Crying Ladies

The story revolves around three ladies who each have their own story to tell, with their own struggles and challenges to face.Stella Mate (Sharon Cuneta) just got out of prison and is desperate to earn enough money to regain custody of her eight-year old son Bong (Julio Pacheco). Her ex-husband, Guido (Ricky Davao) moved to Cagayan de Oro with his new wife, Cecile (Sharmaine Centenera). Fortunately, good luck arrives in the form of a young Chinese man, Wilson Chua (Eric Quizon), whose father has just died. Wilson’s mother (Sherry Lara) wants a traditional Chinese funeral, complete with professional mourners. Professional grieving, however, is an obsolete profession; so Wilson settles for Stella, whose late mother made her living weeping at strangers’ funerals. Stella in turn recruits two friends, Rhoda “Aling Doray” Rivera (Hilda Koronel) and Choleng (Angel Aquino). Aling Doray is an aging bit-player desperately reliving her better career days as the star of epics like Darna and the Giants. Choleng, on the other hand, is a charity worker who feels guilty for cheating with her friend’s husband (Raymond Bagatsing). For five days, the length of a traditional Chinese wake, Stella, Aling Doray and Choleng put on white mourning clothes and cry their eyes out to earn a living.