Janice de Belen recalls doing first ‘Shake, Rattle, & Roll,’ surprised by its lasting impact

Janice looked back on the episode, part of the very first Shake, Rattle & Roll in 1984, at an event where Regal Entertainment and gaming platform BingoPlus unveiled five horror-themed games drawn from the franchise.

She played Virgie in “Pridyider,” which was directed by National Artist for Film Ishmael Bernal. The episode follows a family that settles into a house with an old refrigerator. Before long, people start dying in horrifying ways, and the family realizes the fridge is to blame.

Janice said she thought the movie would eventually fade from people’s memories.

“I never thought it would be that way ’cause I thought, you know, the movie is done, time has passed, parang okay na, nakalimutan na nila,” she said.

That changed when people began telling her how much the episode scared them.

“But when people come up to me and tell me that they watched ‘Pridyider,’ they were scared, parang, ‘Oh, may impact pala siya,’” she said.

“Because I thought what would stick was ‘anak ni Janice.’ But ‘Pridyider’ stayed on as well,” she added.

Asked if fans have told her the episode traumatized them, Janice said many have.

“Oh yes. The ‘Pridyider’ in particular. Kasi nga naman, who would ever think something as harmless as a refrigerator would be something you would really be scared of,” she said.

Janice also said she had fun making horror films.

“You know, weirdly, I enjoyed doing these films. Kasi nga different eh. They are different. You know that they will stay, you know na may matatakot, ‘yun ‘yung effect mo sa kanila. So it was really fun,” she said.

Working with the late Ishmael Bernal made the project even more special for her.

“‘Pridyider,’ when we did it, it was my first time working with Ishmael Bernal. So that alone was a great experience,” she said.

Still, she admitted that while they were filming, she had her doubts about whether a kitchen appliance could actually frighten moviegoers.

“Then again, ‘yung pridyider, habang ginagawa n’yo ‘yung movie, iniisip mo, ‘Matatakot ba talaga sila sa pridyider? Ano ba ‘yung nakakatakot?’ But when you watch it, mafi-feel mo, ‘Ah, kaya pala sila natatakot,’” she said.

The 1984 film had two other episodes, “Baso” and “Manananggal,” and was an entry in that year’s Metro Manila Film Festival, where Herbert Bautista bagged Best Actor for “Manananggal.”

The fridge story proved so memorable that Regal turned it into a full-length movie in 2012, directed by Rico Maria Ilarde and starring Andi Eigenmann and JM de Guzman. Janice was part of that one too, this time playing the mother of Andi’s character.

Over the years, Janice has become one of the franchise’s most familiar faces, returning for more episodes such as “Multo” in 1990 and “Ate” in 1991. Last year, she was back for Shake, Rattle & Roll Evil Origins, playing a nun named Mother Juana in the episode “1775.”

Produced by Regal, Shake, Rattle & Roll now has 17 films in the franchise, nearly all of them Metro Manila Film Festival entries. Its tales of monsters from local folklore and everyday objects turned deadly have made it a Christmas season favorite for many Filipino families.

Now, the franchise is going digital. Regal and BingoPlus, a platform under DigiPlus Interactive Corp., have rolled out five games based on “Shake, Rattle & Roll”: Manananggal, Reyna Ahas, Triple Terror, LRT Monster, and Aswang. The games became available on the BingoPlus app on October 22, and DigiPlus’ other platforms, ArenaPlus and GameZone, will get them in phases.

Regal president Roselle Monteverde said the move brings the franchise to a new generation.

“For more than four decades, ‘Shake, Rattle & Roll’ has remained part of Philippine popular culture through stories that are distinctly Filipino,” she said.

For DigiPlus chairman Eusebio Tanco, teaming up with Regal helps the company give players better games.

“Our goal is to give our players premium entertainment. That means high-quality games, thoughtful design, and worthy experiences. Partnering with Regal, one of the country’s most respected names in storytelling, helps us deliver that,” he said.

BingoPlus operates under a license from the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR).