“Come back to the young and beautiful you!” Estelle, played by the hysterical Angelica Panganiban, says over and over again in despair in director Antoinette Jadaone’s 2014 comedy Beauty in a Bottle. Panganiban’s perfectly timed blend of distress and desperation gave the line its recall, embedding the movie in the pop culture subconscious more than a decade after its release. But Jadaone, who directed and wrote the movie’s screenplay, never anticipated it would become such a cultural touchstone.
“Hindi ko in-expect na ‘yan ‘yong magiging iconic lang,” said Jadaone in the latest episode of Rolling Stone Philippines’ YouTube series, Greatest Hits. “Pero… naging iconic line siya lahat sa mga kagagahan na ginawa ni [Angelica].”
Beauty in a Bottle, Jadaone’s satirical commentary on our obsession with beauty standards, stars Panganiban, Assunta De Rossi, and Angeline Quinto as three women struggling with their insecurities and getting caught up in the latest beauty craze. The film delves deep into what it means to be beautiful when our definition of it is often unattainable.
But ask anyone what they remember about Beauty in a Bottle, and they’ll immediately quote that one specific, glorious line. “Kem beck to the young and byutipul you!” One Letterboxd user wrote in their review of the movie, referring to Panganiban’s hard accent when playing Estelle. “‘Yang scene na ‘yan ang saving grace ng pelikulang to,” wrote another Letterbox user.
Jadaone recalled that she felt a real connection with Panganiban while working on Beauty in a Bottle with her. “‘Yon ‘yong first time ko sigurong nag-feel as a director,” said Jadaone, “na nagkaroon ako ng isang artista na naka-connect ako na ito ‘yong gusto kong gawin. Andami niya talagang ginawa.”
“So I think ‘yong pagiging iconic ng line, yes, nagmumula siya sa writer,” said Jadaone. “Pero malaking bagay ‘yong artista na siya ‘yong nagpabuhay. Kaya naging mas iconic ‘yong ‘Come back to the young and beautiful you.’”
In Rolling Stone Philippines’ “Greatest Hits,” Jadaone breaks down five milestones in her filmography that cemented her place in Filipino cinema. You can watch it now exclusively on our YouTube Channel.
