Tripping Out With Angel Locsin
Strong-willed and gorgeous, Angel Locsin reveals her quirky and kengkoy side. Who knew?
Channeling the vixen can be effortless for someone like Angel Locsin. Posing with one shoulder bared, pout in place, and eyes smoldering, she makes sexy look easy.
If you’ve never had any real interaction with Angel, you’d probably call her guarded. You’re not sure what to expect from her. At the shoot, a bichon frise is brought in and the way the production team oohed and aahed at the canine says that we have a potential show-stealer on board. The dog — Angel’s dog — is just way too cute.
A couple of shots with her furry friend, and it happens: The dog breaks Angel’s reserve. A warm smile plays on her lip as she cuddles her pet.
“Halos lahat ng kaibigan ko, first impression nila suplada ako,” Angel relates. “Nagsa-smile naman ako ha!” She laughs at the thought. The thing is, Angel does have a wonderful smile. It’s endearing and pulls you in.
Joke Time
Perhaps we’re so used to her ball-breaking roles and dramatic acting, we expect her to be, well, serious.
But at the shoot — her fifth with Cosmo — the actress knows how to keep things light. She’d break out of her sultry persona to laugh with the crew or make a face. And, we hear her actually call that adorable dog of hers “Pwet-pwet.”
“Kasi masyado na s’yang cute!” Angel explains, as if that warrants such a ridiculous name. Then she pretend to scold her dog “‘Pwet-pwet!’ O diba, ‘di ka na magagalit kasi ang cute din ng name n’ya!” The girl is quick to see the funny side of things. It’s refreshing.
Working Girl
Still, Angel is one of the most hardworking actresses in the industry. Since seeing her last in Cosmo, she has done several movies and teleseryes (including Only You with Sam Milby, and Imortal with John Lloyd Cruz). “Ngayon, may gagawin kaming movie with John Lloyd,” she shares, a romantic comedy that’s considerably lighter fare than the violent scenes and heavy drama acting they did for Imortal. It should be refreshing for Angel’s fans to see her this way and timely that they both headline this month’s Cosmo mag.
But it isn’t just in acting roles that Angel’s lightened up. When we talk about all the work she’s doing, she gives this air that’s almost carefree and unfrazzled.
Pro Princess
“‘Yung work ngayon mas balanced naman,” she explains. “Mas okay kasi may time ako para sa akin, family ko, sa friends.” We know she’s saying careful words, only confirming that she’s gotten more secure and determined about what she’s doing. Angel’s increased steadfastness now makes her able to manage the stress of being in the spotlight with grace. She states, as an example, when she shot In The Name of Love, her film with Aga Muhlach, and Imortal at the same time.
“Ang hirap lang kasi drama pareho, ‘yung isa may action pa. Gigising ka, tapos iisipin mo kung sino ka. Teka lang, ano nga ‘yung character ko ngayon?” she explains.
So, she developed her own sanity-saving style: “Habang nagsh-shower ako, [iniisip] ko na yung mga kukunan [na eksena]. Ire-ready ko lang para ‘pag kelangan ko na magtrabaho, alam ko agad ‘yung situation, hindi na ako magtatanong-tanong. Mabilis na ako umiyak, mabilis na ako tumawa. Yung irequest ng director, hindi na sila masaydo mahihirapan kunin sa akin.”
It’s evident that Angel is a pro. She has always risen to her responsibilities to deliver a job with aplomb, no matter what difficulties lay ahead. While this hectic stint would’ve rattled her before, she’s learned to take everything — busy schedules and challenges — in stride. Now, what gives her strength and soothing peace is the value she places on balance, one she’s had to learn on the job, through experience.
Fighting Stance
Angel’s been in the industry for nine years now. She’s portrayed various emotions for the camera countless times. But when she talks out work, you start getting a sense that Angel’s on some sort of personal mission: to push herself to be more than what’s expected of her. She’s also redefining what she wants a career to be: steady and stable. At this point, after conquering almost every nook of the industry, what Angel really wants now is “to fight.”
“Ang gusto ko talaga malinya ako sa action. Mahilig ako sa mga fight scenes. Gustong-gusto ko ‘pag nagpo-portray ako ng mga babae na strong. Ayoko ng weak na babae.” She smiles before she adds an important criterion: “Pero, girl pa rin.”
Angel’s penchant for strong women roles spills over to real life. She’s a supporter of women’s rights, lending her time to the NGO Gabriela as well as to the Philippine Red Cross. She speaks of it matter-of-factly: “Kailangan mo ma-elevate yung mga kababaihan. Hindi lang ‘yung mga nakasanayan natin na ‘yung babae sunud-sunuran. Pwede ako magtrabaho. Pwede ako mag-decide. Gusto ko ‘yung mga characters ko, ‘yung mga hindi nagpapatalo.”
One begs to wonder if this same feistiness carries over to her love life. Right now, she is “single, not looking, but dating.” But, men must be so intimidated, right? “Siguro. But really, I’m more intimidated by them.”
This is tricky territory. See, Angel also doesn’t believe in traditional ligaw. “‘Yung mga nag-best-foot-forward, hate na hate na hate ko. Kung gan’un ka talaga sa lahat, okay lang. Pero kung sakin lang, tapos sa iba di ka nagbabukas ng pinto, ayoko ng gan’un.”
Dating Rules
Recently, she’s been portrayed as men’s ideal girl – the anything-goes, fishball-eating, commute-friendly gal. Honestly, we ask her, would you really go out with someone who just slums it?
For Angel, it’s a no-brainer. “Of course! Basta gusto ko ‘yung kasama ko, ‘di ba? Gan’un lang naman ‘yun eh. Kahit sa likod lang ng pickup nga lang, d’un na kayo kumain. Basta okay ka sa kasama mo.”
Anything goes with this girl, yes. But date anyone? Not really. “I’m super picky,” she says. She must be. No less than Azkals superstar Phil Younghusband has expressed interest and she dismisses it with a shrug. “I think, nung una, people thought it wasn’t serious. Hindi ko naman sinasabi na masama siya. Sinabi ko rin naman sa kanya, ‘Feeling ko hindi ka seryoso. Pero di ko naman jinajudge yung pagkatao mo.’”
And yet, Angel is learning to be more open. “Truth is, ang dami ko pang dapat baguhin. I had a rule before that I wouldn’t date anyone younger than me. Pero nagbago na ‘yon.” Has Phil changed her heart? As if to answer those queries, Angel adds: “So, girls, ‘wag na kayong gumawa ng checklist. Basta hindi sinungaling, okay na.”
Flights of Fancy
If there’s one thing we can be sure of, Angel’s brand of fun takes some balls. For instance, you’re more likely to find her at an airline ticketing office than a bar.
Picture this. Whenever she has free time, Angel marches herself up to a ticket counter, checks the flights listed, and buys a ticket for the next available flight — US, Hong Kong, Bangkok — it doesn’t matter. “Ayoko talaga magplano ng vacations, as much as possible. Gusto ko biglaan. Sa work natin, lagi tayong may schedule. So minsan, masarap rin kung ano lang anong gusto nating gawin. Kaya tawag ng friends ko sa akin ‘Random.’ Mahilig ako sa ‘Tara, alis tayo. Basta. Mag-drive ka lang.’”
She speaks of these snatches of personal time as if they were such valuable luxuries. Her commitments keep her busy so often, that when we asked her where she’d jet off to if she could take off for one year, she gets giddy.
“One year?” Her smile widens. “Gusto kong pumuntang Italy. ‘Di pa ako nakakapuntang Rome. Backpack lang. Ikot ako ng Europe. Ang dami kong gustong gawin, na-excite ako! Gusto kong matutong ng tatlong bagay: musical instrument, mag-fly ng plane, at makibasado ko yung streets sa Pilipinas.”
In the meantime, she’ll settle for her impromptu ventures closer to home, whether it be eating fishballs on the street or setting up a tent in her own driveway. Angel is up for anything.
