Review of BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY: Mercurial Malek

November 1, 2018

I discovered rock band Queen in 1980, when their songs "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" and "Another One Bites the Dust" became big radio hits. Since then, I became a fan of their music both before and after that point. Their front man Freddie Mercury is well-known for his flamboyant stage performances, and for his premature demise to complications from AIDS at a young age of 45 in 1991. However, beyond that I knew very little about the real story of Queen and Freddie Mercury beyond what I saw on MTV. 

Filming this film was started by Bryan Singer and completed by Dexter Fletcher (after Singer was fired from the project with one month to go). Intense anticipation for the film was heightened by the release of its exciting trailers. However, before the film was publicly released, the initial reviews that came out had been harsh. Anyhow despite all that, I still wanted to watch this biopic, with expectations significantly tempered of course.

In 1970, lead guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor, formerly of the band Smile, accepted Farrokh Bulsara as their new vocalist and John Deacon as new bassist to form the band Queen. Farrokh eventually changed his name to Freddie Mercury. The band was then signed by EMI Records and toured the US and later the world. 

Meanwhile, trouble brewed behind the scenes for Freddie as he faced various issues about his girlfriend Mary Austin, his career managers, his creative freedom, and his relationship with the band. Freddie's series of bad decisions, both personal and professional, as well as his overlapping vices eventually take their toll on him and on the band. 

The impersonation of Freddie Mercury by actor Rami Malek already caught our attention when the trailers first came out. Seeing his full performance confirmed that Malek should really figure prominently for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role come awards season. OK, Malek's overdone prosthetic denture to simulate the real Freddie's overbite could be a bit distracting, but that aside, his portrayal of the iconic singer is meticulously spot on from the bombastic to the vulnerable.

Malek probably did not do his own vocals for the singing scenes, but he certainly acted realistically as if he was singing those songs himself. In the final 20 minutes devoted to Queen's bravura set in the 1985 Live Aid concert at Wembley Arena, Malek's performance was almost a perfect copy of Mercury's -- every arm gesture, hip gyration, prideful strut and vocal adlib. More importantly, the passionate emotional impact of what was considered as the greatest live concert performance of all time was also captured and delivered intact.

The actors who played the other three members of Queen all did well in their roles. Gwilym Lee looked and acted like Brian May did, as with Ben Hardy as Roger Taylor and Joseph Mazzello as John Deacon. They looked as if they were masters of their respective musical instruments, and had chemistry as close friends in scenes depicting their creative process.

Lucy Boynton played a gentle and loyal Mary Austin, a love affair I never knew about. We seethed at the Allen Leech's treacherous portrayal of manager Paul Prenter, and laughed at Mike Myers' humorous roasting of EMI executive Ray Forster. Aiden Gillen and Tom Hollander played two other managers. 

Meneka Das and Ace Bhatti played Freddie's conservative Parsi parents. Aaron McCusker played Jim Hutton, Freddie's last boyfriend. (The directorial decision to have Freddie find Jim and introduce him to his parents right on the day of Live Aid concert before going to Wembley felt contrived.) 

I actually do not see anything wrong about this biopic at all that those first movie critics were complaining about. Granting creative license for better dramatic progression, I thought this was a very well-told biography about Freddie Mercury and Queen. Despite the formidable running time of 134 minutes (2 hours and 14 minutes), our attention was grabbed from the get-go and never let go up to the very end. 

Technical aspects of cinematography, editing, production design, costumes, and of course the musical score were all top notch. The song choices in the soundtrack were all extraordinary, especially "Love of My Life," "We Will Rock You," "Radio Gaga", "We Are the Champions" and of course, the title song. 

The sensitive angle about Freddie's sexuality and disease was expected and I thought it was handled with care, and was not exploited for its lurid details. To have his AIDS diagnosed before Live Aid, at least two years prior to when it actually was, was done for dramatic purposes (it is not a documentary, after all). Anyhow, the treatment of the material was respectful and non-controversial. While this approach may prove too safe or too simplistic for some critics, it made the film more easily accessible and entertaining for mainstream viewers. 

I watched this with my two teenage sons. I was worried that they might find it boring since they were unfamiliar with most of the songs. However, they both liked the film a lot and were excitedly looking up videos of Queen songs and concerts on the way home. I believe this film will actually gain Queen and Mercury more fans from the next generation. The critics slayed "Bohemian Rhapsody" the song when it first came out, but it went on to become a classic. I believe that same fate awaits "Bohemian Rhapsody" the movie as well. 9/10.

Review of GOOSEBUMPS 2: HAUNTED HALLOWEEN: Dastardly Dummy

November 1, 2018

We watched the first "Goosebumps" (MY REVIEW) film around Halloween time three years ago. The whole family enjoyed its wholesome combination of juvenile horror and comedy, as well as the neat monster special effects. This year, we watched its sequel right on Halloween day itself, in a cinema full of kids, and we were entertained all over again.

Single-mom Kathy Quinn worked in a nursing home to raise her two children Sarah (currently applying for college) and Sonny (obsessed with Nikolai Tesla and his tower). Sonny and his friend Sam undertook a junk collecting business to raise cash. One of the items they got from an abandoned house was a locked book with a key and a ventriloquist dummy named Slappy who came alive and  gave the Quinns and their whole town of Wardenclyffe, New York the most terrifying Halloween they will never forget.

The actors who played the Quinn kids were up and coming actors Madison Iseman (best known for her role Bethany in "Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle") and Jeremy Ray Taylor (whom we recently met in his role of Ben in "It"). The wacky family dynamics between Sarah and Sonny together with their clueless mother Kathy (played so entertainingly well by Wendi McLendon-Covey) were fun to watch. The same familiar teen issues tackled, like jerk boyfriend or bullying by jocks, were nothing new. 

Slappy the Dummy (voiced by Mick Wingert) is once again the main antagonist, as he went to extreme length to sow terror, all in his longing to belong to a family. In the previous film, Slappy was voiced by Jack Black. This time around, Jack Black made a last-minute appearance again as "Goosebumps" author R.L. Stine. This was despite initial news to the contrary, especially since Black just starred in the recent, similarly-themed "The House with a Clock in Its Walls".

Caleel Harris played Sonny's smart-alecky best friend Sam. Bryce Cass was Tyler, Sarah's boyfriend. Peyton Wich was class bully Tommy Madigan. Ken Jeong played a childish crazy rich Asian neighbor Mr. Chu, who had an obsession for elaborate house decorations as well as a devoted fan of Goosebumps books. Chris Parnell played Walter, the dweebish clerk at the grocery store who harbored a crush on Kathy. 

The main treat of the film were the Halloween monsters that Slappy brought to life with his magical powers. This was very similar to what happened in the first film (set in Madison, Delaware). Only this time, Slappy's magic would be later intensified and broadcast further by Tesla's Wardenclyffe tower which just so happened to be in the neighborhood. My favorite part, and I'm sure a favorite of many kids based on their reactions, was the part when the Gummy Bears come to life to attack the boys. 

It was not as good or original as the first, since it was basically a retread of the story with Slappy terrorizing a different town and kids. However, it was still better than what I expected, and we had fun watching it along with the noisy little kids around us, who were all obviously enjoying it too. 6/10.

Review of HALLOWEEN (2018): Sentimental Showdown

October 31, 2018

The first "Halloween" film, written and directed by John Carpenter, was released in 1978. It starred Jamie Lee Curtis, who was chosen partly because she was the daughter of Janet Leigh of "Psycho." It had 8 sequels in all from 1981 to 2002 under various directors. It was rebooted by Rob Zombie in 2007 which had its own sequel in 2009. This year, prolific Blumstone Productions does a direct sequel of the original 1978 film.

In the first "Halloween" film, we first met Michael Myers as a six-year old who stabbed his older sister Judith to death in their home in Haddonfield, Illinois on Halloween, 1963. 15 years later, also on Halloween night, Michael (Nick Castle) escaped from the custody of his psychiatrist, Dr. Samuel Loomis (Donald Pleasance), and returned to his hometown to wreak bloody terror among uptight babysitter Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) and her promiscuous friends Annie (Nancy Kyes) and Lynda (P.J. Soles). 

For this current sequel, set 40 years after the events in the first film, Michael Myers (Nick Castle and James Jude Courtney) was being transported to another facility, this time under the care of Dr. Ranbir Sartain (Haluk Bilginer). Of course, he was able to escape again. He returned to his hometown of Haddonfield to seek out and confront his old nemesis Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis), who was now a grandmother who had estranged her daughter Karen (Judy Greer) and grand-daughter Allyson (Andi Matichak) with her PTSD-induced obsession against the bogeyman of her nightmares. 

Poster of Halloween 1978

I was never a fan of slasher films, so I had not seen the original "Halloween" until I was planning to see this new sequel this week. By today's standards, the first "Halloween" was much simpler in the way John Carpenter created an atmosphere of dread and the ways Michael Myers killed his victims. There seemed to have been a message against promiscuity, in that it was the repressed virgin who survived in the end against the unkillable psycho. There was an eerie humor that pervaded the dread because of these elements. 

In this sequel, Jamie Lee Curtis portrayed the elderly Laurie Strode (still sporting the same 1978 hairstyle) with an over-the-top sense of paranoia that led her to make her house a hyper-secure fortress. Laurie also inculcated this fear in her daughter and grand-daughter, for which they resented her all these years. With such a toxic psychological preoccupation, I was surprised Laurie even got married and had a family at all. I would have thought that her original trauma with Michael should have pushed her deeper into her sexual repression. 

As expected, with all the special effects technology at hand, this current sequel had Michael killing his victims with more violent means to create bloodier, more disgusting murder scenarios. Since there was that perverse idea that pretty young people were more "fun" to kill in a slasher movie, Allyson's shallow gang of friends provided that fodder. Some attempts at comedy (like that bit by the dad about peanut butter) seemed uncalled for. 

Aside from Curtis and Castle reprising their original roles, the babysitting scenes were a nice throwback reference to the original story. Carpenter's updated musical score worked well to enhance the tension. Director David Gordon Green still kept Michael obscure in the shadows. We never clearly see his face even if he was not masked. This was in keeping with how John Carpenter originally depicted his now-iconic bogeyman. Head to head, the 1978 "Halloween" is still the better slasher film for sentimental reasons, which is why the 2018 sequel had nostalgia in its favor. 

"Halloween" 1978: 7/10.
"Halloween" 2018: 6/10.

QCINEMA 2018: Review of MASLA A PAPANOK: Nebulous and Numbing

October 29, 2018

The year is 1892 in Maguindanao. Bal Intan, the teenage daughter of a Moslem chieftain sought refuge at an abbey of Catholic nuns, who gave her the Christian name Clara after her eventual baptism. Meanwhile, her younger cousin Dumingal, the playful son of the current datu, witnessed how the sudden appearance of giant diabolical "bird" foretold the violent decimation of their entire village.

The acting and the actors were mostly unremarkable. Quennie Lyne Demoral played Clara like sleepwalking through a dream. Alaska Ordona played Elena, Clara's companion in the abbey, who must be wondering how come she was responsible for Clara's behavior, not the nuns. Krigi Hager played the conflicted soldier Jorge with a persistent question mark on his facial expression. Child actor Ameir Hassan, who played Dumingal, gave one of the better performances, together with Adnan Zaid Juanday, who played his datu father. 

The film was written and directed by Gutierrez Mangansakan II, who seemed to be experimenting with various film forms with his three cinematographers, namely Arnel Barbarona, Bagane Fiola, and Willie Apa. The photography of the whole project felt like a major throwback to the early days of film. The Clara segment felt like Murnau. The Dumingal segment felt like Conde. The pace of storytelling was likewise 

The Clara part was in black and white, while the Dumingal part was in color. It actually felt like two separate short films which were just barely connected to each other. The family connection between Clara and Dumingal was hardly even felt nor necessary. The other connection involved the Spanish officer Jorge and his affinity with Filipinos, which was never elucidated further. There was even a short epilogue about Clara, Dumingal and the "bird", but it still did not help me see the point of it all. 3/10. 


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Screening Schedules of "Masla A Papanok":

OCT 22 (Monday)
3:30 PM -- Gateway Cinema 6

OCT 23 (Tuesday)
8:30 PM -- Gateway Cinema 6

OCT 24 (Wednesday)
1:00 PM -- Gateway Cinema 6
1:30 PM -- SM Megamall
4:00 PM -- SM Fairview
6:30 PM – SM Fairview

OCT 25 (Thursday)
1:30 PM -- SM Southmall
4:00 PM -- SM Megamall
4:00 PM -- Trinoma
6:30 PM -- SM Manila
8:30 PM -- Gateway Cinema 6 (Gala Screening)

OCT 26 (Friday)
1:00 PM -- Robinsons Galleria
4:00 PM -- UP Town Center
4:00 PM -- SM Southmall
9:00 PM -- SM Fairview

OCT 27 (Saturday)
1:30 PM -- SM Fairview
3:30 PM -- Gateway Cinema 6
4:00 PM -- SM Southmall
6:30 PM -- SM Megamall
9:00 PM -- SM Manila

OCT 28 (Sunday)
1:00 PM -- Gateway Cinema 6
3:30 PM -- Robinsons Galleria
6:30 PM -- SM Megamall
6:30 PM -- SM Southmall

OCT 29 (Monday)
4:00 PM -- SM Fairview
8:30 PM -- Gateway Cinema 6
9:00 PM -- SM Megamall

OCT 30 (Tuesday)
1:00 PM -- Robinsons Galleria
4:00 PM -- SM Manila
6:30 PM -- SM Fairview
9:00 PM -- SM Southmall

QCINEMA 2018: Review of DOG DAYS: Weird and Wooly Work

October 28, 2018

Michael Jordan Ulili was the son of Earvin, a black basketball player from Los Angeles, and Carmen, a Filipina who believed in black magic. She sacrificed all that she had to ensure that Michael would grow up into a basketball superstar. However, when he was in college, Michael still could not seem to achieve the path to glory for which he had been destined. In his desperation, Michael turned to his godfather Luis for guidance, but instead he was led down a path of uncertainty and misdirection.

Yves Bagadiong played the lead role of Michael. There are certain roles where physical appearance of the actor cast is important and this was one of them. The whole story was focused around Michael so his casting was of vital importance for the film to work. While Bagadiong had the correct skin color, he was not tall nor athletic enough to look like the next great basketball star. His form and moves with a basketball looked unconvincing. 

The script really made him do a lot of bizarre scenes throughout the film. The most extreme was that sick scene where Michael was seen stuffing bloody stuff into an envelope. As a relative newcomer, Bagadiong still needed to develop more acting skills to be able to rise above whatever the absurdity level of the scene given for him to play. But to be fair to him, I think no actor can really come out unscathed from a scene as far-out as the one where Michael met and spoke with his father in a brook. 

Bagadiong should get his acting cues from his co-star Marcus Adoro, who played Carmen's best friend Luis. Despite being a new actor himself, Adoro was able to create a focused character from a thankless role of a hippie with mad guitar skills (after all, he was the lead guitarist of the Eraserheads), drug-addled mind and outlandish superstitious beliefs. Throughout the film, we feel the depth of his loyalty despite unrequited love.

Adrienne Vergara played Michael's guardian Rochelle. Every time she was onscreen, she would steal the scene with her florid, over-the-top acting of an alcoholic loudmouth nagger. She gave audiences a welcome respite to laugh out loud occasionally. It was too bad that Rochelle dropped out of the story in the second half of the film, until a random eleventh hour reappearance from out of nowhere.

Barbara Ruaro played Michael's passionate and supportive girlfriend Maureen. They had some very daring intimate scenes together, with Ruaro trying her best to act like Maureen was in love with Michael. Unfortunately, they did not have any believable romantic chemistry together. On Maureen alone though, the committed Ruaro held her own against the crazy things her character was made to do in the film. 

In the first half of this film written and directed by Timmy Harn, I thought I understood where the film was going. However, when crystal meth got into the picture midway through, the film became more and more insane as it went off into various bewildering directions. It just went on and on and on, interminably, until that totally off-the-wall ending. It felt as if the whole script was written and the whole film was shot while drunk or under the influence of a powerful hallucinogenic -- a nightmare come to life.

This film actually won the Netpac Jury Prize for the circle competition. The jury saw something award worthy in it. I did not. 2/10. 


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Screening Schedule for "Dog Days":

OCT 22 (Monday)
9:00 PM -- UP Town Center

OCT 23 (Tuesday)
3:30 PM -- Gateway Cinema 6

OCT 24 (Wednesday)
1:00 PM -- Robinsons Galleria
4:00 PM -- UP Town Center
6:00 PM – Robinsons Galleria (Gala Screening)

OCT 25 (Thursday)
6:00 PM -- Gateway Cinema 6

OCT 26 (Friday)
4:00 PM -- Trinoma
6:00 PM -- Gateway Cinema 6

OCT 27 (Saturday)
4:00 PM -- Trinoma

OCT 28 (Sunday)
1:30 PM -- UP Town Center
8:30 PM -- Gateway Cinema 6

OCT 29 (Monday)
3:30 PM -- Gateway Cinema 6

QCINEMA 2018: Review of ODA SA WALA: Lunacy in Loneliness

October 25, 2018

Sonya was a 44-year old spinster who ran their family business, Langit Funeral Services, from their house in a suburban town. She lived a quiet lonely life with her similarly quiet lonely father Rudy. One day, the body of a dead old woman was brought in for embalming services by two men in the middle of the night, and was just left abandoned. The presence of that anonymous corpse in their house wielded a strange effect on Sonya leading to an increasingly bizarre series of events. 

Pokwang used her real name Marietta Subong in the credits of this film. I know she had done dramatic roles using her comedic screen name before, and she had gained critical acclaim for them. However, the director Dwein Baltazar requested her to make an exception in this case for good reason. Sonya was a serious role for a serious actress. Subong totally subsumed into the role. She gave a consistent and convincing portrayal of one lonely woman's descent into madness. 

Subong's attack on the difficult role was eerily subtle, slowly and steadily developing. She started with some repetitive behavior (chewing on her fingernails, fiddling with the cassette player, etc) and went downhill from there, reaching a crescendo in that stormy grave-digging scene. Despite the very dark nature of the plot and the disturbing psyche of her character Sonya, the natural comedienne in Subong still surfaced with welcome touches of humor to provide lightening relief from the oppressive tension of the story.

Joonee Gamboa played her eccentric father Rudy, who felt estranged from Sonya even if they lived under one roof. I guess we can see where Sonya inherited her reclusive personality. Dido de la Paz played the ruthless creditor Theodor, who constantly hounded Sonya about paying back the huge debt she owed him. Anthony Falcon played the ambulant taho vendor Elmer, the object of Sonya's suppressed romantic desires. Credit has to go to Angelita Loresco for the difficult role of realistically playing the corpse. 

Cinematographer Neil Daza showed innovative artistry in his camera work, while production designer Maolen Fadul was obsessively meticulous with the little set details in Sonya's house. Writer and director Dwein Baltazar, fresh from the box-office success of "Exes Baggage" which she wrote, went back to meditate on the subject of loneliness -- a common theme of the two previous films she wrote and directed, namely "Mamay Umeng (2012) and just earlier this year, "Gusto Kita With All My Hypothalamus" (2018). 

Given its grim and morbid subject matter, this peculiarly offbeat film is definitely not for all tastes. Be that as it may, when viewed purely as cinematic art,"Oda sa Wala" is an excellently crafted piece. 8/10.


******


SCREENING SCHEDULE:

OCT 23 (Tuesday)
1:00 PM – Robinsons Galleria
9:00 PM – Trinoma (Gala Screening)

OCT 24 (Wednesday)
1:30 PM – SM Manila
3:30 PM – Gateway Cinema 6
6:30 PM – SM Southmall

OCT 25 (Thursday)
1:30 PM – SM Manila
1:30 PM – UP Town Center
4:00 PM – SM Fairview
9:00 PM – SM Megamall

OCT 26 (Friday)
1:00 PM – Gateway Cinema 6
4:00 PM – SM Megamall
4:00 PM – SM Manila
9:00 PM – SM Southmall

OCT 27 (Saturday)
1:30 PM – SM Manila
6:00 PM – Gateway Cinema 6
6:30 PM – SM Fairview

OCT 28 (Sunday)
1;30 PM – SM Fairview
3:30 PM – Gateway Cinema 6
4:00 PM – SM Megamall
6:30 PM – SM Manila

OCT 29 (Monday)
1:00 PM – Robinsons Galleria
4:00 PM – Trinoma
4:00 PM – SM Southmall
9:00 PM -- SM Fairview

OCT 30 (Tuesday)
1:30 PM – UP Town Center
1:30 PM – SM Southmall
4:00 PM – Trinoma
4:00 PM -- SM Fairview
6:30 PM – SM Megamall
9:00 PM – SM Manila

QCINEMA 2018: Review of SHOPLIFTERS: Family Foibles

October 21, 2018

This year, the opening ceremonies of the QCinema International Film Festival was held last October 20, 2018 at the Gateway Mall Cinema 5. The festival was declared open by Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte who had been a driving force behind the festival since it started as a small, parochial filmfest in 2012. The festival grew in stature every year, eventually going international along the way. This year, there is a bigger thrust to make Quezon City a major film destination, at par with Cannes, Venice, Sundance, etc. Hence, the keynote speaker that night was Tourism Secretary Berna Romulo-Puyat.

To make that point, there are more and more prestige foreign films in the lineup this year. Six films submitted by their respective countries for consideration in the Best Foreign Language Film category are in the QCinema list this year. These are films from Poland ("Cold War"), South Korea ("Burning"), Paraguay ("The Heiresses"), Thailand ("Malila, the Farewell Flower"), Taiwan ("The Great Buddha"). Not but not the least is this film from Japan which had already won the Palm d'Or from Cannes this year, which had the honor of being the opening film of the festival -- "Shoplifters" by Hirokazu Koreeda.

Osamu Shibata lived in a poor section of Tokyo, with his ragtag family. Osamu and wife Nobuyo had menial jobs in construction and a laundry, respectively. Daughter Aki work at a sex shop. Grandmother Hatsue contributed her pension and allowances. His pre-teen son Shota was Osamu's apprentice and assistant in being a shoplifter, to augment the family's need for groceries. One night, Osamu brought home an abandoned and abused little girl Yuri. When they decide to keep her, she threw their well-oiled family dynamics in a loop.

This is probably the first time I had seen a Japanese film portray a family living in extreme poverty in an urban setting. It is very unsettling to see a part of Tokyo you never thought even existed even if you had actually been there. Despite their poverty, Osamu and family lived harmoniously with each other. Despite the petty crimes they commit, they are generally happy and content with the little they had. This is one "Modern Family" -- Japan style. After all, there was still honor and dignity within this family, even though they were thieves. 

I had only seen one previous film by writer-director Koreeda which was "Like Father, Like Son" (2014, MY REVIEW), and I liked it very much. Here we see Koreeda again in his favorite element -- showing how a family reacts to a life-changing event. Unlike other films about poverty, this one did not make you cringe in disgust because of its hard-core exploitation. This was a frank and straightforward depiction of life in a Tokyo slum as it really can happen, we do not feel compelled to feel sorry for them for the way they live. 

Every actor had their moments to shine in their authentic performances. Lily Franky as Osamu was a cheerful and responsible patriarch. Sakura Ando as Nobuyo was a pragmatic yet compassionate mother. Kirin Kiki as Hatsue may look like an ordinary delightful grandmother, but she can hustle with the best of them. Mayu Matsuoka as Aki brought us behind the scenes of those infamous live peep shows. Kairi Jo had a challenging role as Shota who experienced angst and conscience with their way of life. Miyu Sasaki was practically silent as Yuri, but her presence changed their life in a major way.

The critical acclaim and awards buzz that precede this film may give unrealistic expectations. There are no big events that happen in most of the film. Things just coasted along like they do in real life. One climactic event does happen towards the end which then led to an unforeseeable emotionally-charged conclusion. The languid pace at which Koreeda told the story may be too slow for one used to mainstream action-packed cinema. However, scattered scenes of beautiful though muted poignancy and subtle humor make watching the film worth your time and perseverance. 8/10. 


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Screening schedule of "Shoplifters":

OCT 23 (Tuesday)
6:30 PM – Gateway Cinema 7

OCT 26 (Friday)
9:00 PM -- Trinoma

OCT 29 (Monday)
9:00 PM – UP Town Center

Review of FIRST MAN: Archetypal Astronaut

October 20, 2018

This was a movie we all knew the ending too. We knew that Neil Armstrong was the first man to land and walk on the moon on July 20, 1969. The only reason we would be watching this movie is to see its backstory. We would like to witness the evolving drama and the exciting processes before reached that historic ending. We would like to know more about the first man on the moon, how Armstrong was as a man before he took that giant leap for mankind and became an icon. 

We follow Neil Armstrong's career from a NASA test pilot in 1961 to a full-fledged astronaut in Project Gemini in 1965. We hear about the Space Race between the USSR and the US, how the US lagged behind every step of the way. We watch with horror at disastrous US space missions along the way that claimed lives of hapless astronauts. We witness the charmed piloting skills of Armstrong in at least three accidents when he cheated death, en route to him being chosen to captain of the Apollo 11 mission. 

Ryan Gosling looked nothing like Neil Armstrong, and for me that was distracting. As far as his personality was concerned, Armstrong was portrayed to be all business. He was stoic and taciturn. He was cool to a fault, aloof, unemotional. Maybe these are the very traits that made him a successful astronaut, but the way these qualities were shown on the big screen, his type of persona came across as dull and unengaging. There was a scene when Armstrong was trying to say goodbye to his young son, but I did not feel any warmth.

Claire Foy played Neil's wife Janet. She was not exactly portrayed as the ideal ever-supportive wife. Like many housewives, she was also beset with insecure feelings that she was not the first priority in her husband's life, which most likely was true in her case. 

The charismatic Corey Stoll was Buzz Aldrin, and Lukas Haas was Michael Collins, Armstrong's crew on Apollo 11. Jason Clarke was Ed White (the first American to walk in space) and Patrick Fugit played Elliot See, astronauts with tragic fates. Kyle Chandler was Deke Slayton, NASA's official in charge of astronaut training and other affairs.

As far as the scenes of space travel are concerned, of course they looked spectacular on the big screen - - executed with the latest cinematic technology. The moon landing scenes are predictably the main highlights, but the rest, I don't really notice anything particularly innovative about them though. The camera shook a lot during the moments that the rockets were in danger, which may cause vertigo for some sensitive viewers. 

Unlike other biopics about the American space program, "First Man" did not have a politically-charged, flag-waving patriotic moment at the end. Much had been already said about Damien Chazelle's controversy-baiting omission of that key scene of Armstrong actually planting the US flag on the moon. 

This film is more about Armstrong the man than the Apollo 11 the mission, but the mission is really the more interesting cinematic subject matter than the man we meet. 6/10. 

Review of FIRST LOVE: Healing a Heart

October 19, 2018

Allison Castillo, 32, met Nick Gutierrez, 45, at a hospital in Vancouver, Canada. From the onset, Ali admitted to Nick that she had hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and that she needed a heart transplant. Despite this, she felt confident that a relationship between will prosper. On the other hand, while he enjoyed Ali's company a lot, Nick was hesitant to give love a chance. Ali's charm and kindness won Nick over eventually, such that he wanted to be able to do whatever it took to help her get well.

Bea Alonzo gave such an irresistibly winsome performance as Ali, it was impossible for anyone not to fall head over heels in love with her. Her smile was just so radiant and her charisma so vibrant that she could easily break down any man's resistance. It definitely did not look like Ali had any serious heart disease at any time, yet with Bea portraying her with such sincerity, we never doubted her health condition. 

Aga Muhlach had not played a leading man in a romance for a long time. I could sense some tentativeness in his performance as Nick, as if he was nervous or unsure, though these were qualities of his character as well. While Aga still got his movie-star good looks under those glasses and beard, there was oddly an uncertain, uneasy romantic chemistry between him and Bea, not an instant nor compelling one. 

Sandy Andolong was constantly dour and unsmiling as Ali's concerned mother Bernadette. Albie Casino was against his usual bad boy type of roles to play Ali's gay younger brother Sebastian. Edward Barber was a natural playing Nick's nephew Simon who was dealing with the death of his father. It was good to see the beautiful Ms. Giselle Toengi again onscreen as Simon's mother Vicky. These characters were not really necessary in the main love story, but were just there to give Ali and Nick additional dimensions. 

The cinematography around Vancouver and its various scenic spots looked very glossy, but felt like common backdrops already as far as local romances go. For a recent example, a scene set on a long rope bridge was also in "Nakalimutan Ko Nang Kalimutan Ka." Mining the 1970s for a catchy ballad ("Ikaw Ang Aking Mahal" by VST & Co.) to use as a love theme was cool, but "Goyo" also did just that ("Bato sa Buhangin" by Cinderella) to more LSS effect. That Nick wore an astronaut suit to a costume party was a nice touch, but Sam Concepcion just did that in "Para Sa Broken Hearted" just last month. 

I thought the pace taken by director Paul Soriano was rather slow and meandering, as if to overemphasize the melodramatic nature of the story. Aside from that one major plot twist which was necessary, there were also several needless detours and repetitive issues just used to prolong the running time and to delay the inevitable. There was strangely no emotional payoff for me at the end, maybe because I was already expecting it already long before it happened. 6/10. 

C1 ORIGINALS 2018: Review of ASUANG: Mock Mythology

October 19, 2018

Twenty years ago, Asuang (the mischievous god of sins) was humiliated on television by his elder brother Gugurang (the draconian god of goodness). Since then, Asuang eschewed his godhood and had been concentrating his efforts to trend on social media instead. He even had a film crew led by Direk Aica to document his every move, all with lousy results. When Mayon Volcano was acting up to explode, Asuang saw his chance to be a big hero by stealing the sacred fire, saving the world and be a viral sensation doing it.

Alwyn Uytingco was the pulsating narcissistic center of this absurdist film. He was manic, over-the-top and shameless as Asuang, or his desperately trying-hard social media persona Ash Ang. He was no-holds-barred in doing whatever it took to make his character pop, no matter how crazy, disgusting or cringey the gag. For me, his antics, while delightful, were rather hit and miss, but I think it was more a problem of the script than Alwyn's. 

The rest of the cast had to keep up with Alwyn's energy level, with varying results. Chai Fonacier was the wry, patient and dedicated director Aica. Her crew was composed of soundman Jomar (Brenda Mage), cameraman Bert (Tads Obach) and script girl Chelsea (Toni Almazan). The eerily accurate Karen Davila impersonator Kaladkaren played the ageless hostess Janet of the very long-running TV talk show Albay.

The rest of the gods of Bikol mythology were played by Paolo O'Hara (the nebulous Gugurang), Earl Figuracion (as the party boy storm god Onos), Jelson Bay (as the "small but terrible" Ekis), Chrome Cosio (as Ekis's action star wannabe brother Ompong), and Jun Sabayton (as the out-of-shape guardian of Mayon, Lord Okot). Nats Sitoy was Asuang's sneaky shape-shifting sidekick KitKat. Lui Manansala played the prophetic babaylan Adelaida. Hashtag member Jon Lucas played the stoic skillful thief of the gods, Miguel. 

I was encouraged by positive reviews to go check it out, but came out generally unamused and disappointed. The story concept is fine on paper -- a mock documentary with a message about the nature of reality on social media. The execution by young director Raynier Brizuela aimed to be hip and cool for the millennial target demographic. However, for older viewers like me, the breezy freewheeling style came across as a bit crude and haphazard.  4/10. 

C1 ORIGINALS 2018: Review of A SHORT HISTORY OF A FEW BAD THINGS: Deceiving Detectives

October 17, 2018

A man named Daniel Binaohan was shot point blank and killed by a motorcycle rider while he was waiting for the light to turn green at an intersection. Cebu City police chief Ouano assigned senior detective Felix Tarooy and his partner Jay Mendoza to the case. They encountered one dead end after another in their investigation, with no clear suspect. Five other people died grisly deaths in the next days. At the last minute, Tarooy realized a shared connection based on a past event that had been staring him right in the eye.

Victor Neri is really at home playing these gritty police officer characters. His Felix Tarooy was glum, unsmiling, and had a mind of his own, to a fault. He seemed to have had a painful past, always looking at a video of a young boy on his phone, but we never get his complete story. Jay Gonzaga played Jay Mendoza as the cool cop, charming with a sense of humor, balancing the dourness of Tarooy. 

Publio Briones III played Chief Ouano, a colorful character who had mood lights in his office and preferred speaking in English. The scenes where Ouano was involved were the most interesting in terms of character interactions, and we can pick up some insights about the people he spoke to. Briones kept his portrayal of Ouano light and likable, even if we knew he was dead serious. 

Maricel Sombrio played Gemma, the young wife of a much older man who was also one of the victims. Kent Divinagracia played Ivan, a young man who worked for Gemma's husband Hector as a coconut sap extractor. Julius Augustus Amrad played the first victim Daniel Binaohan, while Reynaldo Samaco played his imposing father Arturo. Arnel Mardoquio played the rich businessman Trifon "Tito" Abog, flamboyant in white but radiating danger. Vitto Neri, Victor's son in real life, played Abog's gun-toting teenage son Marty. 

Director Keith Deligero's decision to cast local Cebuano actors gave this film a unique flavor all its own. Their unpolished portrayals gave a odd sense of realism, awkward as some of them may have been. The humor is subtle but effective, though I suspect some of it may have been lost in the translation of the subtitles. The background music was very eclectic ranging from Cebuano pop to heavy metal to long piercing high-pitched tones. 

As far as crime dramas go, Deligero's very laid back storytelling style may not have been as exciting as Raya Martin's style in "Smaller and Smaller Circles," but it was absorbing just the same with its rustic pacing and quirky characters. 7/10.