December 25, 2025
In 2025, there were 189 Filipino films released. 105 were commercially in cinemas or as entries in film festivals (62 normal releases + 43 film festival releases). The rest were released streaming in online apps. So far, I've seen 77 of them. This is a marked decrease from the 149 I watched in 2024, because since April 2025, I have decided not to watch the output of a certain prolific app anymore.
Of the film festivals, I able to watch 5/8 of the Cinepanalo films in March. 2/5 of the Sine Maynila films in September, 7/10 of the Cinemalaya films and 1/5 of the Sinesilip films in October. I was not able to watch any Filipino feature film in the offerings of QCinema this year. So far I had been able to watch 5/8 entries of the Metro Manila Film Festival this December, thanks to their red carpet premieres.
HONORABLE MENTIONS:
30. SINAGTALA by Mike E. Sandejas (My Full Review)
29. FLEETING by Catsi Catalan (My Full Review)
28. THE CARETAKERS by Shugo Praico (My Full Review)
27. IN THY NAME by Rommel Ruiz, Ceasar Soriano (My Full Review)
26. MADAWAG ANG LANDAS PATUNGONG PAG-ASA by Joel Lamangan (My Full Review)
25. REPUBLIKA NG PILOLIPINAS by Renei Dimla (My Full Review)
24. 100 AWIT PARA KAY STELLA by Jason Paul Laxamana (My Full Review)
23. RAGING by Ryan Machado (My Full Review)
22. THE RIDE by Thop Nazareno (My Full Review)
21. OUTSIDE DE FAMILIA by Joven Tan (My Full Review)
20. KONTRABIDA ACADEMY by Chris Martinez (My Full Review)
19. EVERYONE KNOWS EVERY JUAN by Alessandra de Rossi (My Full Review)
18. TAGKIWILI by Tara Illenberger (My Full Review)
17. CHILD NO. 82 by Tim Rone Villanueva (My Full Review)
16. CALL ME MOTHER by Jun Lana (My Full Review)
15. SONG OF THE FIREFLIES by King Palisoc (My Full Review)
14. UNMARRY by Jeffrey Jeturian (My Full Review)
13. SALUM by T.M. Malones (My Full Review)
12. REKONEK by Jade Castro (My Full Review)
11. EX EX LOVERS by JP Habac (My Full Review)
It all boils down to a woman's right to have agency over her own body, not anyone else. And as long as abortion remained illegal, women with unwanted pregnancies have to resort to medically-unsafe ways of getting rid of the fetus, putting their lives in danger. However, no matter how this film ends, abortion will always be a contentious issue that will probably not gain much traction in ultra-conservative, predominantly Catholic Philippine society any time soon. It certainly took chutzpah for these filmmakers to produce a film like this.
Director Raymond Red took on the story written by Michiko Yamamoto, Moira Lang and Sherad Sanchez, and told it with a realistic period vibe. The pace of storytelling was deliberately slow but engaging. The production design, costume design, and hair and makeup teams were very meticulous with the details. Piolo Pascual's Magtibay was not a perfect man or policeman, but he had his head squarely in the right place, remaining loyal to his profession and his organization. Enrique Gil played Ojeda with the impulsiveness of youth which led him to trouble later.
JC Santos gave his 100% in his gritty, sweaty portrayal of Angelo as failed boxer and family man, in a realistically painful physical and emotional performance. His siomai-eating scene at the end (reminiscent of Jaclyn Jose's iconic fishball scene in "Ma Rosa") was absolutely heart-crushing. Santos' Angelo also bared his soul when his long-suffering wife Sunshine broke down and expressed her "what-ifs" at the hospital, and in those conversations with Nay Rosario (Ruby Ruiz), his adopted mother at the fishport.
The highlight of the whole film was Shirin's shoot in Patikul, Sulu with an all-Tausug cast led by Laila Urao as the bride Karsum. In obedience to Islamic rules, Shirin had to designate the imam's son Medzfar (Bong Cabrera) to bark out her orders. It started smoothly enough, with a reenactment of a Moslem wedding feast that ended in tragedy. As a famous photograph of the resulting carnage was recreated, a terrifying mystical experience engulfed the whole crew. This was a most mesmerizing sequence, especially since this eerie episode of possession really happened in real life.
This unique film written and directed by Sigrid Andrea Bernardo dealt with Down's Syndrome (DS). Most people think of them as children because of how they look, and treat them as children even when they are of adult age. Bernardo tells us that persons with DS are actually capable of feeling romantic love and all the complicated thoughts, acts and emotions that come along with it. This is very first Filipino film with actual persons with DS as lead actors. Go and Amaba shone brightly, holding their own beside their veteran co-actors in challenging bittersweet scenes.
79 year-old Ms. Odette Khan, who had won multiple Best Supporting Awards for the first film, is billed as lead this time. All her scenes were particularly well-written, with several quotable quotes about life and the law. Her words about lawyers being "invisible by design" and how integrity was "the courage to be disliked" stuck to me. Her iconic Justice Hernandez may have mellowed down with her age and health, but Ms. Khan's performance still hits very hard. The best scenes of each actor in the cast were those they shared with her. Ms. Khan knew that this is the role she is going to be best remembered for, and she gave it her all.
This film was so easy to like and enjoy because of the charismatic lead actors, Khalil Ramos and Sue Ramirez. They are both bona fide talented singers, so their characters felt real and relatable. Their romantic chemistry was also off the charts, so we root for their relationship all the way, even as tough decisions had to be made. That sidewalk scene ran the gamut of painful conflicting emotions, but both stars, especially Ramos, played it with great restraint.
Villamor kept the relationship between Betty and Ryan very subtle. We were kept guessing whether there was indeed a romance brewing between them or not. We all felt like Cora when she first saw Betty and Ryan together -- intrigued by the mystery, yet there was an breathtaking thrill about them. It was sheer directorial skill how Villaflor kept this uncertainty going for the whole final act, and still keep us guessing all the way up to the ending.
Like his previous "Duyan ng Magiting," the true star is Celestino's screenplay. The story was also divided into chapters, this one had eight, each named for a memorable line within that chapter. Each chapter contained astutely-written dialog about political disinformation and injustice that challenge our own convictions. Aside from the titular Hydra, four other characters of Greek myth -- Sisyphus, Cassandra, Pandora and Tantalus -- were utilized as universal metaphors.
Jericho Rosales was an inspired choice to play the charismatic president, who spoke, argued and cursed with oratorical flair and passion. This film was certainly not romanticized nor haigographic. Rosales played him as domineering, devious, dishonest to achieve his noble goal of independence. In so doing, he inadvertently promoted a toxic political culture that still pervades even almost century hence.
With this final installment, Tarog continues the high technical, production and entertainment value, signature of the whole trilogy. Cinematography, production design, hair and make-up, and musical scoring were all top-notch. As before, there were lots to learn about the less well-known details about the country's political scene during that time.
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My List of Best Filipino Films of 2024 is posted HERE.
My List of Best Filipino Films of 2023 is posted HERE.
My List for Best Filipino Films of 2022 is posted HERE.
My List for Best Filipino Films of 2021 is posted HERE.
My List for Best Filipino Films of 2020 is posted HERE.
My List for Best Filipino Films of 2019 is posted HERE.
My List for Best Filipino Films of 2018 is posted HERE.
My List for Best Filipino Films of 2017 is posted HERE.
My List for Best Filipino Films of 2016 is posted HERE.
My List for Best Filipino Films of 2015 is posted HERE.
My List for Best Filipino Films of 2014 is posted HERE.
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