Stream It Or Skip It: ‘The Entitled’ on Netflix, A Filipino ‘Princess Diaries’

Netflix’s global footprint continues to grow with more original foreign language content. The Filipino rom-com The Entitled is the newest entrant in the Netflix Original Films umbrella: should you stream it for your next movie night?

THE ENTITLED: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

The Gist: Belinda (Alex Gonzaga) is a poor orphan from the wrong side of the tracks. When her estranged father – a hotelier – makes contact, Belinda is introduced to high society, and must unlearn all of her unsophisticated mannerisms. Along the way, she strikes up a friendship with her father’s maid and potential romance with his lawyer (JC De Vera).

What Will It Remind You Of?: An ugly duckling-turned-princess story, this film shares very similar beats to The Princess Diaries.

Performance Worth Watching: Melai Cantiveros plays the maid who strikes up an unusual bond with Belinda, and she’s fun throughout even when her acting is a bit over the top.

Memorable Dialogue: “Isn’t there anyone here we can promote to vice president?” Her dad states the obvious and chooses to promote Belinda into the role, though she has absolutely no experience in business and has yet to even prove herself able to have an adult conversation. It’s so overwritten and makes absolutely zero sense in the film.

Sex and Skin: None.

Our Take: From the very first frame, it’s apparent that the film will be extremely exaggerated – both in its acting and in its storyline. The acting is so egregious, it’s hard to watch, especially Gonzaga’s performance in the first half of the film. The Entitled spends so much time trying to draw parallels between poor people and bad behavior, but films don’t need to lean on the stereotype of poor people being uncouth. The result is not anything we haven’t seen before and the stereotypes ultimately do a disservice to telling a full, unique story.

But the film does commit to those stereotypes, and in its execution they use the same gags over and over, which loses the punch they might have had if they used it sparingly. There is a lot of gross out humor including many gags involving vomit and poop, and one bathroom scene in particular draws on a similar diarrhea scene from White Chicks. But here, it doesn’t add to the characterization of the character – it just makes it seem like she might have an allergy to some of the rich food being introduced into her diet.

The third act tries to save the movie as she finally commits to learning about fine dining and “manners,” but it’s a little too late. By that point, I was no longer invested in Belinda’s journey — not to mention, the film did very little to set up why she was thrust into this journey in the first place.

Our Call: SKIP IT. The film doesn’t tread any new ground and relies on the same jokes over and over.

Radhika Menon (@menonrad) is a TV-obsessed writer based in Los Angeles. Her work has appeared on Vulture, Teen Vogue, Paste Magazine, and more. At any given moment, she can ruminate at length over Friday Night Lights, the University of Michigan, and the perfect slice of pizza. You may call her Rad.