Japan now has a new Prime Minister and her name is Sanae Takaichi (Takaichi Sanae for those who communicate in Japanese) and already her administration has been formed. Prime Minister Takaichi is a strongly conservative woman who not only has friendship with US President Donald Trump, but also met the late Margaret Thatcher who is her main inspiration for conservative governance and leadership. Being conservative, her loyalty to her people and nation is uncompromising and she intends to preserve the Japanese culture and ways while other nations of the world gave in to illegal immigration, Islamic terrorists and woke ideology.
To get yourselves oriented with the new Prime Minister of Japan, watch the selected videos below.
Shortly after taking office, an official statement was released by the Prime Minister which you can read in English below.
Today, I was designated as the nation’s Prime Minister, and a new Cabinet has been inaugurated. Bolstered by a strong and unwavering belief in the latent power and vitality of Japan and the Japanese people, I will dedicate myself completely to discharging my duty of forging a path for Japan’s future.
I will work resolutely for the sake of our nation and the Japanese people, filled with the determination to press ahead tenaciously under any circumstances. I will strive to build a strong economy, turning people’s unease and apprehension over their current lives and the future into hope, and I will deal with the challenges facing the international community as I embark on restoring Japanese diplomacy that flourishes on the world’s center stage.
I ask the Japanese people for their understanding and cooperation as I take these responsibilities upon myself.
Prime Minister Takaichi has already formed her cabinet and the stock market jumped sharply in response to her election. Takaichi was first elected to the Diet (Japan’s Parliament) in 1993 and she went on to serve for decades notably under the administration of the late Shinzo Abe. Clearly she is very experienced as a public servant.
A younger Takaichi with former British Prime Minister and conservative icon Margaret Thatcher many years ago. (photo source – Nikkei Asia)
The new Prime Minister also declared that Japan will NOT take in Islamists and illegal immigrants. This is a strong stance that I admire in Takaichi. Illegal immigration is a global disease that leads to worsening crime, failed multiculturalism and a series of problems for citizens. Islamists meanwhile are focused on migrating in great numbers to new countries believing they can overwhelm the locals, spread violence and hatred, and then destroy the local societies and cultures with the intention to replace them with their own.
In my experience, I visited Japan as a tourist. I admired Japan for its rich culture, its conservative ways, long lasting traditions and how their people lived with discipline and harmony. I certainly do not want illegal immigration and Islamization to ruin Japan. In fact, wokeness and political correctness are diseases and they will never make Japan better. That said, it is only right that Takaichi took office as Prime Minister.
The woke, the Satanic Leftists, the unhinged rabid feminists, the diversity extremists, the illegal immigration extremists and the LGBTQ mob can always keep on condemning PM Takaichi all they want (note: they have been doing it since Takaichi was elected president of her party weeks ago) but Japan does not really have to bow to them nor does it need to follow their evil ideologies. Takaichi has a nation to rebuild, an economy to revive and a lot of fellow Japanese people to take care of.
Let me end this piece by asking you readers: What is your reaction to this development? What do you hope to see in Japan under the leadership of Prime Minister Takaichi? Did you see archive photos of Takaichi personally meeting former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher?
Welcome back my readers, YouTube viewers and all others who followed this series of articles focused on YouTube videos worth watching. Have you been searching for something fun or interesting to watch on YouTube? Do you feel bored right now and you crave for something to see on the world’s most popular online video destination?
I recommend you check out the following videos I found.
#1 Tour of Tokyo Game Show 2025 – When I was very young, I used to be obsessed with visiting the Tokyo Game Show (TGS) in direct connection with my love for playing video games and arcade games. The obsession is now gone now that I am much older and console gaming has changed drastically over the past thirty years. From time to time, I watch videos on YouTube that explored the TGS and found two videos of this year’s TGS that are amusing to watch. Watch the videos below.
#2 Pasta in Japan and more – Moving from steak, I found another video about pasta – spaghetti specifically – prepared by Japanese cooks in a local food joint (referred to as a pasta shop) to a lot of people who clearly enjoyed what they ate. You might learn something new about how to prepare a spaghetti for others. Watch the video below.
#3 Learn to Reject Radical Islam – Asmongold TV posted recently a video in which he reacted to another video that specifically focused on how a certain country rejected radical Islam. It is indeed a very sensitive matter but it still is significant because there are so many Islamists – both people from Muslim-majority nations and people in the West who declared themselves strong believers of Islam – worldwide and they are always destructive and extreme. There are these Westerner Islamists who arrogantly declared they want to destroy Western civilization and replace it entirely with Islam. Go watch Asmongold TV’s video now.
#4 Rocky V revisited – Way back in January 1991, I saw Rocky V inside the local cinema with my father and brother. Having enjoyed the first four Rocky movies a lot, we were excited to see Sylvester Stallone reprise his iconic role in the fifth movie even as we wondered where the story will go following Rocky’s victory over Ivan Drago. Ultimately, we, along with many others, left the cinema feeling disappointed with Rocky V’s story and direction. Even though the 1990 film – which had Tommy Morrison and Sage Stallone as new additions plus the short return of Burgess Meredith – was disliked by a lot of Rocky fans, Rocky V still went on to become a popular feature in many movie reaction videos as well as retro video reviews. For your viewing pleasure, posted below are the selected videos.
#5 Ashleigh Burton reacts to The Birds – If you are fond of Ashleigh Burton doing reaction videos and if you are an Alfred Hitchcock enthusiast, then you will be very interested in the YouTuber’s reaction video of 1963’s The Birds. Posted below is Ashleigh Burton’s reaction video and I encourage you to watch it.
Welcome back my readers, YouTube viewers and all others who followed this series of articles focused on YouTube videos worth watching. Have you been searching for something fun or interesting to watch on YouTube? Do you feel bored right now and you crave for something to see on the world’s most popular online video destination?
I recommend you check out the following videos I found.
#1 Heavy Steaks in Japan – If you were able to visit Japan, did you crave for steak as a meal there? I found another video by the Japanese Food Noodles channel that showed another place to enjoy steak. Apart from seeing the food cooked and served, there is something new to learn from the individuals who managed the food joint. Watch and learn from the video below.
#2 Overtourism in Japan – In Japan, there is a massive number for foreign tourists who kept coming in and spending quality time there. The number of visitors from overseas is so great, it is resulting in a mix of positive and negative results. While certain local businesses are benefiting from foreign tourists, others are experiencing negative effects such as littering, worsening traffic congestion and even the violation of privacy. Let’s be clear: overtourism in Japan is undeniably real and there are some foreign tourists who could not behave themselves. Watch and learn from the Nippon TV video below.
#3 The Twilight Zone Movie Tragedy and Trial – Have you ever seen the 1983 film Twilight Zone: The Movie? I did but not inside the cinema. I previously blogged about retrospective videos about it. The movie was an ambitious revival of The Twilight Zone franchise and among the directors who worked on it (note: the film had short stories) were Steven Spielberg and John Landis. The movie was mired in strong controversy due to the tragedy that happened in Landis’ segment starring Vic Morrow who died along with two minors her carried with him. Not only did deaths and injuries happen, there were also some violations of established laws committed. To find out what happened and how the trial against the filmmakers ultimately turned out, watch the video below.
#4 Trump confronts the wicked United Nations and other evil stakeholders – Recently US President Donald Trump spoke to the members of the wicked United Nations in their building in New York City. He bravely confronted the many evil stakeholders there – the Islamo-Leftists, the socialists, the terrorist-loving members, the illegal immigration advocates and climate change zealots – and spoke the truth that they refused to realize. Watch and learn from the videos below.
#5 Top Secret! revisited – While the 1984 ZAZ comedy Top Secret! never came close to achieving the success and impact of 1980’s Airplane!, the movie still went on to entertain others who were born after it was released. Top Secret! is also the cinematic debut of the late Val Kilmer and it was an early showcase of his artistry and creativity. That being said, it is not surprising that there are lots of reaction videos of Top Secret! on YouTube and I found three entertaining videos for you to enjoy. Watch the videos below.
Welcome back my readers, YouTube viewers and all others who followed this series of articles focused on YouTube videos worth watching. Have you been searching for something fun or interesting to watch on YouTube? Do you feel bored right now and you crave for something to see on the world’s most popular online video destination?
I recommend you check out the following videos I found.
#1 Behind the Scenes of the Tokaido Shinkansen in Japan – I have been to Osaka and Tokyo when I traveled to Japan, but I never had the opportunity to ride the train connecting to both cities. Recently, I spotted this really information and captivating Nippon TV video about the Tokaido Shinkansen which is the high-speed rail line that connects Tokyo with Osaka. The video looks at the operators of the train, why their work involves a lot of precision and what is done to maintain the rail line. I encourage you to watch the video now!
#2 Japanese steak, rice and more – While I ate in several places in Japan during the few visits I made there, I don’t ever remember eating steak there. Recently, I found this video by the Japanese Food Noodles channel which focused on a certain food joint in Japan that specializes on steak. In fact, it is eat-all-you-can steak with rice or some other food. There is a lot to learn here from how to cook steak, how to operate a restaurant, how to keep customers satisfied, and more.
#3 GoodBadFlicks examines cartoons based on video games – Remember decades ago in America when there were these cartoon shows on TV that were based on video game properties? As a kid, I saw several cartoon shows based on video games and they were mostly fun to watch. You can discover more and you might have fun watching the recent video by GoodBadFlicks posted below.
#4 Reaction videos about Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining – Let me start by saying that I am not a fan of the late movie director Stanley Kubrick. I’m not a fan of Stephen King as well. Believe it or not, the two were not aligned with each other when 1980’s The Shining was released in cinemas. Based on King’s novel, the movie was essentially Kubrick’s very own version and he had his creative touch all over it. While King was very turned-off with the cinematic version (which had a younger Jack Nicholson), many moviegoers and film buffs enjoyed Kubrick’s version a lot. It is not surprising that the 1980 film is the subject of multiple videos in YouTube. You can see how The Shining movie impacts YouTubers by watching the selected videos below.
#5 Rhetorical Thrill reacts to Excalibur – I can hardly believe I first saw Excalibur on local TV way back in 1988. Fifteen years later, I saw it on home video and eventually bought my first-ever DVD copy of it some years later. Having replayed Excalibur as an adult, I eventually recognized the established actors like Helen Mirren, Liam Neeson and Patrick Stewart. After checking out recent reaction videos of Excalibur on YouTube, I found the video by Rhetorical Thrill actually entertaining to watch. I encourage you to watch her video below.
#6 The Dazed, the Dumb and the Delusional from the Leftists – Now for some serious stuff. The Satanic Left always have extremists who are delusional, dumb, dazed, and even evil without realizing it. Democrats and their fellow Leftists have so much wokeness, they lost their touch with reality and they cannot realize how wrong they are. The recent edition of Lefties Losing It hosted by Rita Panahi posted below will show you exactly what I mean. Enjoy!
Welcome back my readers, YouTube viewers and all others who followed this series of articles focused on YouTube videos worth watching. Have you been searching for something fun or interesting to watch on YouTube? Do you feel bored right now and you crave for something to see on the world’s most popular online video destination?
I recommend you check out the following videos I found.
#1 Christine Grace Smith Reacts To A Video About Society Impacted When No Men Are Working – There is something new and engaging to learn about society whenever Christine Grace Smith posts a new video. Recently, she shared her own reaction to a video that explores what would happen to society if men stopped working. This is something that the woke and rabid modern-day feminists do not want you to see. I urge you all to watch her video now.
#2 Metal Gear Games Revisited – In connection with the recent release of Metal Gear Solid Δ: Snake Eater, it was not surprising that a lot of YouTube videos revisiting past Metal Gear games got published by different YouTubers. Some of those videos I found were entertaining to watch while others were reflective or even intriguing. For the newcomers reading this. The Metal Gear game franchise of Konami started in the late 1980s under Hideo Kojima when he was very young. That being said, I urge you all to take a look at the selected Metal Gear-related videos I shared below.
#3 How Alan Moore And Watchmen Spread The Wokeness Disease In Comics – YouTuber Ranting for Vengeance is back, and this time he strikes hard at author Alan Moore not personally but for sowing the seeds of wokeness in superhero comics with Watchmen as the turning point. By today’s standards, wokeness is the unfortunate new normal in superhero comics and it is a fact that Alan Moore is an anarchist and a Leftist as well. Watch and learn from the video below.
#4 Robin Hood: Men in Tights Revisited – Long ago, there were several comedy films made by Mel Brooks which delivered bouts of humor to moviegoers and raked in varying amounts in ticket sales. In the 1990s, he directed Robin Hood: Men in Tights which my friends enjoyed watching inside the movie theater. While the film is not a classic by any means – not even within the comedy genre – it still managed to entertain YouTubers through their reaction videos. Watch the selected reaction videos below.
#5 The Traditional Types of Food of Japan – While you may have enjoy varied types of food of Japan served through the many Japanese restaurants around the world, are you aware that there certain meals or delicacies of the nation that were simply not made available through those places? That being said, it would be enlightening – and even tasty – for you to visit Japan and try out the more traditional types of food the nation has to offer. Indeed, there are the 100-year food declared in Japan and you can learn more about them by watching the video below.
Thank the Lord for United States President Donald Trump as the State Department officially announced it will put an end to the anti-Christian practices that went into effect by the previous administration, according to a Newsmax report.
For the newcomers reading this, when Joe Biden took office in January 2021, the State Department became hostile towards Christians in various ways while favoring Satanic Leftist ideology and causes (example: LGBT). In other words, the State Department under Biden and the Democrats became discriminating towards Christians. Let us not forget the Democrats’ love for unholy causes like abortion, same-sex marriage, critical race theory (CRT), and more.
To put things in perspective, posted below is an excerpt from the news report of Newsmax. Some parts in boldface.
The State Department said Friday that it will “eradicate” anti-Christian practices that were in place under the Biden administration, as directed by the Trump administration.
“Our nation was founded on the recognition that moral virtue and a steadfast faith in God are necessary preconditions of freedom,” the department said on its official X account. “Yet under the Biden Administration, U.S. foreign policy belittled Christianity and weaponized government against faith.
“That era has ended,” the post continued. “Under @POTUS’s leadership, the State Department will eradicate practices that devalue and demean the Christian faith.”
In its initial assessment, the Task Force to Eradicate Anti-Christian Bias found that under the Biden administration, the State Department “stigmatized employees for religious objections to the COVID-19 vaccine mandate” and cast “blame for disease on the unvaccinated.”
“The Department of State empowered employees to publicly shame and demean their colleagues with religious objections, even calling them ‘plague rats’ and ‘murderers,‘” the report said. “In one instance, an ambassador directly accused an unvaccinated subordinate of ‘wanting to kill’ the ambassador’s mother. The process used for determining religious exemptions involved an invasive questionnaire demanding highly personal information, reportedly far exceeding the legal requirements.
“Those who received religious accommodations were further shamed and humiliated as they were required to test for COVID weekly in view of others; disclose their accommodations to colleagues; and wear masks essentially marking them with a scarlet letter,” the document said.
In the State Department under Biden, Christian homeschool parents who were federal employees were harassed because of their religious beliefs, and their “commonsense parental choice” was likened to “child abuse.”
These parents were targeted with “Inspector General investigations, IRS referrals, and threats of criminal charges and disciplinary action,” according to the report.
The State Department’s foreign policy “disfavored Christians” and imposed “ideologically driven LGBT policies and programming on foreign governments” while offering “only muted responses to brutal attacks on, and the repression of, Christians overseas.”
The department also limited “humanitarian relief to Christians.”
According to the report, overseas leave policies under Biden “discriminatorily disfavored Christian State Department employees, instilling a culture of bias in which Catholics and other Christians reported being mocked for their religious beliefs by their colleagues.”
“In some cases, State Department employees were given leave for Muslim holidays, even as operations continued on Passover, Good Friday, and Easter Sunday and Monday,” the document stated.
Now, I want to share with you the following verses from the Holy Bible.
No weapon formed against you shall prosper,
And every tongue which rises against you in judgment
You shall condemn.
This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord,
And their righteousness is from Me,”
Says the Lord.
Isaiah 54:17 (NKJV)
“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved.
Matthew 24:9-13 (NKJV)
For there [is only] one God, and [only] one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus,
1 Timothy 2:5 (AMPC)
Let me end this piece by asking you readers: What is your reaction to this development? Do you like the major changes being done in government under President Trump’s leadership? Were you a victim of discrimination by the Biden administration?
United States President Donald Trump really means business when it comes to protecting his nation and citizens as America eliminated a vessel from Venezuela operated by the Tren de Aragua gang carrying illegal drugs, according to a Newsmax news report. Already the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago praised the strike.
For the newcomers reading this, Tren de Aragua is a transnational criminal organization from Venezuela and its members has spread throughout Latin America and even in the United States. Tren de Aragua is officially a terrorist organization.
To put things in perspective, posted below is an excerpt from the news report of Newsmax. Some parts in boldface.
President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the U.S. has carried out a strike in the southern Caribbean against a drug-carrying vessel that departed from Venezuela and was operated by the Tren de Aragua gang.
The president said 11 were killed in the operation.
“The strike occurred while the terrorists were at sea in International waters transporting illegal narcotics, heading to the United States,” Trump said in a social media posting. “No U.S. Forces were harmed in this strike. Please let this serve as notice to anybody even thinking about bringing drugs into the United States of America.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said earlier on X that the vessel was being operated by a “designated narco-terrorist organization.” He described the operation as a lethal strike.
Rubio addressed the strike on Tuesday shortly before he was scheduled to depart for Mexico and Ecuador for talks on drug cartels, security, tariffs and more.
The U.S. recently announced plans to boost its maritime force in the waters off Venezuela to combat threats from Latin American drug cartels.
The U.S. has not signaled any planned land incursion by the thousands of personnel being deployed. Still, President Nicolás Maduro’s government has responded by deploying troops along Venezuela’s coast and border with neighboring Colombia, as well as by urging Venezuelans to enlist in a civilian militia.
For clarity, posted below is the entire social media post by President Trump regarding the strike. Pay close attention to the details:
Earlier this morning, on my Orders, U.S. Military Forces conducted a kinetic strike against positively identified Tren de Aragua Narcoterrorists in the SOUTHCOM area of responsibility. TDA is a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, operating under the control of Nicolas Maduro, responsible for mass murder, drug trafficking, sex trafficking, and acts of violence and terror across the United States and Western Hemisphere. The strike occurred while the terrorists were at sea in International waters transporting illegal narcotics, heading to the United States. The strike resulted in 11 terrorists killed in action. No U.S. Forces were harmed in this strike. Please let this serve as notice to anybody even thinking about bringing drugs into the United States of America. BEWARE! Thank you for your attention to this matter!!!!!!!!!!!
Let me end this piece by asking you readers: What is your reaction to this development? Do you like what the Trump administration is doing with regards to combatting terrorists and the wave of illegal drugs coming from Latin America? What will it take to apprehend all the remaining Tren de Aragua members in the United States? Do you think bringing down the Maduro regime in Venezuela can be achieved during Trump’s 2nd term?
There is no doubt that United States President Donald Trump and his administration have successfully secured their borders as Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed during a recent cabinet meeting that absolutely zero illegals entered their country over the past three months, according to a Newsmax news report.
Trump’s America not only succeeded in securing the borders, the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) continues to apprehend and deport illegal immigrants with criminal records, other illegal immigrants volunteered to be deported back to where they came from, the safety of the citizens has improved and more citizens have gotten employed this year. Homeland security is working in tandem with the other departments of the government such as Defense, Justice and Immigration. These developments are indeed change that Americans and Trump supports can believe in.
To put things in perspective, posted below is an excerpt from the news report of Newsmax. Some parts in boldface.
The U.S. has gone three straight months without an illegal immigrant entering the country and 1.6 million inside the country have self-deported, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Tuesday.
Noem, speaking during a Cabinet meeting that aired live on Newsmax and the Newsmax2 free online streaming platform, thanked President Donald Trump for his support and said that her department is following through on his campaign promise to make America safe again.
“Today, the average family and individual that lives in this country is safer than they’ve been in years because of what you’ve done,” Noem said. “We’ve gone three months in a row now with zero illegal aliens coming into this country.“
Noem also thanked Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for helping her agency with border enforcement.
“They’re down at the border with us, still helping us keep that border secure and make sure we know who’s coming into this country,” she said. “You’ve arrested and brought to justice hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens, criminals that have perpetuated violence against American people. Sir, you’ve had 1.6 million people voluntarily go home to their home countries that were here in this country illegally. Because of your strong message and you enforcing the law, they decided to go home on their own so that they could come back the right way someday and be American citizens.
“But what I think is one of the most remarkable statistics is that under Joe Biden’s administration, 88% of new jobs went to foreign born individuals. Under your administration, 2.5 [million] Americans have jobs today that they didn’t under the previous administration. And they have those jobs because you created opportunities.
“You made this country safe. You opened up the economy. You enforced the law. Now people can get up and provide for their families and go to work every day and be confident in that.“
Noem also talked about the savings made on the president’s immigration crackdown, noting it cost American taxpayers between $8,000 and $9,000 to support each illegal immigrant “in what they were taking out of our social programs, out of Social Security.”
“You saved this country billions of dollars, about $15 billion just in what those illegal aliens were costing us in social programs,” Noem said. “I’ve cut over 450 different contracts at the Department of Homeland Security. We’re getting rid of corrupt ones, ones that were not efficient for taxpayers, weren’t focused on our mission of keeping us safe. And we’ve also renegotiated and brought in our biggest vendors and said, you have to do better.
“And we’ve saved the taxpayers over $13 billion doing that, as well. So, we’re continuing to be accountable with taxpayer dollars [and] focused on doing the mission of what you’ve committed, and that’s to keep us safe and to make sure we put Americans first.”
Trump appeared pleased to hear Noem’s report, thanking Noem, Hegseth and Tom Homan, his point man for mass deportations and border security.
Wow! What was revealed during the cabinet meeting was indeed a bunch of breakthroughs. The Trump administration is truly progressing with its immigration policies, economic efforts and putting Americans first. 2025 still has a few months left and already the United States is blossoming and has established itself as the shining example of solving the illegal immigration crisis and preventing foreigners from trespassing into the country.
Let me end this piece by asking you readers: What is your reaction to this development? Do you like what the Trump administration is doing with regards to border security, illegal immigration, job creation and the wellbeing of American citizens? Are you still surrounded by people who love illegal immigrants while they keep on attacking the Trump administration for serving the American people? How many people in your local community still follow the Democrats and the Islamo-Leftists?
Nepal, a nation of more than 30 million people and with a Hindu majority, has a certain group of minority people whose reliance on the scandalous U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) ended months ago and they event went on to celebrate pride recently, according to a news report by the Leftist Associated Press (AP) magnified by the Manila Bulletin.
To put things in perspective, posted below is an excerpt from AP story published through the Manila Bulletin. Some parts in boldface.
Members of the Nepal’s LGBTQ+ community and supporters rallied in the capital Sunday in the annual pride rally, which was the first since a major cut in funding after the U.S. government ceased financial aid.
Hundreds of people took part in the rally through the heart of Kathmandu, playing music and dancing in the Gai Jatra festival, which is celebrated to remember family members who have passed away during the year. But it has long drawn colorful parades by bringing in sexual minorities to join in on the festivities.
Nepal’s LGBTQ+ campaign has been hit after U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration began dismantling the U.S. Agency for International Development, which was responsible for humanitarian aid.
Most of the support centers for Nepal’s LGBTQ+ community have been closed because of a lack of funds.
In the past few years, Nepal’s LGBTQ+ community made rapid advancements in securing their rights. The nation became one of the first in Asia to allow same sex-sex marriage. The constitution adopted in 2015 explicitly stated there can be no discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.
The U.S. was among the biggest donors for the LGBTQ+ rights campaign.
Over the years, USAID and others stepped in and partnered with help centers to support initiatives like HIV prevention and care, and safe-sex counselling. The U.S. funds were vital for running the centers and clinics that helped with distributing free condoms, screenings and follow-up treatment for people with HIV. Now the USAID office in Nepal is closed.
Let me end this piece by asking you readers: What is your reaction to this development? Are you glad that the Trump administration ended USAID? Are you still upset over the fact that American taxpayers’ money funding LGBTQ projects, contraceptives, DEI (diversity-equity-inclusion) causes, and sex change procedures around the world through USAID? What do you wish to say to LGBTQ groups overseas who benefited from USAID support? Do you think that the LGBTQ projects funded by USAID might have involved bribery? Do you think US Congress should pass a proposal to prevent USAID from ever being revived?
Welcome back fellow geeks, Blu-ray collectors and movie buffs!
When it comes to watching movies – both old and new – the best place for me is still the movie theater. The very large screen, high-tech sound systems and comfortable seats of the cinema all make the theater viewing experience very immersive which streaming apps and the home theater setup could never match. The cinema experience is always better than streaming.
That being said, it is disappointing for me – as a resident of Muntinlupa City here in the Philippines – that local theaters in Alabang had to close down. The original cinemas of Festival Mall, which first opened in 1998 and grew from six to ten screens, are no more. Before they were all closed down, those cinemas had deteriorated over time and I still remember how bad the projection in one of their premium cinemas was when I saw Star Trek Into Darkness in 2013. It was like I was watching a VHS copy of the movie on their screen. It was that bad!
This year, the 4-screen cinemas of Commercenter in Filinvest City had closed down (refer to my past blog posts by clicking here and here) and it is very unfortunate not just for me but also for others who enjoyed watching movies at that mall. In my experience, Commercenter was my favorite local place to watch movies at and the cinema operators were consistent with maintaining each screen, the comfortable chairs and the sound systems. At the same time, it was pretty convenient for me to park the car in the basement parking (really spacious), climb up to the cinemas at the 2nd floor (ticket counter and snacks counter were beside each other), enjoy a movie, and visit a local store or a restaurant within the mall after leaving the cinema.
With the closure of Festival Mall’s original cinemas and Commercenter cinemas, that is a combined loss of ten screens along with the many seats and equipment combined. Along the way, many people who worked directly in those lost cinemas either became unemployed or got re-assigned to a new task within the local establishment. Sadly, not too many people here in the Philippines are talking about the jobs lost with the closure of cinemas.
Cinemas of Commercenter have been closed down since March 15, 2025.
This brings me to my next point – BusinessWorld published an article exploring the current struggle of Philippine cinemas in what is now the post-pandemic era. For the newcomers reading this, the Philippines economy has been growing strongly year-by-year after the COVID-19 period ended but the nation’s cinema industry is still struggling in terms of sales and attracting paying customers. The Filipinos’ love for streaming is huge factor but there are also other reasons why not enough moviegoers are supporting cinemas.
To put things in perspective, posted below is an excerpt from the BusinessWorld article. Some parts in boldface…
KAREN LUSTAÑAS, 30, tries to watch a movie in the Philippine capital at least once a month, if the budget allows it.
“I try to save time and money for films that I really want to see,” she told BusinessWorld in a Facebook Messenger chat. “I can barely afford it, but if I’m a fan of the director or actors, I really have to watch it.”
“Otherwise, I’ll just watch it on a streaming platform,” she added.
As good as the movie industry is in imagining alternate realities, it didn’t see this one coming. Five years after the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) decimated the box office here and all over the world, movies are still struggling to come back.
Philippine gross movie ticket sales fell 3.7% year on year to $45.5 million (P2.5 billion) last year, a far cry from the $144.5 million posted in 2019, before the pandemic hit, according to US-based box office revenue tracker Box Office Mojo. In 2020, gross sales plunged 95% to $7.7 million.
Global cinema ticket sales fell 8.8% last year to €28 billion (P1.8 trillion) from 2023, the first annual drop since COVID-19, the European Audiovisual Observatory (EAO) said last month.
Regular movie ticket prices cost P300 to P400 in Metro Manila, or about half the daily minimum wage. On the other hand, the basic monthly subscription to streaming platforms like Netflix, Max (HBO) and Disney+ costs P150 to P250, and the titles are virtually endless.
“If you think about it, it’s really worth it and more practical to go with Netflix,” Ms. Lustañas, a freelancer, said.
The annual Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) grossed P800 million last year, hitting the target but failing to top 2023’s record P1 billion despite a week-long extension.
The pandemic forced people to watch movies at home, aiding streaming services like Netflix, whose revenue grew 14% annually to more than $39 billion last year from 2019, according to computations by BusinessWorld using data from the company’s website. Netflix subscribers also doubled to about 300 million over the five-year period.
Since 2020, local box office hits have been few and far between. The latest was Star Cinema’s My Love Will Make You Disappear starring Kim Chiu and Paulo Avelino, grossing P12 million on its opening day in March.
“Today, going to the cinema is a more intentional experience, rooted not just in the movie being shown but in the overall ambiance that brings the film to life,” Hamm E. Katipunan, Ayala Malls’ Asset Management head, said in an e-mailed reply to questions.
“It’s not just about waiting for blockbusters to hit streaming sites; Filipinos appreciate the good feeling of watching movies that are truly worth experiencing on the big screen,” he added.
While cinemas run by Ayala Malls, SM Supermalls and other mall chains have diversified their offerings, a pattern has emerged in the top-grossing Filipino films that have drawn people to cinemas.
GMA Pictures and Star Cinema’s co-production Hello, Love, Again starring Alden Richards and Kathryn Bernardo set the record for the highest opening day gross for a local film with P85 million in November, surpassing the P75-million gross from The Super Parental Guardians in 2016.
‘FORMULAIC STORIES’ – It shows that Filipinos watch a movie mainly because of its main cast, Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) Chairman Jose Javier Reyes told a news briefing in March, citing a council-funded study involving 800 respondents.
“They can’t afford to go regularly to the movies anymore,” he said. “The biggest blow is that people don’t repeat screenings. They just wait for it to go on streaming platforms.”
The study, done in 2024 in collaboration with De La Salle University to explore the evolving habits, preferences and challenges shaping the local film industry, found that Filipinos from the A, B, and a small part of the C socioeconomic classes regularly watch movies.
The study, which will be released in July as part of the launch of FDCP’s Philippine Film Industry Roadmap, also found that streaming services have become the primary platform for 67% of Filipinos.
Only 21% still frequent cinemas, with many complaining about repetitive movie themes and high ticket prices.
Though stars are still the main movie drawer, the study also found that Filipinos are “sick of formulaic stories,” Mr. Reyes said. He added that the roadmap, mandated by the government, would shed light on how to better support the industry.
In October last year, President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. placed the Film Academy of the Philippines under the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to boost Filipino film development.
Trade Secretary Ma. Cristina A. Roque earlier said the budget for the film industry would increase next year as part of the roadmap. She noted that other countries have been using movies and the creative industry to boost tourism and trade.
Mr. Reyes said movie outfits should improve the quality of their films to boost their success overseas. “In the Philippines, star power is important, but the moment you cross borders, there’s a market for people who are more interested in the material itself,” he pointed out.
Rico V. Gonzales, head of distribution at Warner Bros. Pictures Philippines, said the company supports the local industry by distributing two to three Filipino movies yearly, along with the usual foreign releases from Warner Bros. and Universal Pictures.
“It’s part of the goodwill of the company to help local producers who don’t have a distribution arm, compared with the likes of Star Cinema and GMA Pictures, which have the power to do it themselves,” he said.
The current state of the cinema industry of the Philippines is disappointing and the future looks uncertain as of this writing. While a lot of my fellow Filipinos chose streaming to watch movies in the comfort of their home, I prefer watching movies on Blu-ray and 4K Blu-ray disc format. The most phenomenal 4K Blu-ray experiences I had was Top Gun: Maverick and that movie never failed to amaze me each time I saw it using my 4K Blu-ray disc player. I also enjoyed watching my 4K Blu-ray copies of Casablanca, Interstellar, Total Recall (1990), and Star Trek: First Contact.
Going back to the state of cinema here in the Philippines, I did not watch a single movie in the cinema in 2024. In fact, the last time I saw a movie on the big screen locally was Sound of Freedom in 2023 (read my review by clicking here). This is because the new movies that were released in 2024 did not interest me at all and the fact that a lot of new Hollywood movies had woke garbage in them turned me off. Not only that, there were times when news movies from overseas were not even released in Philippine cinemas at all such as Jesus Revolution (note: I had to buy the movie on Blu-ray just to watch it).
I saw The Batman at Commercenter’s cinema on March 2022.
As of this writing, the direction of the entire cinema industry of the Philippines remains uncertain and so far there were no real breakthroughs that happened. That being said, I still remember when in 2015, there were long lines of moviegoers at Commercenter waiting to enter the cinemas to watch Jurassic World. Such a memory won’t be repeated here in Alabang and without its cinemas, Commercenter’s value as a place for fun has gone way down.
Author Carlo Carrasco 