Professional film critic Philbert Dy shared his experience of attending a premiere of a movie that he later learned was still “unfinished.”
Dy, who also serves as the head of publications at QCinema, found himself attending the premiere of “John Shaw: Nuclear Winter,” a film he said he had “never heard of before.”
“I was in Gateway 2 when I saw they were rolling out a red carpet near Cinema 11,” he wrote on X (formerly Twitter), sharing that it happened on Monday, September 8.
“And I saw a poster for a film that I’d never heard of before. So it turns out they were having a premiere that night. And I’m the kind of guy that looks up stuff like this, which led me to this trailer. AND JESUS CHRIST,” Dy added, sharing the film’s trailer on his post.
So it turns out they were having a premiere that night. And I’m the kind of guy that looks up stuff like this, which led me to this trailer. AND JESUS CHRIST. pic.twitter.com/mH47ny3LPu
— philbertdy.bsky.social (@philbertdy) September 9, 2025
“And I was like, ‘surely this isn’t real.’ But then, I went [to] the SM Cinema website, and the movie was listed there, with a baffling runtime of 150 minutes,” Dy added.
He shared that the staff at the registration desk informed him that it was the movie’s “premiere” at that time.
Dy also asked about the film’s rating with the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB), which reviews and classifies motion picture content to assign appropriate ratings.
“I also asked what their MTRCB rating was. On the SM website, it was ‘TBC,’ and I went to the MTRCB site, and I looked it up, and it wasn’t there. Person at registration didn’t know. Didn’t think this was too important at the time, but oh, boy,” he wrote.
The film critic later secured a ticket for the movie after disclosing he is a member of the press.
Around forty minutes inside the theater, Dy admitted that he began to think that “there was no movie” since nothing had been shown by that point.
He later said that the director, Danni Ugali, and Ron Chan, a Filipino-Chinese actor and producer, informed them that they couldn’t show the movie at that time.
“At first, they alluded to a technical problem, but then, [he] goes, ‘Actually, tapos na ‘yung film, pero hindi umabot ‘yung MTRCB permit,'” Dy said.
He later learned that the movie was still “unfinished,” hence its non-appearance in the supposed “premiere” night.
The movie had another premiere at SM City Cebu, where Dy was able to gather more information.
“According to my contact in Cebu, the ‘movie’ was indeed just 48 minutes long. But they explained that it’s unfinished. So these guys applied for [an] MTRCB rating for an unfinished work. Daming budget. The cast was flown out to Cebu, and they had a whole thing there, too,” Dy said.
He also shared his experience with Rolling Stone Philippines, where he called it “might be the most bizarre film of the year.”
In his review, the film critic said that the people behind the premiere “didn’t have a permit from the MTRCB ready for that night and could not legally screen the film to the hundred or so people in attendance.”
He rated the trailer a “10/10,” saying he “would recommend” it.
Dy also shared a post from an online user who researched the company behind “John Shaw: Nuclear Winter.”
This thread looks into the company behind the movie. https://t.co/WyABCN6ZEE
— philbertdy.bsky.social (@philbertdy) September 9, 2025
The movie
Based on the production company’s website, “John Shaw: Nuclear Winter” is an action, sci-fi, and thriller motion picture with the following synopsis:
“A terrorist group embarks on a mission to bring a new world order under its control and leadership. The group conspires with government officials to manipulate Russia, Iran, and North Korea into joining forces and starting a nuclear war against NATO and other US-ally countries. The US military receives intelligence of the potential war on short notice and takes defensive and retaliatory actions to survive against potential attacks.”
The movie features Chan, a Cebuano businessman-turned-actor who manages his international education institution, Richmindale.
In an interview, Chan calls the movie his dream project, saying that he watches movies when he wants to have a “break” and that he has “always loved action movies,” with Keanu Reeves and Jackie Chan as his idols.
Chan said “John Shaw: Nuclear Project” is his first acting project, which was produced in six months.
It features actors of different nationalities like international model-turned-actress Anatasiia Dymchenko, Jelizaveta Mescerjakova, Elnora Rose Celis, Wriai Mapula, and Stephanie Fredriksen.
Ugali said that the movie also features some AI-generated characters in the supporting role, adding that the technology is helpful when scenes require a massive number of people in the shot.
