The feature Filipino movie “Meet, Greet & Bye” commences a North American theatrical release 14November2025. It has its happy lighthearted moments, nose dives into sadness and pulls up the throttle to the land of smiles.
Baby Lopez Facunda (Maricel Soriano), a dynamo Filipina mother and grandmother reveling in her family life and feeding them faces a challenge of the reoccurrence of her cancer.
The family urgently demands (not asks) Baby undergo chemotherapy resisted fiercely by Baby not wanting to yet endure the side effects of chemo. Just returned from United States son Tupe (Piolo Pascual) manages to convince her to undergo chemo if he secures tickets for a meet and greet with Baby’s K-Pop idol Park Seo-Joon. That attempt is riddled with hilarity.
Attempts are made by Brad (Joshua Garcia), younger brother to Tupe, to secure miracle medicine perhaps a sad reflection on desperation to find the “miracle cure”.
The Facundo family jolly on its shell is suffering covertly (at least initially) from jealously, resentment, broken promises, misunderstandings, fatherly rejection, family expectations and the hidden wounds of Filipino emigration. And as we all know or may soon know death and dying in a family can rip it apart or conversely wholly or partially heal it. This is food for thought. Is the film about these less than humorous attributes and comedy is but a way to deal with them?
There is certainly nothing wrong with the serious been delivered with hearty chuckles now and then.
Directed by Cathy Garcia-Sampana.
You can watch the trailer here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAT2bQxDyVM
RKS 2025 Film Rating 86/100.
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