| MariMar | |
|---|---|
| Format | Drama, Action, Adventure, Romance |
| Created by | Inés Rodena Televisa |
| Developed by | Dode Cruz |
| Directed by | Joyce E. Bernal Mac Alejandre |
| Starring | Marian Rivera Dingdong Dantes |
| Theme music composer | Tata Betita |
| Opening theme | MariMar (in Tagalog) sung by Regine Velasquez |
| Ending theme | Mahal Kita, sung by Maricris Garcia |
| Country of origin | Philippines Mexico |
| Language(s) | Filipino, Tagalog, English, Spanish |
| No. of episodes | 155 + 4 specials |
| Production | |
| Location(s) | Metro Manila, Philippines Zambales, Philippines |
| Running time | 30-45 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | GMA Network |
| Picture format | 480i SDTV |
| Original run | August 13, 2007 – March 14, 2008 |
| Chronology | |
| Related shows | Marimar |
| External links | |
| Website | |
MariMar[1] was a Philippine drama previously being broadcast in GMA Network, starring Marian Rivera and Dingdong Dantes.[2]
Though a remake-adaptation of a Mexican telenovela the setting and some of the storylines were altered.[3] Directed by Joyce E. Bernal and Mac Alejandre, the series premiered on August 13, 2007 and ended on March 14, 2008. It was aired internationally with a one week delay on GMA Pinoy TV, which became a huge success to Filipino viewers abroad. The series also aired in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, China (dubbed in Mandarin), Cambodia (dubbed in Khmer), Uganda and in the United States (airing Sundays on KIKU/Honolulu with English subtitles).
Contents |
Marimar was a Mexican TV telenovela that was first aired in 1994 on Televisa with singer-actress Thalía in the title role.
The series had 75 forty-five minute episodes, and is the second part of a "Maria" trilogy. The first was Maria Mercedes, and the final was Maria la del Barrio.
It aired on RPN 9, the home of all Classic Philippine Dramas, and became the most loved Soap Opera in Philippine History.
The contract with Televisa for the rights stipulates that GMA Network should start the series in 2007. With Angel Locsin's rejection of the offer, the network was prompted to give auditions to their roster of young actresses for the highly profiled role. On March 13, 2008, a video of the fifteen actresses who auditioned for the role of MariMar leaked on YouTube. These actresses are Bianca King, Nadine Samonte, Jennylyn Mercado, Ryza Cenon, Jewel Mische, LJ Reyes, Rhian Ramos, Camille Prats, Pauleen Luna, Katrina Halili, Valerie Concepcion, Nancy Castiglione, Cheska Garcia and Karylle.[4]
The role eventually went to Marian Rivera, who beat her closest rival for the role, Jennylyn Mercado. Some actresses who took part in the audition also landed major and supporting roles in the series. The anatagonist role of Angelika Santibanez went first to Bing Loyzaga but replaced by Katrina Halili after her character Ashley killed off from Lupin which would replace it, so the role of Esperanza went to Bing Loyzaga instead. The role of Natalia and Inocencia went to Bianca King and Nadine Samonte respectively.[5]
This series is a comeback project for Joyce E. Bernal in TV and for GMA Network.[6]
Gustavo Aldama, a rich businessman, marries a woman named Lupita despite his mother's disapproval of their relationship. Things become more complicated when Lupita gives birth to Gustavo's daughter, who she names Marimar. Dolores, Gustavo's mother, believing Lupita married her son only for their wealth, does everything to separate the two of them.
Dolores drugs Lupita and hires a man, setting them up to make it look like Lupita is having an affair. Gustavo is devastated to find Lupita "sleeping" with another man, unknown to him that it was a plot by his own mother. Dolores then demands Lupita to leave their property and never to come back.
It's too late, however, when Gustavo finds out his mother's treachery. He could no longer find Lupita, who had gone into hiding along with his daughter. Lupita promises her daughter that one day Marimar will claim what is rightfully hers. Meanwhile, Gustavo leaves his parents and decides to live alone in Manila, not losing hope that one day, he would find his wife and daughter.
Seven years pass, but Gustavo's efforts to locate the whereabouts of Lupita and Marimar remain fruitless. One day, his cousin Esperanza visits him, carrying with her the news of his parents' fatal accident. Despite his ill feelings towards his mother, Gustavo goes home to finally put closure on his past.
While visiting the grave of his parents, Selva, a friend of Lupita, comes by to inform Gustavo the whereabouts of Lupita and Marimar. Gustavo doesn't waste any time and goes to reunite with his family. Lupita manages to forgive Gustavo, to the delight of Marimar who is overjoyed to finally meet her father.
On their way back to Manila, the passenger plane on which the family is riding crashes into the sea and separates Marimar from her parents. Gustavo once again loses the family he had tried so hard to rebuild. Lupita is later found dead, but Marimar is nowhere to be seen.
Marimar is washed ashore on a nearby island. She is found by a childless couple, Lola Cruz and Lolo Pancho, and upon discovering that Marimar suffers from amnesia, decide to raise Marimar as their own granddaughter. Lola Cruz calls her Marimar after seeing the name on Marimar's necklace. Young Marimar meets a young Angelika, and they become friends, playing in a beach. However, Marimar and Angelika start fighting when Angelika falls and breaks her arm, blaming the incident on Marimar.
Marimar then grows into an innocent and naive young woman, whose complicated and tormented life begins when she meets, falls in love with, and agrees to marry Sergio Santibañez, for the latter's reason to have revenge against his father Renato and Sergio's ex-girlfriend, Angelika, Marimar's childhood friend, who had become his new stepmother. Marimar is then subjected to the cruelty of Angelika in the Santibañez mansion. Here starts Marimar's awakening to the harsh reality of what her love for Sergio had done to her.
Fate began to favor the once oppressed Marimar when she decided to leave San Martin de la Costa after suffering much from the Santibañez household and the death of her adopted grandparents from a fire under Angelika's order. Marimar changed her name to Bella. In the city, she gave birth to a beautiful baby girl whom she named Cruzita after her Lola Cruz. Marimar did not allow the child's father, Sergio, to see her, believing that Sergio had left her for good.
After many years of searching, Gustavo finally met his daughter, Marimar, but since the latter had changed her name to Bella, Gustavo did not recognize her. Natalia, an insane and ambitious provincial lass from San Martin dela Costa who also hated Marimar when she still lived in Villa Santibanez, had snatched up Marimar's pendant, which would prove the identity of Gustavo's missing daughter and heiress. Natalia began pretending to be Gustavo's missing daughter, yet her deception did not last long as Marimar's lost memory came back and she was later on proved to be an impostor. Soon after Gustavo finally acknowledged Marimar as his daughter, he died from a heart attack, leaving the countless wealth of the Aldamas to her. With the help of her Tia Esperanza and friend Innocencia, Marimar left for the United States and completely transformed herself from a poor and naive lass into the rich and sophisticated Bella Aldama.
The finale episode of MariMar, "Sergio and MariMar, the Wedding", was aired live on March 14, 2008. The venue was at San Agustin Church, Manila.[7] The reception was at Studio 3 of GMA Network Center and aired live. It replaced two Koreanovelas, Coffee Prince and The Legend to make it 2-hour special before Bubble Gang. This event includes not only the whole cast and staff of MariMar but also celebrities, fans and GMA staff. This is the third time that a Philippine finale episode event takes place live, the first one was ABS-CBN's Basta't Kasama Kita in 2004 and the second was Bakekang's finale episode. This event was tagged "The Wedding of the Year". The special guests in the final episode before the live event includes Rufa Mae Quinto, who is the voice cast of a dog Fifi, German Moreno, Tim Yap, Sandy Talag, Ricky Reyes, LJ Reyes, Arci Muñoz, Regine Velasquez and Ogie Alcasid as wedding singers, Regal Films producer Mother Lily Monteverde, executive producer Wilma Galvante, GMA Films president Annette Gozon-Abrogar, MTRCB chairwoman Consoliza Laguardia, and talent manager the late Douglas Quijano (died in 2009).
| Cast | Character | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| Marian Rivera | MariMar Perez-Santibañez Bella Aldama Marimar Aldama Santibanez |
The epitome of simplicity and innocence, MariMar is an unassuming girl who falls in love with Sergio, the rich heir to the Santibañez hacienda. Her relationship with Sergio causes her misery until she learns to fight back. Little does MariMar know that she is the only heiress of the Aldamas. |
| Dingdong Dantes | Sergio Santibañez | Rebellious and impulsive, Sergio takes advantage of MariMar's naïveté to retaliate against his father and ex-girlfriend-turned-stepmother, but later because of Marimar's good nature he started falling in love with her. |
| Katrina Halili | Angelika Santibañez Angelika Aldama † |
The ambitious and stuck-up Angelika was Sergio's first girlfriend. Although she married Renato (Sergio's father) for his money, she makes it her life's purpose to ruin Sergio and MariMar/Bella Aldama's relationship. |
| Richard Gomez | Renato Santibañez | Renato is Sergio's father who's blinded by his love for Angelika. Although he is one of MariMar's main adversaries, he becomes an ally to MariMar/Bella Aldama to downfall Angelika's evil plans. |
A farewell special entitled "MariMar: Isang Pasasalamat" was aired on March 9, 2008 prior to the finale week of the show. This is the second time that GMA Network made a farewell special, the first was for Encantadia. It got a 52.9% rating in Mega Manila which is the second highest for that date according to AGB-Nielsen. It rated a higher 38.1% in the March 2008 ranking of AGB Nielsen's Nationwide Urban Television Audience Measurement (NUTAM).
The series was released onto DVD-format by GMA Records. The DVDs are in volumes, there are 15 total containing all of the shows episodes. The DVDs were released in 2008.
The theme song of MariMar (in Tagalog) is sung by Regine Velasquez. The love song of Sergio and Marimar, "Mahal Kita", is sung by Maricris Garcia.