What is Cinema?

For the past 5 months, we have been blessed with a number of Filipino film festivals that offered Pinoy film lovers a unique and varied movie-watching experience, something not usually felt with mainstream releases. When was the last time that our own filmmakers and film craftsmen had been  this  productive? And majority of these filmmakers were not even considered household names or "veterans" of the industry, with some of them we had only encountered for the first time. If there would be one thing that I would remember 2013 for, it is the good number of Pinoy film fests during the second half of the year, so much so that we barely had time to breathe in-between the separate events. And usually, we didn't really mind the asphyxiation.  As often the case in a film festival, there would be those works that stand out from the rest or, at least, that one considers as his/her favorites. For this film junkie, I would prefer to call it as my "favorite", being su...

Thus ends my journey (6 days altogether) through this year's edition of  Cinema One Originals . Let me say first that I was only able to see 9 (out of the 15) film entries in the festival. The films that I didn't catch (for one reason or another) were:" Iskalawags ", " Blue Bustamante ", " Woman of the Ruins ", " Philippino Story ", " Ang Pagbabalat ng Ahas " and " Shift ". I just felt bad not being able to see these films. Hope to encounter them one of these days.  Now, getting back to those films that this film junkie  did  see. What was so good about the festival was that all the films were really noteworthy, that there was none that could be called as absolute trash. Even those works that could be considered as the weakest had something still going on for them. Examples of the latter are Mes de Guzman's " Sitio " and Kristian Cordero's " Angustia ". De Guzman's home-invasion t...

Last time, I encountered a  Cinema One Originals  movie that nearly achieved the level of a Shakespeare tragedy (" Kabisera "). On my 6th day of the annual film event (now on its 9th year), the film I saw was Adolf Alix, Jr.'s " Alamat ni China Doll ". I did like the past few films that I saw from this director:" Adela ", " Mater Dolorosa " and " Porno ". Each one was a different hybrid altogether, utilizing its own cinematic technique.  Let's find out what his latest work has to offer:  This crime drama was written by Lav Diaz, the guy who gave us the magnificent " Batang West Side ". But rather than demanding one's attention because of the sheer length of the scenes and of the film itself (no, the film runs for just about an hour and a half), it does so because the film jumps timeframes and the title character herself (who is also called under 3 other different names) is such a cryptic figure that she...

My 4th day of  Cinema One Originals  had a brush with characters who were searching or yearning for something (" Saturday Night Chills"  and " Islands "). Now, my 5th day of the fest had me seeing Alfonso Torre III's " Kabisera ". Will this film still be among the number of exceptional works that the film festival has churned out thus far?  Let's take a look:  Of all the films that this film junkie has seen so far in the fest, "Kabisera" is the most neat - that is, one can clearly see, in an orderly sequence, the cause-and-effect chain of events. It's a classic storytelling of how one thing can lead to another, of how one's action can have a consequence. From the moment the fisherman (Joel Torre, in a performance that grabs you by the throat) found the 2 boxes of  shabu  floating on the sea, we see how it vividly branched out into a string of risky and unpleasant events, where greed, betrayal and murder defined the mo...

Just took a 1-day break and I was now into my 4th day of  Cinema One Originals . This time, the films I saw were Ian Lorenos' " Saturday Night Chills " and Whammy Alcazaren's " Islands ". Were these works as heavy-handed as those this film junkie watched on the 3rd day (with films like " Bukas Na Lang Sapagkat Gabi Na " and " Angustia ")? That we'll see:  " Saturday Night Chills "  I'm not sure if it was just me, but while watching the film it felt like the 3 young actors here - Joseph Marco, Matteo Guidicelli and Rayver Cruz - were given free rein by the director to deliver their lines and act out their characters - to improvise, so to speak. It seems that they were in their "comfort zone" to smoke, drink, womanize, horseplay and swear - to be an asshole - throughout the film. And they did all of these things in the film a whole LOT! On the amount of profanity and dirty talk alone, the film rivals th...

My 2nd day of  Cinema One Originals  was characterized by films in which the lives of the protagonists take both a twisty and twisted turn (" Sitio " and " Bendor "). For my 3rd day in the fest, the films I saw this time around were Jet Leyco's " Bukas Na Lang Sapagkat Gabi Na " and " Angustia " by Kristian Cordero. Let's take a shot at these works:  " Bukas Na Lang Sapagkat Gabi Na "  Every now and then, whether in a film festival or in some other film event, there would always be a film that transports us to a unique level of viewing experience, the kind which can be both enriching and riveting, enlightening and devastating. Jet Leyco's film is one such work. Divided into 4 seemingly abstract and unrelated narrative threads (respectively labeled as " Kasalang Pilipino ", " Tunggalian ", " Amang " and " Simula ") and employing a slow-burn avant-garde style that is in more w...

For the 2nd day of my cinematic journey through this year's edition of  Cinema One Originals , I saw Mes de Guzman's " Sitio " and Ralston Jover's " Bendor ". This film junkie's 1st day was marked by a riveting and complex probe into the nature and manifestations of violence in Mindanao, by way of Arnel Mardoquio's " Riddles of My Homecoming ". Let's find out how did the 2nd day go:  Ralston Jover's ''Bendor'':A woman standing up to her fate " Sitio "  Indie  auteur Mes de Guzman's latest work (subtitled as " The Muhon Trilogy ") is an oddball. As a cross between Peckinpah's " Straw Dogs " and Haneke's " Funny Games ", one is tempted to regard it as a specimen of the home-invasion thriller and as yet another thesis against the idyllic and serene nature of countryside living. And yet, there appears to be some bending of the conventions of the genre...

Aside from  Cinemalaya , another long-running and highly-anticipated Filipino independent film festival here in the metropolis is  Cinema One Originals . If the previous editions of the festival featured around 6-10 films, this year the annual event will showcase 15 new works from both first-time and established  indie  Filipino full-length filmmakers. I have long marked my calendar for this film event and now that it has finally arrived, it will now be the start of my cinematic journey (for this fest, that is). Today marks the 1st day of the festival and as a  buena mano , this film junkie saw Arnel Mardoquio's " Riddles of My Homecoming ".  Arnel Mardoquio's "Riddles of My Homecoming":A symbol for violence Let's check out the film:  Mindanao-based filmmaker Arnel Mardoquio's latest work (his 6th during the 6 years that he has been making full-length films - 1 per year - according to the director, who introduced the film during its pre...