Roderick Lindayag's Dito Lang Ako - Shades of Mediocre and Nostalgia

In Nelia's mind, the 70's happened yesterday when the sweet-talking mechanic Delfin started to court her. He would show up where she worked, at a car accessories shop in Timog, and lavish her with attention - and hopia (bean-filled, mooncake-like pastry)! But yesterday happened 40 years ago.

For the hard working lass, Delfin (Jon Lucas) was an enigma. He showered Nelia (Michelle Vito) with affection, but he would disappear for long spells without much of an explanation. Despite all these, Nelia ignored the charming shop owner's son Victor (Akihiro Blanco) with his own romantic agenda. One day, Delfin disappears again. Nelia eventually learns that Delfin is afflicted with leukemia. Nothing short of a miracle can save the strapping lad. As a last resort, Delfin's family decides to take him to the U.S. to seek further medical intervention. Nelia never heard from him again.

As the years pass, an older Nelia (Boots Anson Roa) emerges from the ravages of time. Her memory intermittently takes her back to the tree outside the store where Delfin would usually meet her. She was willing to wait until he comes back again.

There's a certain charm in its basic narrative structure. Nostalgia after all is a delectable cinematic tool that's hard to brush off.

Unfortunately, there's little hint of artistic competence in telling the story. The whole production basically feels like a bad film thesis. It doesn't help that 70% of the scenes has "Blade" staring in your face, and shoving down your gut like an impacted stool.

If product placements were a legitimate practice in movie making, this wasn't the way to go about it. As you leave the cinema, you've overloaded your senses with Blade, and you don't want anything to do with it until you're Nelia's ripe age.

With a decent cast that also includes Freddie Webb, Rey PJ Abellana, DJ Durano, Roadfill, Garie Concepcion, and even James Deakin, the whole effort is a wasted opportunity. Michelle Vito and Jon Lucas are an adorable pair who work hard to make their flimsy excuse of a relationship look believable. Akihiro Blanco was the irrelevant third wheel. His character didn't have much traction. Parang wala lang! Remove him from the story, and it wouldn't make a difference.

Using non-actors, which I presume included owners of the Blade shop, to perform different characters on screen was painful to watch. I'd rather have root canal than endure their stolid or overly dramatic turns. One, in particular, was the actor portraying Delfin's brother - and the surly mother! Another robotic cameo was turned in by the guy portraying Victor's dad who could hardly make his facial muscles move! It was like witnessing how "cogwheel rigidity" looks like - for people with Parkinson's Disease. Like Richard Yap, without the charm!

There were several ideas that could have worked but didn't - like the poetic bantering of Nelia and Delfin, which was short-lived. What horribly written lines! The side stories had shoddy treatment and didn't contribute to the movement of the story (an asthmatic father played by Rey PJ Abellana). It would have made Nelia's story richer and more engaging.

If there was anything barely watchable about the film, it's the music video played at the credits, featuring the spirited cast taking turns singing the radio-friendly "Iisang Pangarap". In the music video, you'd find a relaxed cast monkeying around. Surely, the production didn't scrimp on its actors. And if you want to watch James Deakin shimmy a bit, this is a rare chance. Yes, Mr. Deakin, "the Filipino is worth driving for" - he's made to say it. But don't push it. We did not appreciate your fraternizing with the son of a tyrant who indeed pilfered the country's coffers, and tortured and killed thousands of Filipinos. There.

As for the music video we were talking about, click on the Youtube link below. It's more entertaining than the movie itself.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xtleb-h7RUQ

Kip Oebanda's Liway - Sugarcoating Horrors (Cinemalaya 2018)

Diverse, engrossing, socially relevant, technically well crafted, less artistic pretension. 

This year’s film harvest from Cinemalaya is surprisingly impressive. I was dreading the festival marathon because last year’s entries were mind-numbingly mediocre. They were hard to watch because 4 of them were so darkly lit people had to squint for clarity. That's just for starters. What’s worse, the festival gave awards to the worst offenders. They were even arrogantly unapologetic about it. Why would they apologize, right? There’s a simple answer. But let me not digress. I'd rather discuss this cinematic gem called "Liway".

At the height of Martial Law in the late 70’s, activists Day (Glaiza de Castro) and Ric (Dominic Roco) were apprehended by the military and imprisoned in Camp Delgado alongside criminals and other rebels. 

Day, whose alter ego was Liway in the underground movement, gave birth to her son Dakip (Kenken Nuyad) who was allowed to stay with his parents. Despite the atrocities that were happening in the camp (inmates disappearing without a trace), Liway vowed to shelter her children from the ugly face of incarceration. Sugarcoating the horrors of Martial Law is never an easy task. But how far will a mother go to protect her family?

“Liway” has a straight forward story telling that makes occasional use of flashbacks. The story is easy to follow.

It uses few narrative embellishments. In fact, it practically did away with overbearing sentimentality (which it deserved). 

While some stories are maneuvered to adapt to the cinematic medium, the excoriating details in the film are however veiled by lighter scenes. Truth can sometimes be tweaked as a just excuse for a historical execration, but this isn't the case here.

Emotions aren’t allowed to linger for too long. The brutality of the Marcos regime has obviously been toned down to impart a livable environment that Liway, in her limited capacity, has created for her children. 

Showing the violence of torture as experienced by the inmates would have made a good contrast to the kind of atmosphere Liway wanted Dakip to experience. One cannot gloss over the brutality that transpired because this was one of the essence of the regime's disdain for freedom, and how it imposed an abusive rule to silence dissenting voices. 

In a truly enlightened society, no single soul should justify violations of human rights. But in an ailing society, revising a murky past is becoming common place, which is an insult to those who suffered and perished during that era. These days, such revisionism is gradually unraveling. This is why movies like "Liway" and "ML" serve their purpose in propagating historical truths. These events happened to real people.

There were few scenes within the narrative that hooked me. In a wistful scene, Liway is shown strumming her guitar and singing Lolita Carbon’s “Pagbabalik”. This sent shivers down my spine. It's clear to me how the evils of a 30-year-old history is gradually gaining ground in contemporary society. I have nothing but pity for this country, and contempt to the people who enable this. What do wise men say about people who don’t learn from history?

 

Based on a true story set during one of the country’s darkest era, the film hits you when you least expect it. I shall refrain from divulging too much detail, but people were crying buckets as the credits rolled. I had to rush to the toilet thereafter to give myself a good cry. Make no mistake, the film is hardly structured in melodrama. There’s not a lot of caterwauling in the movie either, but it had an uncanny approach of breaking your heart. “Liway” was my 9^th film so I didn’t expect too much from it. Guess what? The best surprises are those you don’t anticipate.

Oebanda serves up a polished cinematic ouvre that will define his cinema in the years to come. It helps that the story he tells is close to home. Revealing a personal story is reliving a past. That can't be easy. But by doing so, Oebanda shows skills that will help him evolve into a greater storyteller in the future. 

It wasn't always like this. I remember watching his first commercially released film, “Tumbang Preso”. After posting what I thought about it, I received half a dozen vicious mails from anonymous trolls.  Not Oebanda, I presume. But you see, such is the nature of film appreciation. It’s a subjective experience for each viewer. 

The succeeding years were promising. “Nay” wasn’t particularly fetching. Last year’s “Bar Boys” was among my 10 favorites. Look how far Oebanda has come. I look forward to watching his next projects. In a bumper crop year where most festival entries are watchable, “Liway” is among my top choices.

Ysabelle Peach's "Jacqueline Comes Home" - Rousing the Dead and the Incarcerated

Michael Collins' "Give Up Tomorrow" was a compelling investigative documentary about Cebu's most talked about rape-murder case that sent 7 men to jail. Though considered closed, the case continues to keep tongues wagging. After all, there were believable witnesses who swore by Paco Larranaga's alibi at the time of the murder. Unless he had the ability to bilocate, Paco actually attended his culinary class in Manila for his midterm exams - and there were even photos from a get-together in a bar later that night. How could he lead the abduction and rape of sisters Marijoy and Jackie Chiong? Marijoy's body was found lifeless at the bottom of a ravine in Carcar, south of Cebu City. Jackie remains missing. This was 21 years ago.

It's hard to discredit the artistic savvy of "Give Up Tomorrow". It was one of that year's best films. But there were parts we found a bit off. First, it was produced by people close to Larranaga, a great grandchild of a former Philippine President. The element of bias was indisputably possible. Second, they demonized Mrs. Chiong who, need I remind everyone, lost 2 daughters! She was expected to fight tooth and nails to seek justice.

However, you only have to watch a 5 minute Youtube video of Paco's former classmates and teacher talking about Paco's whereabouts on that fateful day in July 1997 to make easy conclusions about the case. Well, Paco was convicted and eventually sent to Spain to serve his sentence; he's Filipino-Spanish. But if he were really innocent, shouldn't we be concerned about the perpetration of injustice? There's something disquieting about Paco's incarceration. Bottom line: no one won from this high profile case. Marijoy is dead. Jackie is still missing. Families continue to grieve. Paco is serving prison in Spain. So do 6 of Paco's friends.

With all these in mind, I was curious how director Ysabelle Peach, Carlo Caparas' daughter, would contribute to the retelling of a story, It would be told from the point of view of Mrs. Chiong (played by Alma Moreno). The screenplay was written by Carlo Caparas who isn't done with those grueling "massacre movies" of the 90's.

In true Caparas fashion, "Jacqueline Comes Home" is overwrought, messy, exploitative and devoid of sensitivity or insight. While Meg Imperial, playing Jackie, breezed through her scenes with a certain commitment and charm, Donnalyn Bartolome, as campus beauty Marijoy, was shrill and cringe-worthy. I wanted a duct tape covering her buccal cavity. And all her cavities for that matter.

The movie is weighed down by a muddled nonlinear storytelling. It didn't help that the suspects were depicted like one-dimensional characters, channeling Paquito Diaz and Max Alvarado of the 70's. The chronicle is populated by cardboard characters that fit into predictable stereotypes with absolutely no redeeming values at all. Even the staging of their scenes was awkwardly familiar - the sneers and jeers, the unkempt persona, the leering gazes, their congregation, etc. Paco and his gang were evil. The Chiongs were innocent and saintly. There were no gray areas in between.

Surprisingly, the story carried the names of the Chiongs: Jackie (Meg Imperial), Marijoy (Donnalyn Bartolome), Thelma Chiong (Alma Moreno), Dionisio Chiong (Joel Torre), and siblings Dennis, Bruce and Debby. The baddies however were renamed: Ryan Eigenmann was Sonny; hammy newbie CJ Caparas was Jeff, and so on. AJ Muhlach was bad so let's forget he's even here. There's no mistaking though who they represented. 

That being said, after the first 30 minutes of this movie's tragically dated film making style, I started getting restless. Caparas was clear in his discretionary exposition who the perpetrators were. There's no narrative window of doubt. The story completely ignored the defense's alibi. They could have pointed that out and countered with an irrefutable proof otherwise. They wanted to point a finger indubitably.

Selfie with God

There were elements worthy of comedy, like questers summoning Jackie. I had to giggle when God suddenly appeared before Thelma and spoke! Seriously! I wanted to snap a photo and send to Malacanang. This was proof of God's selfie with Thelma Chiong. He-who-shall-not-be-named would repent and become a priest, debah? I'd even volunter to send him 23 truckloads of Bactidol full-strength solution to clean his filthy mouth. That's me being nationalistic.

I had flashbacks of Andi Eigenmann playing Hilda Koronel's role in the remake of "Angela Markado" (2015), I was mentally scarred by that movie. I had post-traumatic nightmares that Eigenmann would win a Famas because, in the real world, horrendous performances always win Famas trophies. Guess what? Andi won. You better believe it. I wore a turban and wrinkled face the whole week after her win. I was Madam Auring.

And if I have to re-state the exasperated guy who walked out from the movie: "Ampanget!"

Amateur Hour at the Cinemalaya 2017 - Let There Be Light - Please!

This year, nine films brave to navigate the cinematic dark waters for this year’s Cinemalaya film festival. By “dark”, we’re imputing cinematic theme – and technical proficiency or the lack of it.

There’s illiteracy and terrorism (Perry Escano’s “Ang Guro Kong Di Marunong Magbasa”); a child’s loneliness (Thop Nazareno’s “Kiko Boksingero”); abuse and the government’s lack of empathy for its foreign workers (Zig Dulay’s “Bagahe”); murder and infidelity in a small town (Iar Arondaing’s “Sa Gabing Nananahimik ang mga Kuliglig” and Sonny Calvento’s “Nabubulok”); superstition and drug smuggling in a fishing village (Joseph Israel Laban’s “Baconaua”); obscure definitions of a relationship (Nerissa Picadizo’s “Requited”); artistic struggles in the squalor amidst extra judicial killings (Alberto Monteras II’s “Respeto”) and false hopes and urban legends (Mes De Guzman’s “Ang Pamilyang Hindi Lumuluha”).

Despite the provocative plots, there’s scanty good news to be shared from my end. In fact, this was one of the most challenging set of entries I had to endure to watch. I am, in fact, trying to remember the last time it was this bad. But I am getting ahead of myself.

OVERBEARING DARKNESS

Poor production values, pedestrian direction, clunky writing, cluttered exposition, miscasting and overwrought performances hobble the entries. One common characteristic is darkness. While I understand the preponderancy of atmosphere and dimly lit scenography, it’s a different matter altogether when the silver screen is but a patch of black. One geriatric viewer had to remark: “Wala akong makita”. No, lola, it isn’t your cataract nor your macular degeneration. It’s the film you’re watching.  I’m not talking about a single title. There were several: “Baconaua” leads the guilty parties. Wouldn’t it have been appealing if we actually recognized the color “red” when the sea turned bloody? 

Here’s a trivia about colors: you need light to distinguish them! Isn't the concept basic in photography (cinematography)? When the sea spits apples, and all you find are silhouettes, you’re doing the audience a disservice. From my seat, the apples looked like mounds of excreta! The same affliction characterized “Sa Gabing…” and portions of “Nabubulok”. “Maybe they’re experimental?” quipped one hopeful viewer, I had to laugh in my dark corner.

BACK TO SQUARE ONE

In the early days of the Cinemalaya, the audience were patient of such film-making gaffes. But, boy oh boy, that was more than 10 years ago. There’s been tremendous advancement in technology, and indies aren’t two-bit artistic inventions anymore. Or are we back to square one?

Let’s take Perry Escano’s “Ang Guro Kong Di Marunong Magbasa”, about a farmer who’s tasked to takeover teaching duties at a remote grade school in Muslim Mindanao. Here’s the clincher: Aaquil (Alfred Vargas) is himself illiterate and doesn’t have the foggiest about his three R’s. 

While undeniably an interesting concept, the film is clunky at best, the performances abominable, particularly from Vargas who’s too well scrubbed and healthy to represent a marginalized sector of the countryside. This is a curiosity because we’ve always considered Vargas an adequate performer. In this movie however, Vargas’ demeanor is reduced to being “pa-cute” and juvenile. And don’t let him scamper for his life by dodging bullets. Five paces later, he’s breathless. The scenes are awkwardly blocked, you feel like watching an old flick in Piling Piling Pelikula. Mostly, they are turgid and amateurish. Is this a Cinemalaya film we’re watching? I had to ask myself. In the end, the whole narrative conceit is as fraudulent as the ineptitude of the movie’s general direction. Who read this script and thought this was festival-grade? Aren’t there quality-control measures to assure the inclusion of legitimate film makers?

Sonny Calvento’s “Nabubulok” follows the train of events after the disappearance of Luna, wife of Jason and mother of three, after her cousin Ingrid (Gina Alajar) starts sniffing around. The story takes the tedious and impudent style reminiscent of Carlo J. Caparas. In fact, every character is suspicious or annoying. Each scene screams the obvious. So much for elements such as foreshadowing. It could have benefited from Gina Alajar’s erstwhile astute dramatic insight. Alajar remains to be one of the industry’s best actresses of all time. Unfortunately, time has rendered Alajar shrill and irritating. When she eventually delivers her “Tang ina nila” line (uttered thrice) in bravura look-at-me-I’m-acting moment, I was awash with regret. How has passing time reduced Alajar to sheer mediocrity. 

The movie likewise fails to make use of promising Jameson Blake and the ubiquitous JC Santos. There were several conspicuous lapses in the story. A farmer inadvertently witnesses the unplanned burial in the dark night. The American patriarch is buying cement at the hardware shop. Ingrid and the neighborhood smell the overpowering stench of a rotting carcass in the household premises. Are you following this? Wasn’t Luna’s body buried in the fields? What was rotting away inside the house? Were there multiple bodies worth checking out? Where was cement used? At the farm? Sometime in the story, police officers suddenly arrive at the scene bearing a search warrant. Right away? Instant warrant, you blink and it’s there. As I’ve mentioned earlier, this takes Carlo J. Caparas’ storytelling sensibilities!

Employing the backdrop of a religious festivity (ho-hum!), Iar Arondaing’s provocatively titled “Sa Gabing Nananahimik ang mga Kuliglig” is a whodunit piece that involves two murders and spotlights the comeuppance of perfidy. 

Madga (Angel Aquino) confesses to Father Mike (Jake Macapagal) the murder of her friend Dolores (Mercedes Cabral), her husband Victor’s mistress. On the same night, Victor (Mark Dionisio) is found bludgeoned to death. Hector (Ricky Davao), Magda’s husband, is then arrested for the crime. Unfortunately, Father Mike is bound to the seal of the confessional. What to do?

The film is hampered by borderline production values, as the story interposes the unraveling events with religious chants and the ensuing festivities. Most of them seem disconnected to the moving picture taking place before you. It’s like hearing Manny Pacquiao quote another biblical passage and realize that something is amiss in the silly exercise. In the first hour alone, scenes successively show Angel Aquino navigate the darkness: at the bathroom, in the kitchen, then inside the bedroom while she gets dolled up! We are baffled by the perversion of darkness to frame a more urgent story that needed telling. If this isn’t a case of style trumping substance, I don’t know what is. 

Direction, camera work, lighting (or the lack of it) are just baffling, if not stifling. All these atmospheric scenarios muddle an already-messy story. Moreover, there are grave flaws in the artistic choices: Jess Mendoza, looking like he’s fathered 5 already, plays the subservient son of Mercedes Cabral? Seriously? Is this suspension of disbelief? I had to tap my heels silly to knock me some patience in the midst of the film’s inanity.

“Matt and I has separate rooms.” (wink wink)

I heard the loudest chorus of chuckles as Nerissa Picadizo’s “Requited” drew to a close. The road movie, reminiscent of Ellen Ongkeko-Marfil’s “Lakbay2Love”, has less drone shots and a lot more verbal scuttle between its two characters: Matt (Jake Cuenca) and Sandy (Anna Luna). Matt is afflicted with alopecia. Errr. No, something else that’s more lethal, thus he embarks on a journey from Manila to Mount Pinatubo to end it all. But shrill Sandy, the once-popular volleyball star, decides to tag along to “not define” her relationship with the unemployed architect.

“Ang relikang yan ay galing doon.” 

(Baybayin at bigyang kahulugan ang salitang “relika”.)

Let’s just say that when the suicidal loverboy pushes his mi amor down the cliff, then walks away while we see her abdomen heaving for air, we couldn’t help but suspect that this wasn’t a romantic drama after all. Picadizo apparently confuses her genre every so often. She eventually allows her protagonist to walk away, as though catharsis is to be had once he buries the love of his life. 

Too bad – because Jake Cuenca seems to have invested his heart and soul to breathe life to Matt. Cuenca is one of this festival’s most committed performers. (And listen, I’m trying to “unsee” Matt pleasuring himself among the rocks as final homage to his requited love.) Now tell me: what keeps people from committing to each other if their affections were mutual? This movie does not have the answer. Go fish elsewhere. Hah!

Joseph Israel Laban’s “Baconaua” auspiciously starts out with riveting scenes by the shore. 

It has been 90 days since Divina’s (Elora Espano) fisherman father got lost at sea. People believe that a sea serpent (“bakunawa” – a mythical sea dragon believed by old folks in the Visayas region to devour moons thus causing eclipses) has taken him away. Soon thereafter, the sea turns red. Supposedly. The screen was almost in pitch darkness to appreciate this,

Shall I then bestow it with a special award: Dark Picture Award. This movie takes the cake. However, this isn’t the only issue dragging the movie down. Not only are there expendable biblical references (apples wash ashore, a serpent crawl through the mangrove), numerous narrative elements sloppily pile up: an illegal Chinese alien (whose face you can’t even see), drug trafficking, military operations against terrorists; an unlikely romantic triangle; and, yes, a sea monster that selectively chooses his victims. The latter even sounds like Nessie of the Scottish Highlands. Gather these elements and you have one ambitious, but blotchy yarn. 

The film reminds me of Kristian Cordero's "Hinulid" (starring Nora Aunor). In it, the director floods his narrative with a thousand-and-one quotations from so many references. You suspect he has 3 dozens of encyclopedias full of philosophical, biblical and scientific sayings. I just cringe. Laban tries to inject numerous disparate elements to spice up his cinematic palette. Mas maraming sahog, mas masarap, debah? Tee hee.

The good thing about this film: you can finally use your imagination to try to make out what’s on your screen. It’s a good cognitive practice, if you ask me. It's like closing your eyes and allowing your mind to soar. But in this film, your eyes are wide open as you stare at a Cimmerian shade of celluloid. Just a thought here - the director will probably be able to tell a more focused tale if there's a little more light? .

The festival's most irritating performance.

Zig Dulay’s “Bagahe” feels like masochism-porn the way Mercy (Angeli Bayani) handles her sticky situation. 

The 35-year-old OFW was caught leaving a newborn child on her flight back home from overseas employment. A high profile investigation soon follows with every political personality wanting a piece of the limelight, including a Social Welfare secretary, a senator, the media, the NBI, the church and her family from Kapangan, Benguet. Her demeanor leaves much to be desired in the ensuing circus.

PAINFULLY PASSIVE

Dulay’s script, usually engrossing and insightful in previous works, is a sloppy parody of the OFW distress story. Each personality is written like cardboard characters. It doesn’t help that Bayani’s portrayal is painfully passive, you feel the unease of being manipulated into sympathizing with her. There’s something pretentious, even deceptive, in her depiction of the ultimate victim. If you’re easily bamboozled by woeful facies, you’d proclaim her queen of the cinematic ball. Kumbaga, nang uuto! For me, hers was one of the festival’s most irritating turns.

Alberto Monteras II’ s “Respeto” is this festivals most technically accomplished entry. It is insightfully casted and cleverly crafted by Monteras who, prior to this, has been directing hundreds of music videos. 

Set in a chaotic urban neighborhood, amateur rapper Hendrix (Abra) crosses paths with reclusive poet Doc Fortunato Reyes (Dido de la Paz) when the former decides to rob the old gentleman’s book shop. Thrown together by circumstance, the two start a mentor-protégé relationship, one that would soon get tested by the spate of killings happening around town. 

Rapper Abra turns in a more-than-decent performance worthy of, at the very least, a citation. He will give Jake Cuenca a tight fight in the lead actor category, though, in my book, Cuenca delivered the more substantial and consistent performance. Dela Paz’s poetic number at the rap competition was amusing. It was also awkward, misplaced and rough around the edges. Nevertheless, dela Paz gives his career-best in “Respeto”.

Thop Nazareno’s “Kiko Boksingero” tells the story of Kiko (Noel Comia Jr.), a lonely 11 year old boy who pines for the affection of his father. After the demise of his mother, the young boy is left under the care of his nanny (Yayo Aguila). One day, George (Yul Servo) shows up at the empty apartment that Kiko frequently visits. Kiko's life is never the same.

The cool temperatures of Baguio adroitly frames the young protagonist’s longings in a story affectionately told. This bittersweet tale demonstrates that you don’t need a lengthy exposition to tell a good story. Nor does one require loud bickering or convoluted plot to engage your audience. The movie is a calm emotional discourse about grief and the ties that bind. Servo is charismatic as the former boxer who welcomes his most loyal fan in his temporary home. Yayo Aguila is an affectionate presence. Young Noel Comia Jr. is perfectly cast as the hopeful boy who forges a relationship with his noncommittal father.

"Kiko..." is a balm of hope and inspiration. It mirrors kindness and affection in a world that has embraced discord and indifference. If your idea of cinema is one that lifts your sagging spirit, look no further. This is the perfect vehicle.

The festivals’ most charming entry is Mes de Guzman’s “Ang Pamilyang Hindi Lumuluha” which stars Megastar Sharon Cuneta who’s aptly back in the indie scene after the whimsical comedy “Crying Ladies” (2003). What’s with Cuneta and “crying”? But I'm not complaining. The movie is a departure from one of my favorite indie directors' style who’s known for his glacially-paced introspective dramas usually set in the back roads of small towns. Pamilya takes place in Laguna.

In the story, Cora dela Cruz (Cuneta) is a former broadcast journalist wallowing in the doldrum of her solitary life. She has lost everyone important to her, including her husband (Richard Quan), her children (Michelle Vito and Philip Olayvar) and even her career. With the help of her oftentimes-discombobulated maid Bebang (the irrepressible Moi Bien), Cora hires the services of Biboy (Nino Muhlach) to find the mythical “Family that Doesn’t Weep”. The family of four is an urban legend believed to bring back lost object or person – for a fee, of course. Cora’s dilemma isn’t an easy one. Moreover, she's just too desperate to doubt. She has pinned her hopes up on this strange family. Cora's penultimate journey abruptly ceases when fate swerves to a dead end. Her desperation almost kills her, as she eventually ends up at the emergency room.

Cora’s story is a cautionary tale about hope and deliverance. Happiness and success aren’t attained by subscribing to superstition nor should they be dependent on the mere presence of others. Sometimes, our contentment is defined by what we think we need when, in truth, happiness could be had with so much less. 

VEERING AWAY FROM EASY

A story like Cora's is fodder for maudlin caterwauling, but De Guzman decides to take an unexpectedly light approach to tell his story. "Drama" would have easily benefited Cuneta more, but the narrative path veers away from inexorable sentimentality. If anything, this artistic choice is fortuitous. After all, both De Guzman and Cuneta more familiarly tread the dramatic genre. Comedy, then, becomes an "extraordinary" choice. In this respect, we applaud De Guzman more than ever - and can't wait for his next film. 

I initially didn't expect a lot from the movie after watching some scenes from the trailer; none of which made it in the final cut. 

But such is the joy of unexpected surprises. The movie is funny, but ultimately heart breaking. It’s probably inappropriate to say that this vehicle is a return to form for the iconic actress. After all, she isn’t known for quirky comedies (Wenn Deramas’ “BFF” notwithstanding). Cuneta is treading unfamiliar waters. There are awkward moments of improvs, but Cuneta’s character is completely delineated and bravely depicted. This is a comeback of sorts for Cuneta whose last cinematic foray was Joel Lamangan’s “Mano Po: A Mother’s Love” eight long years ago. There were SRO crowds in the two screenings we've managed to catch (long story!), but this was expected, considering she’s the only stellar name in the current festival. 

Thank God for the few good movies. This has been a challenging experience at a Cinemalaya festival. There were moments that felt like self-flagellation, to be honest. But watching “Pamilya…”, “Kiko Boksingero” and “Respeto” made the whole drill worth the time I invested.

Honor Roll

To cap this post, here is our honor list for this festival:

Best Picture: Alberto Monteras II’s “Respeto”

Best Actor in a Leading Role: Jake Cuenca (“Requited”)

Best Actress in a Leading Role: Sharon Cuneta (“Ang Pamilyang Hindi Lumuluha”)

Best Actor in a Supporting Role: Dido dela Paz (“Respeto”)

Best Actress in a Supporting Role:  Chai Fonacier (“Respeto”)

Best Director: Alberto Monteras II (“Respeto”)  

SHORT FILMS

As an addendum, the shorts fielded this year were quite impressive. Their directors displayed more technical proficiency than many of the main features’ megmen. Carl Adrian Chavez’s “Sorry for the Inconvenience” told a complete tale of vengeance and the lopsided face of justice. Ronwaldo Martin is engrossing as the perennially bullied student. Karl Glenn Barit’s “Aliens Yata” is viewed above ground (drone) so the perspective is ground-breakingly alienating, but nevertheless fresh and provocative. Juan Karlo Tarobal’s “Islabodan (Free Men)” is told through multiple frames (as though watching a comic book) about warring gangs. Though the technique used is occasionally disorienting, you can’t deny the dynamism of such storytelling. E del Mundo’s “Manong ng Pa-aling” is told (mostly) underwater. How's that for new perspectives?

The visual techniques employed are varied, adequately using them to move their stories. On the whole, it’s important to remember that no cinematic element is more important than the story itself. On his diatribe about film school, celluloid maverick Werner Herzog once remarked, “Academia kills the cinema.” It is important to hone one's story telling acumen. Otherwise, technical proficiency will not amount to much.  

#cinemalaya2017

Lav Diaz's "Ang Araw Bago ang Wakas" - Up For Interpretation

“In the year 2050, the Philippines braces for the coming of the fiercest storm ever to hit the country. And as the wind and waters start to rage, poets wander the streets.” So goes the blurb for Lav Diaz’s 17-minute short film.

My mind raced back to Dodo Dayao's "Violator" for wasn't the tale set in the midst of a raging storm? The film opens without hint of the future so without the blurb, it could have happened today. 

A mangy dog scavenges the streets of Evangelista (either in Quiapo or in Pavia, Iloilo). A dentist does prophylaxis on the patient. A waiter tends to the customers of a restaurant. A student slouches on a thick book.Despite the warnings, it's just another day in the lives of the people.

Elsewhere, a man starts reciting the third act of Shakespeare's "Hamlet":  "To be, or not to be, that is the question: Whether 'tis Nobler in the mind to suffer. The Slings and Arrows of outrageous Fortune, Or to take Arms against a Sea of troubles, And by opposing end them: to die, to sleep." In steady succession, the poetry goes on: Ophelia (Hamlet's potential wife) comes into the picture. A girl (Hazel Orencio) marches into the scene, sits on a bench and bewails the difficulty she's having: "Kung anu-anong pinagagawa ng director." You'd hear her say. A commentary maybe about the film making process not being a walk in the park?

There's a steel work nearby, and as the night falls, Shakespeare turns... Ilocano? The same girl then recites Mark Antony's speech (Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar") before the market crowd who's mostly oblivious to her ramblings. It felt like Moses warning her brethren about an impending catastrophe. But in the midst of different dialects (yes, dialects, not "languages", excuse me), the exercise is lost in the most unlikely trumpeteers of doom. 

Then the rains come in torrents. Soon, the streets fill with flood. The girl scampers for home, but a shadowy figure follows her. Is the devil trailing her? 

Lav Diaz's short film is a series of seemingly unrelated narrative strings with a "lot" of missing strains thus it's hard to make sense of them. The images are prepossessing. There's the skewed horizon we've grown accustomed to from Diaz's "Mula sa Kung Ano ang Noon" (2014) and the proclivity to offer no explanation. The concluding scenes particularly baffles: From the very wet exteriors, the camera takes us inside a very dry room - well-lighted, and more importantly unimpaired by the cataclysm outside. Then it zooms in on a moth! Voice over: "He arrives silently bringing with him color; and life."  

Though not particularly a satisfying experience, "Ang Araw Bago ang Wakas" (The Day Before the End) is a thought-provoking tale employing incongruent images. It could be a discourse about heeding warnings or the role of destruction to bring forth new life - or both. Wouldn't you be interested in Lav's thoughts on this film (because questions beg to be asked)?

The blurb isn't very appropriate though. The "poets" start to wander the streets before "the wind and waters start to rage". It won the principal prize at the 62nd International Short Film Festival in Oberhausen, Germany last May this year.

Lav Diaz is finally appreciated in his homeland; something that we've wished for him even before he became prominent abroad. His films have found an audience among Filipinos. Who would have thought that "Hele sa Hiwagang Hapis" would get SRO screenings when it opened here? For someone who doesn't believe in lengthy expositions, I love his films. Diaz is a genre all his own. I've seen most of his films. I even like him as an actor, last seen in "Singing in Graveyards". Let's just hope he gets his horizons straight next time. Tee hee. 


#angarawbagoangwakas   #lavdiaz   #shortfilm   #hazelorencio

Ian Loreno's "Chinoy Mano Po 7" - The Inevitable Formula

We don't have a problem with the "Mano Po" anthology because it usually presents different and valid concerns associated with the Filipino-Chinese population in contemporary Philippine society. Theirs are stories we've always been fascinated with because they're a clannish lot that strictly adheres to colorful traditions we're interested spectators of. We even become players in their folktales sometimes.

STORY

Business tycoon Wilson Wong (Richard Yap) runs a tight and disciplined ship, both at work and in his household. He has rules and tradition that allow him to set and achieve goals - and he expects everyone around him to abide by these, including his children Wilson Jr. (Enchong Dee), Katkat (Janna Agoncillo) and Caroline (Janella Salvador). Unfortunately, rules are easier written and enumerated than followed. His children detest that he hardly has time to spend with them. Deborah (Jean Garcia), his subservient wife, feels lonely in a relationship that's more of a bootcamp than household.  

What seems like a progressive kingdom is actually an emotional prison full of weeping souls. Sonson (Dee) has his head in the clouds from booze and drugs. Carol tries to pursue cello playing (her father's choice) when her heart is in vocal performance. 

Devoted wife Debbie is running a jewelry shop and keeping the household together while Wilson Sr. is closing deals. 

It isn't a very contented and happy kingdom, to say the least, and the king is least aware of this. When a charming stranger Marco (Jake Cuenca) barges into Debbie's shop, the latter doesn't mind the attention that the strapping lad showers on her. But is Debbie carrying an affair? 

Director Ian Lorenos' "Chinoy Mano Po 7" is an engaging drama that tries to build up the characters of his cinematic canvas with circumscpect cerebration so we actually understand their back stories and motivations. Enchong Dee particularly sizzles from this forethought. In "Mano Po 7", Dee is the troubled son bearing enough ethos for the whole Wong family. He takes his situation and reacts, and we are a bit unsettled. He pulls off his party pooper scene adequately. In his moments with Jocelyn (Jessy Mendiola), they get to discuss the Chinese ways, i.e. the use of negative language to coax motivation or express affection, but does the "movement" really come from Confucius? I'd have thought that the philosopher was more circumscpect than to use negative psychology in motivating people. 

Kong Fu Tse (551 BC - 497 BC), the philosopher's non-Westernized name, built up his idea about the strength of the Chinese family. What is the proper attitude towards parents? His answer is short and straight forward: "Never disobey." In the 4th concept of Confucianism - filial piety (hsiao), a lot is written about family values: Parents are revered because they are the source of your life. It also says that you have to make your family name known and respected. But there is an unanswered question with regards to the hsiao: "What do you do if your values are different from your parents"? There's a general rule to live by: to "remain unsoured even though one's merits are unrecognized by others." (Analects) This gives authority to the philosopher's advice about never turning bad or selling out, no matter what. It is a rather universal concept, right? 

Jean Garcia turns in a well limned and sympathetic portrayal of a painfully subservient wife. At one point, she arrives into the conjugal bed and starts her romantic overture, only to be rebuffed and told that she had to "clean up first before stepping on the bed." Ouch. Did she smell? Even romance follows a set of decorum? Hmmm. I am almost sure that this isn't a universal practice among Chinoys. Wilson Sr. is a flawed individual altogether, a Shakespearean character that deserves to be extinguished from the face of the Earth. How can you admit loving the people around you when you're so insensitive to their needs? 

Meanwhile, in the midst of the melodrama, Janella Salvador is a breath of fresh air. Her presence lights up the screen, particularly when Marlo Mortel joins her scenes. Her side story involving Kian Cipriano's lecherous music teacher is a misplaced narrative strain. But didn't it merit a considerable reaction from Wilson? His daughter got sexually harassed, for Pete's sake. NR lang?

EXTRAMARITAL

I am somehow concerned about Garcia's "relationship" with volatile Jake Cuenca. Was that really harmless friendship? Though she swears that nothing transpired between them - "walang nangyari sa amin", her frequent meet ups with Marco were "extramarital" enough and disconcerting. A married woman, after all, shouldn't go on intimate car dates with a single man, debah? Unless she plans to do an Angelica Panganiban (and be an unmarried wife), that is.

The narrative convolutions in "Mano Po 7" are engaging enough, but it is nevertheless formulaic and unfortunately, predictable. There's gorgeous photography all over. Sound needs moderation because music is excessively played in some scenes. When louder than what human ears can take, music is nothing but noise. In one party scene, it was so loud it almost challenged the integrity of my tympanic membrane How can a very loud music help move a story, I wonder. 

Now, is this really the best of the anthology? Not really. For the most part, we feel it's an inferior version among the Mano Po tales. Film no. 7 is less ambitious. Heck, even its requisite travel scenes could only afford to take the cast to Taipei instead of mainland China. If its story telling is not "revolutionized" in the succeeding "episodes", this anthology will eventually lose its relevance. 

HAND IN GLOVE

But wait? How is Richard Yap in the film? While he fits the role like hand in glove, the actor conveniently subscribes to his go-to "laging galit" acting schtick. We've seen him in similar persona before, in other teleseryes and movies. Nothing changes much here. No revelations. Even when he turns conciliatory with his wife, I feel Yap's performance was one-note; no emotional variation to speak of. When he sheds a tear (while at the tomb of his stern father), it was screaming for a bit more vulnerability. Most people easily break down the barriers when they're on their own. But Yap was as stern as when he's with others. Is that consistency - or just limitation of capability? The good looking actor wasn't bad, but his performance was nothing to crow about either.  

Janella Salvador is Caroline.

Enchong Dee and Jessy Mendiola discuss Confucius and negative motivations.

Jean Garcia is in top form as the suffering wife Deborah Wong.

Taiwan, this time.

Down time and the music class of Janella, Marlo and Kian.

#manopo7   #chinoy   #richardyap   #janellasalvador   #jeangarcia   #enchongdee   #jakecuenca   #jessymendiola   #ianlorenos