| Wake Up Little Susie | |
| Director: | Luciano B. Carlos |
| Music: | Vehnee Saturno |
| Cinematography: | Gener Buenaseda |
| Editing: | Efren Jarlego |
| Studio: | Regal Films |
| Country: | Philippines |
Wake Up Little Susie is a 1988 Filipino comedy film directed by Luciano B. Carlos and starring the comedy trio of Tito Sotto, Vic Sotto and Joey de Leon alongside child actress Ice Seguerra as the titular character. The film also stars Lotlot de Leon, Ramon Christopher, Kristina Paner, Cris Villanueva, Manilyn Reynes and Janno Gibbs. Produced by Regal Films, it was released on April 27, 1988.
Critic Lav Diaz gave the film a mixed review, criticizing its unoriginality and the unnecessary addition of musical scenes involving love teams while commending the hilarity of Tito, Vic and Joey.
Inmates David, Napoleon and Alexander are in jail due to a frameup, but a scuffle during a morning exercise routine gives them the opportunity to escape. As they run from the authorities, they meet Susie Seguerra, a child who is also on the run from men who want to kidnap her. The trio then try to take care of Susie while they evade capture as fugitives.
Ice Seguerra (then named Aiza) received his first film role in Wake Up Little Susie after winning the Little Miss Philippines competition in 1987.[1]
Wake Up Little Susie was released on April 27, 1988.[2] [3]
Regal Films made the film available for streaming on YouTube without charge on May 6, 2020.[4]
Lav Diaz, writing for the Manila Standard, gave the film a mixed review. He largely criticized the film for copying its story from the then-to-be-released American film Three Men and a Baby, stating that "this is a very big insult to us because Pinoys already have the ability to make something original." Diaz also disparaged the scenes of singing and dancing given to the film's love teams (de Leon-Christopher, Paner-Villanueva and Reynes-Gibbs), which he found unnecessary and inserted only "to make their fans scream." He admitted, however, that Jose Javier Reyes's script and the comedic performances of Tito Sotto, Vic Sotto and Joey de Leon managed to recover the film from its faults.[5]