‘Diyosa ng Katatawanan’ Eugene Domingo hugs her producer Piolo Pascual. (Photo by JUDE L. BAUTISTA)

Perhaps no other film has poked fun on the country’s biggest tycoons except “Kimmy Dora: Kambal sa Kiyeme.” In a display of power and wealth by Kimmy’s (Eugene Domingo) family, each of them calls her: “Gertrude (Miriam Quiambao): Mam we have Henry Sy on the line. Kim: I’m not interested. Gertrude: JZA wants to play tennis with you. Kim: Tell him I’m not into tennis. Gertrude: We have MVP on the line. Kim (smiles excitedly): I’ll take it. Hello? Manny, Manny, Manny, I’m buying you out!”

The kind of comedy employed in the movie runs the gamut from quirky, snappy dialogue to slapstick. Kimmy tries to seduce Johnson (Dingdong Dantes), “Basic Instinct” style where she flashes him while crossing her legs. In this case however she does it four times and lifts her high heeled shoes to block his way.

Written by Chris Martinez, the script displayed the same wit and timing that his award winning film in Cinemalaya “100” had. With that previous film, Eugene starred with Mylene Dizon and earned the pair Best Supporting and Best actress respectively. Although “100” was more melodramatic. Unlike most comedies that cater to the ‘masa’ or mass audiences, the humor isn’t necessarily stupid in “Kimmy Dora.” There’s a certain amount of fore thought to the jokes as well as the typical slapstick kind. It doesn’t alienate viewers from either the masa or more sophisticated audiences. Values of family are also injected through the relationship of the twins and their father (Ariel Ureta).

Without the skill of Eugene Domingo occupying multiple roles in “Kimmy Dora” however, it would have fallen flat. The most hilarious scenes are the ones where Eugene had to inhabit one character, trying to imitate another character. Director Joyce Bernal related that shooting multiple roles for Eugene was quite tedious. Blocking was crucial in each shot, they constantly had to measure the distance from the camera and each character. Special effects company Digital dodge was with them from the very beginning even from pre-production.

All the biggest names in showbiz have come together to celebrate the coming out party of the first Eugene Domingo headliner. Both Kapuso and Kapamilya celebs have come out in full force. Miriam Quiambao gets beat up Manny Pacquiao style in the ring as Kimmy’s assistant. Dora looks at Johnson longingly and asks him “I’m smart di’ba? I can do what Kim does in the office?” Baron Geisler is the scheming lawyer Harris. Veteran stage actor and director Leo Rialp plays a helpful general. Rialp also has a distinctively male and strong voice that has been used in a number of ads in both TV and radio. Regine Velasquez is a frustrated speech therapist, trying to repair Dora’s child like stuttering and voice. Mark Bautista is a doctor who saves their dad. Cristale Henares daughter of Dr. Vicki Belo makes an early appearance as an employee.