"School Service" is director Louie Ignacio's most solid work to date. It's driven by a rattling good tale of a dysfunctional family of grifters who lives in a rundown, roving school service, abducting children along the way. The children are tasked to beg for money used to buy food and medicine for the ailing patriarch (Joe Gruta) and to pay off cops.
With 6 unrelated children now in their fold, Rita (Ai ai delas Alas) is having a tough time managing their affairs. It doesn't help that elder brother Robert (Joel Lamangan) is hopelessly enraptured by his lover Kiko (Kevin Sagra), the driver, who's trying to convince Robert to sell the vehicle and run away with him. One day, while Rita is scouring the city with the children, Robert fails to return on time. Rita fears that her suspicion has finally come true.
The film follows the daily routine of Rita's "family" as they brave the concrete jungle. I am reminded of a few movies: Ralston Jover's "Hamog" and Eduardo Roy's "Pamilya Ordinaryo" which tackled familiar ground of urban vagrancy. The scene of children sniffing rugby to ward off hunger was very familiar.
The strength of the story is its unpredictability, as we're compelled to sit back and wait for things to unravel. It's hard to double guess the string of events, and you're left wondering. Life in the big city can be harsh, and there are always extraneous factors that affect even the best laid plans.
Some of the memorable scenes include Rita getting called out by a shop lady for her lies as she pretends to be physically debilitated; Robert trying to stop Kiko from smothering his sick father; and, finally, Rita chasing after little Maya who's stoned from sniffing glue.
I have to mention Joel Lamangan's substantive portrayal.
The first movie I wanted to watch for the festival was Denise O'Hara's "Mamang" - and I got lucky. I am not sure why this was highly anticipated, even by some of my friends who rarely watch indies. Maybe because Celeste Legaspi is one of the movers behind the unforgettable little MMFF movie that could - Loy Arcenas' "Ang Larawan". Legaspi has always been synonymous with quality. Think Barbra Streisand, Philippine version.
"Mamang", however, was underwhelming. The protagonist's downspiraling cognitive skills seemed episodic at best. Like a tedious litany of the symptoms of dementia. In fact, there was a disconnect and I couldn't fully empathize with Mamang.
Part of this is Legaspi's uneven characterization. Make no mistake, she's a grand presence on screen, but there are stark inconsistencies with her character. She'd be surly one minute, then timid and blushing, and headstrong the next. She's like a brat acting out for her close up. And Norma Desmond is a solar system away from who Mamang should be.
I am aware of the behavioral abnormalities associated with dementia: depression, anxiety psychosis, agitation, aggression, disinhibition, and sleep disturbances. In their realms, the past crisscrosses with the present. I know. I've lived with a grandmother who suffered from it. This was one of the things that drew me to the movie.
Sadly, it was a struggle to relate to this story. I am aware too that this was based on real events. So we're down to the writing. There was not enough tension to sustain my interest. Even her hallucinations (she gets a visit from a few characters - her dead husband, a constantly hungry soldier, etc.) were novelty ideas that wore off fast. I was barely moved by her joy or grief. If stoicism is a product of a narrative, then my disinterest was appropriately justified.
Carlo Catu's "Kung Paano Hinihintay ang Dapithapon" was an interesting watch because it involved a marital dilemma usually discussed among people way under 60 years old. How does the senior population deal with these precarious situations? Is it any different? Do wisdom and calm demeanor figure into the resolution of these predicaments?
For 27 years, Teresa (Perla Bautista) and Celso (Menggie Cobarrubias) have lived a harmonious life together. One fateful day, Teresa gets an unexpected call for help from Benedicto (Dante Rivero). Bene, the husband who abandoned Tere in the past, is afflicted with Glioblastoma, a malignant and aggressive cancer of the brain. Would Tere extend a helping hand? Would Celso allow her to?
With a cast of reliable veterans, the story comes alive as the characters maneuver the slippery slope of past and present relationships. The film also poses a question: Do we still care for persons even if they've hurt us in the past? Bautista, Rivero and Cobarrubias navigate a delectable roundelay that effectively coaxes emotional calisthenics from us. It helped that director Catu judiciously employed this rich atmosphere of nostalgia, I could practically smell regret and yearning from the walls of Bene's ramshackle house.
There are unforgettable moments that define this movie: Teresa admits her true feelings for Bene - and it was sincere and straight-forward, if a bit brutal; and estranged son Chito (Romnick Sarmenta in a short but grippingly intense scene) comes face to face with the father who abandoned them.
Director Iar Lionel Arondaing knows how to present the most ravishing images in his latest movie, "Musmos Na Sumibol sa Gubat ng Digma". The opening scenes alone were eye-poppingly gorgeous; a far cry from his previous entry with Cinemalaya, "Sa Gabing Nananahimik ang mga Kuliglig". Arondaing tackles another revenge story in the form of "rido", the tribal wars that fatally play like a vicious cycle of violence among clans in the south.
In the story, Eshal (Junyka Sigrid Antarin) escapes her burning house with pregnant mother Manahil (Star Orjaliza). But it didn't take long before Manahil delivers her baby on the boat in the middle of a mangrove forest (a stunning shot that drew gasps from the cinema audience). Unfortunately, Eshal's mother bleeds and expires after delivery. Young Eshal, as earlier suggested by Manahil, cuts her hair and pretends to be a boy named Hamed who has to take care of her newborn brother Affan.
The next day, Hamed rescues a boy named Farhan (JM Salvado) who suffers from the same predicament after having escaped from tribal in-fighting. They become fast friends as Farhan helps Hamed take care of the baby. But Hamed noticed the "kufi" (a brimless rounded cap worn by Muslim males) on Farhan's head. Could it be her father's?
While undeniably interesting, "Musmos..." is hobbled by throwaway scenes that would have benefited from judicious editing. In fact, about 20 minutes less would have given it a tighter, more focused story. There were also stilted lines straight out of 9 year old kids: "Nangarap ka na ba minsan?" Huh?
For its music, the film made use of "sufi supplications" (Islamic chanted prayers) playing overtime, disparately garnishing the cinematic canvas, some too distractingly, particularly when the characters were in a conversation. Like his previous movie, some of Arondaing's scenes were too dark to see. We had to guess what was happening.
We can't emphasize enough the relevance of cinema in stating the obvious; i.e. that war is but a folly - and pride unnecessarily creates grief. We need more movies that tackle social ills because they help mirror problems that could be remedied by reflection. Cinema can be such a vessel.
If Sheron Dayoc's similarly themed "Women of the Weeping River" (QCinema Best Film, 2017) was a face-off between wives, "Musmos..." was a matter among children. It is also clear that Dayoc's work is artistically better realized.
#schoolservice #mamang #kungpaanohinihintayangdapithapon #musmosnasumibolsagubatngdigma #cinemalaya2018
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