SpeciMen 11: Keanu Reeves and Ian Veneracion.

Keanu Reeves is haunting me.
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For the past weeks, the fact that I have not written an entry on my SpeciMen featurette in this blog has been constantly in my mind. I wanted to write one. The problem lies with the fact that I had only one guy in mind (Ian Veneracion) and I always inducted guys in pairs or sets of three. I couldn't pick another. It seemed that all my obvious choices have already been named here.

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That is when Keanu stepped in. Rather, that is when Keanu came to mind. And stayed there.

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Keanu Reeves is one of the biggest stars of the 1990s. During that decade, he appeared in nearly 20 movies, from Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey and Point Break to The Matrix. And then in this decade, his star somewhat waned in Hollywood as the Matrix sequels disappointed critics and moviegoers, his biggest hit was the modest returns of Constantine and his most notable appearance was a minor role in Something's Gotta Give.

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He was one of my favorite actors in the 1990s. I even watched more of his films during that era over Brad Pitt or Tom Cruise. But in the following decade, not so much. We parted ways on artistic differences. We had digressing views on what constitutes a good film.

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But this past days, Keanu made sure that I remember how good he was as an actor and how much I patronized his craft during my teenage years. And he also made sure that I pay tribute to him by the time I write down my next SpeciMen blog.

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Suddenly, out of nowhere, Keanu returned to haunt me. He was everywhere I turned. I recently bought a copy of Genre and, there, pasted on the Men We Love portion of the magazine is the picture of the young Keanu. The mag paid tribute to his groundbreaking role in My Own Private Idaho. I opened the TV and HBO is playing (and replaying) his latest collaboration with Sandra Bullock, The Lake House. And then, just as surprising, his movie with Chris Evans is playing in theaters, Street Kings. Really, he still has a movie? was my highbrow reaction.

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Keanu is reminding me about his old greatness and I can say that a tribute is much deserved for this Hollywood survivor.

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I remember that it wasn't easy when Keanu was just making a name in the industry. Although recognition followed him, controversy wasn't always far behind. A lot of directors wanted to work with him. But during that time, his appearance in the adolescent Bill and Ted movies worked to his disadvantage. He was typecast. Thus, when Bernardo Bertolucci cast him in Little Buddha and Francis Ford Coppola included him in Dracula, the choice was met with abject criticism. It was seriously doubted whether Keanu can play roles outside of the goofy stuff.

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And he did. He gave decent performances in this films that although they did not completely silence critics, justified the confidences that the seasoned directors reposed on the young actor.

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The result of Keanu's perseverance, resiliency and gamble was his ability to greenlight a project by simply signing on to it. Thus, what followed was a string of commercial releases starring this amiable but reluctant Hollywood star: Speed, Johnny Mnemonic, A Walk in the Clouds, Chain Reaction, Devil's Advocate, Feeling Minnesota and The Matrix.

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To his credit, Keanu never let the success he achieved change him. He never let the system eat his soul, too. He remains one of the humblest bonafide stars Hollywood has ever had.

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Lindsay Lohan and all those young pretenders in the industry can learn a lot from this Zen-following guy.

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Humility seems to be my theme for today. Like Keanu, humility is also the most marked characteristic of today's other SpeciMen inductee, local actor Ian Veneracion.

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I remember Ian as one of my first male crushes alongside (or a little after) Albert Martinez (SpeciMen 02). I was but five or six or seven years old then and he was only a bit older than I was. He was just starting in the movie business and his first gig was the son of comedian Joey De Leon in the TV show Joey and Son.

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He was mestizo, bibo and a little naughty in the show. If my memory serves me right, the show was aired afternoon on weekends. I will always stop what I was doing during that hour ---whether I was playing outside with friends, doing my homework or fiddling with my GI Joes--- and watch with gusto.

After that show, Ian's career pretty much took a dive. He plunged into adolescence and producers did not know what to do with him. There were numerous unsuccessful attempts to pair him in a loveteam. There were equally disastrous efforts to market him as an action hero, and much later, sexy actor.

It was good that Ian had a good head inside that pretty head of his. When his movie career wasn't going in the direction that he wanted, intended or expected it to, he put it to a stop and tried other career paths. He also busied himself with starting a family.

Ian is back in the industry after nearly a decade of absence. He is mostly seen in TV dramas and fantasy series playing father roles to today's new set of matinee idols and bankable love teams. The roles aren't much but I am sure he is just as happy to be able to once again do what he enjoys doing.

The country is in dire need of a romantic lead and I am sure with Ian's look, physique and talent, he fits the role into a T. What's more, Ian remains one of the more lovable actors we have. I am quite sure, pair him up with Sharon Cuneta, Judy Ann Santos or Regine Velasquez in a romantic drama and moviegoers will line up and fall in love.

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