In 1999, Angelu de Leon made a successful movie comeback after giving birth to her daughter, Nicole.
She top-billed Bulaklak ng Maynila, a movie adaptation of the popular novel by Domingo G. Landicho, with Elizabeth Oropesa and Christopher de Leon as her co-stars.
The project served as Angelu’s first foray into doing mature roles, after being popular as a teen actress in GMA-7 and VIVA’s youth-oriented series, T.G.I.S.
In a June 2020 PEP Live interview, Angelu recalls preparing very well for her comeback.
She tells PEP.ph (Philippine Entertainment Portal), “We started that movie a few months after I gave birth. Naalala ko pa noon na nag-dyi-gym pa ako noon kasi that was a comeback, so I wanted to prepare for it.”
Her role as a nightclub dancer called for daring, sexy dance sequences inside a bar.
One scene even required Angelu to remove her bra top while dancing!
Angelu recalls, “Naalala ko iyong eksenang iyon, nagpalabas na ng mga tao sa set kasi nga medyo sensitive.
“Naka-maong shorts, naka-sexy bra na naka-vest ako.
“‘Tapos, zooming in iyong camera kasi iyon iyong first time na makikita na nasa club na ako.”
No matter how hard Angelu prepared physically, she still felt tense while doing the daring scene.
She narrates, “Noong time na shinu-shoot iyon, kahit gaano ako ka-prepared physically, mentally I wasn’t prepared.
“Action! Ganyan! ‘Tapos nag-dolly in iyong camera tapos biglang sasabihin ni Direk Joel Lamangan, ‘Hubad!’
“Natatameme ako! ‘Ha, ano po iyon?’
“Buti mapagpasensya si Direk Joel noon.”
Angelu then resorted to taking a shot of Tosca tequila to get the confidence she needed to finish the scene.
She explains, “Kasi, ilang takes iyon na talagang sa hindi ko kaya mentally, talagang nagsabi ako na ‘I needed a drink to get through this.’
“Parang hindi kaya ng acting skills ko! Kailangan kong uminom!
“’Tapos ang naalala ko pa noon, nasa bandang Manila kami, wala namang wine doon!
“Naalala ko, Tosca tequila yata iyon na, wow, blade! Para kang uminom ng blade para lang magawa ko iyong eksenang iyon.”
The drink helped Angelu do the scene. “I guess it kind of loosened me up in a sense. Iba siya mentally.”
The hard work paid off. Angelu received her first Best Supporting Actress award at the 1999 Metro Manila Film Festival for her performance.
But what makes Angelu proud of the movie is its critical success.
“It was really a good script. Until now, sa University of the Philippines, ipinapalabas siya, pinag-aaralan siya. So, I’m very grateful for that movie.”
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