What is Cinema?

After the Danish and German film festivals, the Italians followed suit with their own fest this month (Nov. 14-18). Italian cinema will always be associated with Neo-Realism, Federico Fellini, Michelangelo Antonioni, Luchino Visconti, Pier Paolo Pasolini, Marcello Mastroianni and Sophia Loren. Italy is also a host to one of the "Big Three" of international film festivals: the Venezia, some of whose films were featured in the 4-day event. " Red Desert " (1964) by Michelangelo Antonioni: Antonioni's first color film is one of the most studied and influential works in cinema history (see, for example, Todd Haynes' " Safe "). Even after repeated viewings, one feels that the film still hasn't revealed enough of itself. It's like the mysteries of the film are really as unfathomable as the deep blue ocean or the distant wide outer space. "Red Desert" marks the first collaboration between Antonioni and cinematographer Carlo Di Palma,...

As if last month's C1 Originals and QCinema were not enough, a number of international film festivals this November would still keep Filipino cineastes on their toes in order to satisfy their filmic cravings. Among these festivals were the Danish Film Festival and the German Film Week, both held from November 8 to 11. Danish cinema introduced us to the works of Carl Theodor Dreyer, Lars von Trier, Susanne Bier and Thomas Vinterberg, among others. While German cinema witnessed the birth of such legendary film movements as Expressionism and New German Cinema. " Land of Mine " (2015, Denmark) by Martin Zandvliet: The film doesn't blink an eye in its depiction of the cruelties of post-World War 2. But more than the physical level, "Land of Mine" is likewise uncomfortable on a moral level. The title alone posits a dual connotation. On the one hand, it refers to the northern sea coast in Denmark where hundreds of dangerous mines were buried by the German forc...

Here are a few more international films that I was able to watch in the recently-concluded QCinema International Film Festival (Oct. 21-30). " A Land Imagined " (2018, Singapore) by Yeo Siew Hua (Asian Next Wave): The director's bold ambition in the film must have been what caught the attention of the competition jury (presided by Chinese auteur Jia Zhangke) in this year's Locarno festival that led to the film being awarded the Golden Leopard. While being guised under the noir genre, the director not only puts light on the sub-standard migrant labor conditions in his country, but also brings into question the identity of Singapore itself. A Chinese migrant worker at a land reclamation site suddenly goes missing and a native, world-weary police-detective has been tasked to investigate the disappearance. It's a set-up we've already seen one too many in films. But the director has a different thing on his mind. He doesn't even intend to solve the mystery...

QCinema International Film Festival has already become a much-awaited yearly event for Filipino cineastes due to its heavyweight world cinema lineup. This year, which marks the festival's 6th edition (in 2013, there were only three Filipino film entries), is no different, offering a roster of films that premiered in Berlin, Cannes, Venice, Locarno and others. Attending the festival is really a dreamland for those who take their love for cinema seriously. Here are some of the international films that I was able to watch during the festival run (Oct. 21-30). " Malila: The Farewell Flower " (2017, Thailand) by Anucha Boonyawatana (Asian Next Wave): Man's confrontation with his mortality hovers in this tale of a young farmer who returns to his hometown to care for his cancer-stricken former lover. As much as the latter is suffering from a physical ailment, so is the former - though his ailment is more of an emotional/spiritual kind. In that he carries the burden of g...

The 2018 edition of C1 Originals just recently wrapped up, showcasing new Filipino films and some acclaimed recent works of world cinema. The festival's slogan for this year goes as: "I Am Original". Which, needless to say, should reflect on each of the entries' theme, story and style. Of the nine (9) competition entries, I was able to see five (5). Let's take a brief look. " Mamu; And a Mother Too " by Rod Singh: The film tells the story of a resourceful and hardworking transgender woman (Iyah Mina, terrific) who takes her nephew (also gay) under her care after the death of the latter's mother. Witty, earthy and told in a no-frills manner, the film avoids the pitfalls of having its gay characters confined to stereotypes. It affords them respect and admiration, not despite of their gender, but because they are humans, too. This one, in its own humble way, is a celebration of the diversity of each and everyone. Noteworthy, too, is the depiction o...

A film that unfolds entirely on computer screens (or any technological gadget) may sound like an uninviting idea, but " Searching " (2018, USA) makes sure that all of our first impressions are dispelled right away. A Sundance-launched debut by Aneesh Chaganty, the film hooks us immediately in the first few minutes in its montage, by way of video and photo clips, emails and Windows calendar reminders, of the particular milestones in the childhood and early teenage years of the main character's only daughter, up until the untimely death of his wife due to cancer. This part is surprising in itself, because while economically and ingeniously constructed, it manages to be surprisingly moving as well. Thankfully, the film is able to live up to the promise of its opening montage all throughout. A film that was almost rejected by John Cho (who plays the father David) had not the director been able to convince the actor the second time that he would handle the film's "...

Three years after " Heneral Luna ", Jerrold Tarog follows up with " Goyo: Ang Batang Heneral " (2018), a film about the life and death of another prominent historical figure during the Philippine-American War in the late 19th century, Gregorio del Pilar. This is the second film in an intended trilogy about Filipino heroes who are seldom, if not at all, portrayed in cinema (the third one being about Manuel Quezon, which is already hinted at in "Goyo"). As with "Heneral Luna", "Goyo" takes the liberty, as stated in the opening text, of combining fact and fiction in the presentation of historical events. It's like the fictional elements serve to enhance the facts, in as much as the latter intends to ground the former in reality. The result is yet another boldly entertaining and imaginatively directed historical drama, coming from one of the country's consistently good directors. But whereas Jerrold portrayed Antonio Luna as a l...

Various readings have been made about Robert Wiene's " The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari " (1920, Germany), the quintessential representative of the German Expressionist film movement during the silent era in the early 20th century (whose other films, sadly, appear to have been lost already for good). One such reading is that the silent film served as the precursor of the birth of National Socialism and Adolf Hitler's rise to power during World War II. Film critics and scholars saw that the silent film's despotic exercise of authority (as embodied by the madman Dr. Caligari) and mindless acquiescence to his evil biddings (as shown by the somnambulist Cesare) are no different from the primary nature of Hitler's Nazism. Further supporting the matter is the fact that the screenplay by Hans Janowitz and Carl Mayer was colored by their military experiences during World War I which led them to become distrustful of authority. Whichever way one looks at "The Cabine...

It was my first time watching Akira Kurosawa's " Seven Samurai " (1954, Japan). That is, on the big screen in a 35mm version. In fact, it was already my third time. The first was at a film club screening at CCP some years ago, having a VHS tape (or perhaps a Betamax tape) projected on a wide screen. The second was through my own DVD copy of the film, a Criterion edition. A big screen showing of a classic film is a seldom thing in our country, so when something like this comes by it's a golden opportunity that should be grabbed. No small thanks to Eiga Sai, an annual festival of classic and contemporary Japanese films held during the months of July and August, we were treated to a special screening of Kurosawa's masterpiece at the UP Film Institute. A noted Filipino film critic once said that "Seven Samurai" is his favorite Kurosawa film (while Yasujiro Ozu's " Tokyo Story ", another masterpiece, is his favorite Japanese film). It isn...

Though Erik Matti's " BuyBust " (2018) may initially look similar to the Indonesian action film " The Raid ", it is really a far cry from it. Even if it is entirely implicit for the majority of its running time, the film's political message finally rears its head in the later part, something which cannot be found in "The Raid", which is purely a non-stop genre exercise in brawny and bloody thrills. Suffice it to say that the film could not be more timelier given the current administration's brazen all-out war against illegal drugs in the Philippines. But we will get back to this particular point later. As an action-thriller, "BuyBust" delivers the goods more than enough. It can definitely be put alongside such extreme Asian action flicks as Indonesia's "The Raid" and " Headshot ", Thailand's " Ong Bak " and Cambodia's " Jailbreak ". It is as visceral and graphic as it can get, unl...

(Note: Mild spoilers) I grew up as a kid on the horror movie genre. This is perhaps the genre that primarily molded my love for cinema. I remember that I was always eagerly looking forward to the horror movie that would be featured every Friday night on channel 2 or 4 during the 80s (my childhood years). Films about vampires, zombies, werewolves, serial killers or any other creature, or practically any kind of horror movie got shown in those weekly TV programs. On the other hand, a visit to the local cinema would be because of a horror movie shown on that particular week (accompanied by my parents, of course). In a horror movie, it is quite clear who are the victims and who are the villains. The primary emotion being fed upon as well as its object are also clearly identified. And that is, fear: the fear of an evil person or creature, the fear of being helpless, defenseless and hopeless when faced with them. The good thing is that the protagonist can actually do something about them...

Redemption through religion is a tricky matter in cinema. It can either make the person in question too saintly for comfort or it can hastily require some miraculous act which may call upon a suspension of disbelief on the part of the viewers. For the protagonist's grace from God to be completely credible and acceptable, the filmmaker must make sure that the viewers get hooked on the protagonist right from the start. The audience must be willing to "accompany" the central character on the road to redemption all along, so to speak. That is what exactly Cedric Kahn did with his main protagonist in " The Prayer " (2018, France;shown in the recent French Film Festival, June 6-12 at Ayala cinemas), a moving yet unsentimental tale of a lost soul gradually finding himself back on track. The lost soul here is Thomas (played by Anthony Bajon, who was awarded the Best Actor prize for his role in this year's Berlinale), a 20-something heroin junkie who is sent to a ...