Erotic thriller zeroes in on mental illness

Tony Labrusca

The erotic film “Double Twisting Double Back” tackles how sex could affect a person’s athletic performance, explained director Joseph Abello.

Joseph cites as an example boxing icon Manny Pacquiao. “I heard that he doesn’t have sex months before a fight; that’s why his wife Jinky gets pregnant after every fight,” he said.

Another interesting topic being tackled by the Cinema One entry, which stars Tony Labrusca and Joem Bascon and is being shown till Oct. 21, is the mental disorder called dissociation. “It’s a medical term for people with a split personality,” explained producer Shandii Bacolod. “However, there’s much more to the film than the illness.”

For his part, Joem, who plays Tony’s best friend/alter ego, prepared for the movie by talking to  experts of the disorder. “It helped that we had them around to guide us,” he shared with the Inquirer. “We wanted it to be as real and raw as possible, without having to ‘copy’ anyone who suffers from the disorder.”

Mon Confiado plays coach Raffy. “We worked with real-life coaches, who explained the terminologies,” he disclosed.

Mon only had good words for Tony: “He did scenes that were physically demanding, with no body double. I’m convinced that he’ll go a long way.”

Tony has been into gymnastics since he was 15. “It’s my extracurricular activity in school. I didn’t think of competing. I just wanted to enjoy it,” he stressed.

“I don’t want to forget the skills I’ve learned in gymnastics. It gives me the confidence I need as an actor,” said Tony, adding that he used this knowledge to his advantage several times already.

“When I was part of BoybandPh, palagi akong may pasabog. I was the only one in the group who knew tumbling,” he said of the discipline that combines artistic gymnastics and trampolining. “Now, I’m also working on a film about a gymnast. I’ve somehow incorporated gymnastics into everything that I do.”