...the good loc

'Bourne' joins list of Hollywood films shot in PH

by Vladmir Bunoan,

ABS-CBNnews.com

01/10/2012

MANILA, Philippines -- When the cameras start rolling on Wednesday, the first shooting day in Manila for the spy drama, “Bourne Legacy,” the fourth installment in the movie series based on the novels of Robert Ludlum, will just be the latest in a not-so-long list of Hollywood movies shot in the Philippines.

“Bourne Legacy” Philippine producer Jun Juban said it was the Filipinos’ hospitality that tipped the scales in bringing the Hollywood movie's production crew to the Philippines.

"Yung slogan na 'It's more fun in the Philippines' ay very apt," said Juban, who has been involved in the production of many of the foreign films that were shot in the country.

"It's never been done before in this scale, especially in this kind of movie," Juban added. "How many times have you seen movies being shot in Vietnam ... and Dubai and minsan titingnan mo kaya naman sa Pilipinas yun, di ba? Now we have that and we have a chance to do that."

Juban said the actors and crew were not particularly bothered by peace and order issues in the country.

"In spite of the perceived problema dito, napapunta namin sila dito. Malaking bagay yun. The government has been very supportive. They felt very safe," he said.

Actors Jeremy Renner and Rachel Weisz are already in the country, and Juban said the general reaction from the stars is that “we are great.”

“They are very happy with the Filipinos. Alam mo naman tayo, napaka friendly,” Juban said.

Hollywood films shot in PH

Here’s a list of some of the Hollywood movies that have been shot in the Philippines:

•  “The Year of Living Dangerously” (1982). In this movie by Peter Weir, Manila subbed for Indonesia in the mid-1960s during the final days of the Sukarno regime. Mel Gibson plays an Australian journalist who falls in love with a British embassy officer played by Sigourney Weaver. When the Indonesian government rejected the request to film in Jakarta, it was decided to shoot the movie in the Philippines instead. Filipino actor Bembol Roco was cast in the film, as well as singer Kuh Ledesma.

•  “Platoon” (1986). This Oscar-winning war movie written and directed by Oliver Stone had the Philippines subbing for Vietnam. Starring Charlie Sheen, Tom Berenger and Willem Dafoe, it is the first of Stone’s Vietnam trilogy about the experiences of American soldiers during the war. “Platoon” started filming in Luzon in February 1986 at the height of the protests against then President Ferdinand Marcos, who was ousted later that month. Filming for the movie, however, went on as scheduled.

•  “Born on the Fourth of July” (1989). For Stone’s next movie, which starred Tom Cruise in an Oscar-nominated performance, the director had wanted to shoot the film on location in Vietnam. But because relations between the U.S. and Vietnam were not yet normalized, the director again chose the Philippines as the location for the Vietnam War sequences, which were shot in Ilocos.

•  “Brokedown Palace” (1999). For this movie, the Philippines subbed for Thailand in this film about two Americans who were imprisoned for drug smuggling. The filming became controversial when lead actress Claire Danes told Vogue magazine that Manila was a “ghastly city.” Danes was later declared persona non grata and had to issue an apology.

•  “Apocalypse Now” (1979). Probably the most popular Hollywood movie shot in the Philippines, director Francis Ford Coppola battled storms and various rewrites during the filming of his Vietnam War opus. Principal photography began in March 1976 but just after a few days of shooting, the director decided to replace his lead actor with Martin Sheen. Then in May that year, a typhoon wrecked a key film set, which sent the production months behind schedule. But the problems didn't end there. The temperamental Marlon Brando was said to have arrived on the set “extremely overweight,” and wanted rewrites to the ending. To top it all, Sheen suffered a heart attack mid-way through the filming. What was supposed to be a five-month shoot stretched to more than a year with principal photography finally completed in May 1977.