversaturation, maybe? It also seems like Derek Ramsay’s done with taking on those roles, especially after gaining the embarrassing title of “Pambansang Cheater,” which means that the primary force behind the trend is pretty much turning his back on it.

2. TF Films

Examples: Patikim… ng Pinya, Kangkong, Anakan Mo Ako.

The TF films was the last iteration of our soft-porn genre in cinemas. It was also named ST in the ‘80s, Bomba in the ‘70s, among other euphemisms. The last hurrah for this genre started with Rosanna Roces, then catching on like wildfire as film producer looking to make a quick buck started producing these films at a rapid clip of two weeks, earning the derisive nickname of “Pito-Pito films.”

Why It’s No Longer Popular: Sometime in the 2000’s, SM Cinemas, the biggest cinema chain in the country, stopped showing R-18 films, and in doing so, took away any sort of profitability in the genre. It wasn’t about the “art,” after all.

1. Biopics of Criminals and Law Enforcers

Examples: Baby Ama, Nardong Putik (Kilabot ng Cavite), Asiong Salonga: Hari ng Tondo, Epimaco Velasco: NBI, Ping Lacson: Supercop, Ronaldo Bato: Astig. One of these titles may or may not have been made up, too.

This entry could be a treatise on the Pinoy action film itself, seeing as with the exception of E.R. Ejercito’s films and OTJ, the action genre is all but dead. Still, we had a lengthy time where every single popular criminal and popular cop throughout the country’s history at one point or another ended up having a wildly inaccurate biopic made about them. Where Hollywood does the biopic as Oscar bait, we were doing biopics as an action vehicle.

Why It’s No Longer Popular: The action genre died in the Philippines when we realized that women don’t want nothing but manly men, and the romantic comedy genre blew up. Now, leading men would be more inclined to do a romantic film than an action film to hone their acting chops. Also, we may have finally run out of abandoned warehouses to shoot the final action set pieces in.

Which of these would you like to make a comeback? Tell us below!

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