Sineng Pambansa wrap-up, part 1

This year's Sineng Pambansa prided itself as being the ''All-Masters' Edition'', as it showcased new feature films from some established and acclaimed Filipino filmmakers (some still active, some semi-retired), who made their respective films in their native hometown, as part of the grant given to them by the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP). Of the 9 films shown (discounting 1, as it was not able to see the light of day in the festival), this film junkie was able to see 5. Now, did the films live up to the hype?

Let's see:

''Sonata'' by Peque Gallaga (Hometown setting:Negros Occidental)

This was the first film that I planned to see at the festival, and for a good reason. I had somewhat high expectations from it. From the man who brought to the viewers such groundbreaking films on war (''Oro, Plata, Mata'') and sex (''Scorpio Nights''), and who helped spawn the by-now popular yearly horror franchise ''Shake, Rattle & Roll'' (we must admit that this became a sort of ''testing ground'' for some of our talented and young Filipino film directors, like Topel Lee and Jerrold Tarog), I felt that ''Sonata'' should be one-of-a-kind. Also, it would be great once and for all to see such a top-caliber actress as Cherie Gil in a non-villain role, and a lead role at that (though I sensed that her role in the film would be kind of an ''anti-hero''). Performance-wise, the movie does not disappoint. Ms. Gil is truly a wonder to behold in a challenging role that evokes, both the inner and outer self, the similarly fallen-star characters of Norma Desmond in Billy Wilder's ''Sunset Boulevard'' and Veronika Voss in Rainer Werner Fassbinder's ''The Longing of Veronika Voss''. As the has-been opera diva Regina Cadena, Ms. Gil is both tragic and triumphant, commanding and sympathetic, downtrodden and enchanting in a role that seems to have been written with only her in mind. Now, if only the film itself complements the actress' great talent. No matter how Ms. Gil tries her best to enliven the proceedings with her committed performance, the film just feels dull and static, something that lacks inertia. We were supposed to feel elated when the fallen diva was finally able to make a rousing ''comeback'' on her ancestral house's balcony, but something just did not jibe. We were supposed to be broken into pieces when the young boy who brought the opera star back to ''life'' met a tragic accident, but it just felt cold. Or have we really become as steel-hearted as androids? It might have worked best if the writer and the director opted not to "hold back", allowing their material to be larger-than-life, given the film's life as opera conceit. Too bad, because in the film - as in any other - the directorial tandem of Gallaga and Lore Reyes showed a particular knack for visual and aural aesthetics (the ride along the tracks in the middle of the sugarcane field, the sound of the crickets at night) and offbeat humor (Regina describing her different opera roles to the boy as the latter holds up her posters, the boy and his pal being nicknamed "Don Giovanni" and "Pinkerton" respectively). Too bad, because we thought they could never go wrong with an elegant material like this one. But we still believe that the masters could still regain their touch sometime, somewhere, somehow.

''Otso'' by Elwood Perez (Hometown setting:Sampaloc, Manila)

It played in my mind that, given the film's enigmatic title, black-and-white photography and theme of a writer's block, "Otso" would be an homage to Federico Fellini's masterpiece "8 1/2". It turned out that Elwood Perez had something else in mind, as the film was an altogether different hybrid. On the outset, it is about a scriptwriter (portrayed by theater actor Vince Tanada) who returns to his hometown in Sampaloc to write his new screenplay for an indie film project. However, just nothing comes out of his mind, or the ideas just don't flow creatively. But then, that is just the outset. Because the moment the writer starts to get hold of his laptop (hey, it's not the typewriter anymore;and the writer met his director through FB!), bizaare things start happening one after the other (in the neighborhood as well as in his own mind), including an encounter with the apartment's landlady named Alice Lake who is in fact...Anita Linda! The film is not exactly a David Lynch or an Alejandro Jodorowsky (and definitely it's not a Fellini), but it is still oddball enough to make the viewers wonder what the hell is going on. When was the last time that we encountered a Filipino film of this kind? Probably when Mario O'Hara was still alive and was making films every now and then. In fact, the director is really no stranger to making a bizaare cult piece, with a film like "Silip" way back in the '80s. I sense that "Otso" has been intended to work on a number of levels, but I guess it would spoil the fun of watching the film if we tried to peel its "layers", to make sense of everything that is happening. Let us just say that we are having a dream, and by the end of the dream (the film's end) we are just content with scratching our heads in confusion and bewilderment, whether pleasurably or not, depending on how we took the dream. But I am certain of one thing - Perez should become active in making films again, with the creative block already gone.

"Bahay ng Lagim" by Celso Ad Castillo (Hometown setting:Laguna) 

Running for only a little more than an hour, this one is an odd creature as well. Forgive the sacrilege, but rather than a horror story, I think the film is more of an acid trip. More hallucinogenic than horrifying, I am not quite sure if the director actually intended his film to be viewed by us when under the influence. There's absolutely nothing new in the story - possession and exorcism (hey, haven't we just had "The Conjuring"?) - but it's the look and feel of the film that make it kind of unique. With its "unpolished" look, "slower" than 24 fps movement, heady score, an inventive OBB (which came about 20 minutes into the film, ala-Apitchapong) and an over-the-top performance by Bing Loyzaga as a, uhm, sorceress (?), watching the movie inside the dark and cold theater is like joining a pot session in some discreet hideout. The Kid's swan song may not rank among his best;in fact, it appears to me that he was just having his lazy time here. But still, "Bahay ng Lagim" can be considered as one trippy and psychedelic horror movie. It may not be "The Shining", but the Kid somehow managed to leave us all with a bang.

(Next:''Badil'' and ''Ano ang Kulay ng mga Nakalimutang Pangarap?'')