Pinoy Films of 2011

Last year (2011) I saw nineteen Filipino feature films, thirteen of which competed in the Cinemalaya 2011 Independent Film Festival and two were out-of-competition films from the same festival. I didn’t watch the Filipino films shown in this year’s edition Cinemanila and Cinemaone Originals because I couldn’t. The MMFF films for sure could only promise entertaining but thrash films.

Of the films that I watched, the five (5) films that I consider the best of last year’s batch (considering only the films that I saw) are: (1) Niño;  (2) Zombadings: Patayin Sa Shokot Si Remington (3) Ang Sayaw Ng Dalawang Kaliwang Paa; (4) Isda; (5);  Busong.

Coco Martin and Maria Isabel Lopez in Kinatay (2009)

On Kinatay. It was only around September of last year when I finally saw Kinatay, the film that gave Brillante Mendoza Best Director award at Cannes in 2009. It was good. It was really an experience watching it. I just have one problem with the film: the motivation behind butchering Maria Isabel Lopez’ character is too shallow for me. His other movies, in my opinion, are better than Kinatay. I didn’t include the film in choosing my favorite films of last year since it was a 2009 film. I only watched it last year.

Tony Mabesa and Fides Cuyugan-Asensio in Nino

Niño, the way I saw it, is a satirical take on the decay of family and society. It tells the disintegration of the family that lives (or once lived) in the once illustrious mansion of a former  congressman (who is now in a coma) and a once-famous opera singer. Secrets are revealed as each member of the family struggle for survival. Strong performances of the cast had made the film communicate well with the audience (at least, it did with me).

Ang Babae Sa Septic Tank, which won Best Film in the Cinemalaya’s New Breed Category and Best Actress for Euguene Domingo, was fun to watch. It's a commentary on the current state of Philippine cinema. It's good, but I’m sorry to say that, in my humble opinion, this film film didn’t deserve the awards it amassed from the festival. There were better films than it. Eugene Domingo’s acting was the kind you saw in her previous films. Nothing noteworthy.

No Other Woman was fun to watch, too. The exchange of artificial dialogues between characters was truly entertaining, typical of films of the eighties. I enjoyed it, although I don’t consider the film to be among the best crafted films.

Lauren Young, Kerbie Zamora and Mart Escudero in Zombadings

Notable performances: Mart Escudero, Janice De Belen, Mailes Kanapi, John Regala and Daniel Fernando (Zombadings), Shamaine Buencamino (Niño and Maskara), Edgar Allan Guzman (Ligo Na U, Lapit Na Me), Bembol Roco (Isda), Jean Garcia and Rocco Nacino (Ang Sayaw Ng Dalawang Kaliwang Paa), Kean Ciprinao and J.M. De Guzman (Ang Babae Sa Septic Tank)

The following is the list of films (that I saw in 2010) with (my) ratings:

Cinemalaya 2011 (New Breed)

Amok (Lawrence Fajardo) – 3.0/4.0

Ang Babae Sa Septic Tank (Marlon Rivera / Chris Martinez) – 3.0/4.0

Ang Sayaw Ng Dalawang Kaliwang Paa (Alember Ang / Alvin Yapan) – 3.5/4.0

Bahay Bata (Eduardo Roy / Jerome Zamora) – 2.5/4.0

Cuchera (Jospeh Israel Laban) – 3.0/4.0

I-Libings (Rommel Andreo Sales) – 2.5/4.0

Ligo Na U, Lapit Na Me (Noel Ferrer) – 3.0/4.0

Niño (Loy Arcenas) – 3.5/4.0

Teoriya (Alistaire Christian Tan) – 2.5/4.0

Cinemalaya 2011 (Director’s Showcase)

Bisperas (Jeffrey Jeturian) – 3.0/4.0

Busong (Aureus Solito) – 3.5/4.0

Isda (Adolfo Alix) – 3.5/4.0

Patikul (Joel Lamangan) – 2.5/4.0

Other films:

The Natural Phenomenon of Madness (Bebs Gohetia)- 3.0/4.0

Zombadings: Patayin Sa Shokot Si Remington (Jade Castro) – 3.5/4.0

Maskara (Laurice Guillen) – 2.5/4.0

Kinatay (Brillante Mendoza, 2009) – 3.5/4.0

Senior Year (Jerrold Tarog) – 3.5/4.0

No Other Woman (Ruel Bayani) – 2.5/4.0