In “Hindi Tayo Pwede,” Gabby (Lovi Poe) and Dennis (Marco Gumabao) were best of friends, in a very close but strictly platonic relationship. One day, during their wedding preparations, Gabby’s boyfriend and fellow film buff Gabriel (Tony Labrusca) met a fatal car accident.

Gabby was left such a depressed wreck that she was somehow able to conjure up a seemingly flesh-and-blood Gabriel, who still controlled her every action and decision. Problems arose more than a year later when Dennis declared to Gabby that he loved her romantically after all. However, Gabriel would not allow that to happen.

The big twist of this love triangle was that one of these men competing for Lovi Poe's attention was actually already dead and was just a ghost. This was not exactly a novel idea, but it could have been an interesting twist, if only the esteemed writer Ricky Lee and director Joel Lamangan had been clear and consistent about where the ghost came from.

Was the ghost Gabriel a result of Gabby's distraught mind following his death, or was he a restless soul who could not cross over to the other side? The filmmakers could not decide and contradicted themselves many times. If Gabriel's ghost came from Gabby's mind, then he should not have decisions of his own. Furthermore, their conceit that we should believe and accept that Gabby perceived Gabriel's ghost as solid bordered on insulting.

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I thought it was nifty how the ghost aspect was introduced gradually. So if you came in not knowing this supernatural aspect of the film, you actually would be surprised. However, maybe because of budget constraints, they could not really give Gabriel that ghostly "glow" special effect all of the time. In the first ghost scene, people were seen walking through Gabriel. However, after that, Gabby had to open the car door for Gabriel to come out. In one blatant goof, Gabriel actually opened and closed the car door himself when he rode the car. This dismal disregard for detail was certainly cause for derision and dismay.

Whatever sensuality the alluring poster promised, the rating of PG given by the MTRCB would likely make you temper your expectations. Despite the hype, there were only two lovemaking scenes, very similarly shot in extreme close-ups with brief flashes of skin here and there, one with Gabby and Gabriel, and one with Gabby and Dennis. Even if these scenes were relatively tame, this should have been rated an R-13 at least. For me, a film should only be rated PG if there had been no actual sex scenes at all.

Like several films lately, the protagonists all had ambitions to become filmmakers and were working on a script for an indie romance. I guess it was funny in a way when the characters criticized their own script for being about being unable to move on from a failed relationship, when the whole film in itself was about a major case of being unable to move on.

The actors were attractive, yes, but acting-wise, their performances were limited by the implausibility of how the story went and the silliness of what they were given to do. I believe the germ of a good story was in there somewhere, but how it came out onscreen was just not good.

This review was originally published in the author's blog, "Fred Said."