Expectation vs. Reality: The Lesson of Fan Girl for the Filipino Youth
Written by: Catherine joyce Basilio
April 15, 2025
In a world where social media and entertainment take over our everyday lives, admiration for public figures is slowly turning into obsession. According to the Manila Bulletin, the Philippines is one of the largest markets for concerts, fan meetings, and events. For young people, celebrities are heroes or a version of perfection. But what happens when the image they admire ends up being a facade? Fan Girl, a movie directed by Antoinette Jadaone, delves right into this unsettling question, exposing the dark reality behind idol worship and the dangers of blind admiration.
Courtesy: IMDb
Fan Girl features a teenage girl named Jane who is obsessed with a well-known Filipino actor named Paulo Avelino. To her, he is perfect — charming, talented, and everything she longs for. In summary, he is ideal for her. Love causes her to look into his world, and there she sees the man behind the fame. What she discovers, though, is not what she expected at all.
Jane’s Expectation with Paulo Avelino
Courtesy: IGN SOUTHEAST ASIA
Courtesy: PEP PH
Behind the camera and off-screen, her idol turns out to be violent, abusive, and deeply imperfect. The movie takes its time to peel away the illusion of how the girl's innocent crush becomes disillusioned and emotionally ruined. This is a tale of how celebrity culture can mislead, even harm — especially when it comes to young minds. Most of the youth adore public figures without knowing who they are, other than what is posted on social media and scripted interviews. It is a call to wake individuals, especially the youth of the Philippines, to the fact that local stars are still human. They are not immune to faults, and fame does not automatically make someone a good person.
Reality Behind the Camera
Courtesy: EASTERN KICKS
Courtesy: NETFLIX
Fan Girl is also an unflinching look at the darker side of such blind devotion. It demonstrates how too much adoration blinds a person to the conduct of the person they are drooling over, then renders them vulnerable to manipulation, exploitation, and disappointment. The journey of the protagonist is a harsh wake-up call and offers a world lesson: the individuals that we idolize are not necessarily all deserving of the adoration we bestow upon them.
This movie challenges young people to choose role models not because of fame or image, but because of the values they represent — kindness, respect, and integrity. In the words of the national hero Dr. Jose Rizal, "Ang kabataan ang pag-asa ng bayan." However, how can the youth be the hope of the nation if their beliefs and ideals are based on fraudulent representations of their heroes, with the concept of idols impacted by flawed human nature? Fan Girl essentially encourages us to teach the coming generation to be more reflective to help them realize they should earn others' admiration through their character. Not all idols ought to be admired by all, and sometimes a painful truth has to play a role in having seen the reality.
References:
Ricafort (2021). “Fan Girl”: Why you should never meet your heroes. Intercom. Retrieved on April 14 from https://www.gottman.com/blog/the-magic-relationship-ratio-according-science/