It follows Mace (Angelica Panganiban) and Anthony (JM de Guzman), who meet at an airport in Rome and decide to travel together upon arriving in the Philippines.
The film starts at an airport in Rome where Mace, on her way back to the Philippines, despairs over which of her personal items to keep so she does not exceed the load requirements.
On the plane, Mace watches and emotionally connects with the protagonists of the film One More Chance but vehemently declines the pack of tissues offered to her.
Their small talk is cut short when a fellow patron, who has nonchalantly been ignoring an incoming call, irritates Mace.
At an art exhibit, Mace discovers Anthony's unfulfilled passion for painting overshadowed by a life driven by requirements and deadlines.
So, over lunch, she asks Anthony to illustrate a short story she has written in college entitled "The Arrow with a Heart Pierced Through Him".
Outside the café, Anthony reassures her that she is not ugly at all, tells her that she will recover because it is impossible for an overwhelming love like hers to be wasted or go unreciprocated and quotes Popoy's line from One More Chance.
As they await for the jeepney bound for Mount Kiltepan, in the freezing cold, Anthony gallantly drapes his sweater across her shoulders and for the first time spend a few minutes together in thoughtful silence.
They arrive at the camp late in the evening, lie down next to the fire beneath the open sky and talk about what they will wish for if a shooting star was to appear.
Director Antoinette Jadaone considers That Thing Called Tadhana as her "dream project" and described it as "more than 10 years’ worth of love stories, heartaches, heartbreaks, bitterness and acceptance".
The crew turned to donations from fans on Facebook to raise funds to obtain the rights to the song before its film festival premiere.
[11]Oggs Cruz of Rappler writes in a positive review: Antoinette Jadaone’s That Thing Called Tadhana relishes the simplicity of its premise.
With convincing performances from Angelica Panganiban and JM de Guzman, the film effortlessly evokes both the palpable pain of losing love and the alluring pleasure of gaining it back.
[12]According to actor JM de Guzman who played Anthony Lagdameo in the film, the director is already writing the script for the sequel.