Review of SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 3: Riotous Robotniks!

January 15, 2025

One day, super-speedster Sonic the Hedgehog (Ben Schwartz) was given a surprise party by his fellow alien friends tech fox Tails (Colleen O'Shaughnessy) and muscle-man echidna Knuckles (Idris), together with their adoptive parents Sheriff Tom (James Marsden) and veterinarian Maddie (Tika Sumpter) Wachowski in their home in Green Hills, Montana. They were celebrating the anniversary of Sonic's arrival on Earth. 

However, Guardian Union of Nations (G.U.N.) Director Rockwell (Krysten Ritter) arrived to tell them that another alien hedgehog named Shadow (Keanu Reeves) had escaped from the G.U.N. facility in Tokyo. Team Sonic dutifully went to contain the situation, but Shadow turned out to be too strong for them. When he saw that they are going against the same foe, Sonic sought an alliance from their nemesis Dr. Ivo Robotnik (Jim Carrey).

After adding Tails and Knuckles in the second installment, this current installment of the Sonic franchise introduced us to Sonic look-alike Shadow. His backstory dated back to 1974 when the meteorite containing him crash-landed in Oklahoma. We meet Maria (Alila Browne) the first human who treated him as a friend, instead of a scientific specimen. Something bad happened back then that made Shadow bitter and angry throughout his incarceration.

The comedic adventures and misadventures of Team Sonic was geared towards a younger audience, but surely the adults will also find their rapid-fire banter and silly slapstick hilarious. Of course, the colorfully-animated characters were so chipper and frenetic as expected. However, I got a lot of laughs from Marsden and Sumpter as well, especially during that part when they could shapeshift into other characters while infiltrating enemy territory.  

However, the best part of the whole film is still Jim Carrey. He always had been, and still very much is the life of the whole party in every Sonic film. It is doubly entertaining for this particular episode because there was literally two of him (Ivo and his grandfather Gerald), giving us twice the dose of outrageous, over-the-top physical comedy that only Jim Carrey can deliver, this time with an extra dash of heartwarming sentiment towards the end. 7/10. 

 

Review of SONG OF THE FIREFLIES: Chronicles of a Children's Choir

January 9, 2025

The Loboc Children's Choir (LCC) from Bohol was founded by its musical director and conductor Ms. Alma Taldo (Morissette), a regular language, math and home economics teacher at the local public school. In 1980, Mrs. Equet Butalid (Rachel Alejandro), the wife of the governor of Bohol and a classically-trained musician herself, became their patron in their quest to win the finals of the National Music Competitions for Young Artists (NAMCYA). 

Herbert (Noel Comia Jr.) and Jackie (Krystal Brimner) were among the new members of the choir in 1981. From good childhood friends, puppy love was blooming between them as they attended the daily choral practices. Herbert's attention would be distracted because his father (Floyd Tena) had not been coming home from Manila. On top of that, the spoiled city-bred Timmy Butalid (Tommy Alejandrino) had his eyes on Jackie. 

This charming and humble little film was written by renowned writer Sarge Lacuesta, his first completed screenplay. He would then go on to write "An Errand" which was released first, as an entry in the Cinemalaya 2024.  It is directed by King Palisoc, whose first two films were "Tandem" (2015) and "Kampon" (2023). Compared to their past filmography, this film was very different -- much lighter in tone, positive in vibe and inspirational in intention.

This is the debut of pop singer Morrisette as a film actress, and she is immediately thrust into the lead role of Alma Taldo. She only has one solo full-length inspirational ballad, and she did not need her multi-octave belting prowess nor her whistle notes. As an actress, her acting felt tentative and self-conscious. But then again, Ms. Taldo also felt out of place and insecure as a teacher with no formal training in the midst of bonafide music professionals. 

Equet Butalid was portrayed with a rather confusing sentiment by the writer and director. In the very first scene, she immediately got into a conflict with Alma. For the rest of the film, we do not really know how she really stood for -- was she a generous benefactor or an insidious credit-stealer? Nevertheless, Rachel Alejandro was always elegant playing her, and the duet she sang with Morrisette while playing the piano was a major musical highlight.

Aside from Comia and Brimner, who were both professional theater actors, the rest of the children were actual members of the real LCC. Some of them proved to be winsome natural actors, like Khian Carl Donasco (as Herbert's buddy Buboy), Grey Danielle Dialogo (as Jackie's buddy Stella), and Angel Alcala (as Fe, the girl who could not hit the note).  Comia and Brimner bonded well with their choirmates, as friends and language coaches.   

The primary highlight of this film is the angelic choral singing by the LCC (as well as the other children's choirs featured) rendering lilting folk songs, classic ballads and religious hymns in Filipino, English or even Latin. Musical direction was by Krina Cayabyab, with original songs composed by Ryan Cayabyab, Louie Ocampo, Raymond Marasigan and Jazz Nicolas. We'd welcome a soundtrack album to revisit these beautiful songs over and over again. 

The production design team kept the locations, props and costumes consistent to the early 1980s period when the story was set. We even see how the town of Loboc had grown from back then to the present. Boomers and Gen X will feel the nostalgia of seeing 1980s Manila again via newsreels integrated in the narrative. The languid cinematography of Pong Ignacio also adds to the gentle, calming rural vibe that envelopes this heartwarming film. 7/10

***** SPOILER ALERT: 

The story of Alma, how she trained the children, and the journey of the choir to the National Finals of the NAMCYA was straightforward enough. However, after all of the buildup, the ending was rather anti-climactic, because we do not see the winners' announcement per se. We assume that they won, but did they? Articles about NAMCYA history stated that LCC won first prize in 1993, 1995 and 2001, but not in 1981 as depicted in the film. 

RANKING THE 10 METRO MANILA FILMFEST 2024 ENTRIES

January 8, 2025

This year is the 50th anniversary of the Metro Manila Film Festival, so expectations were running high about the 10 entries which will comprise the lineup of this milestone edition. 

On July 16, 2024 when the first five entries, accepted based on scripts alone, were announced -- "And the Breadwinner is…," "Green Bones," "Strange Frequencies: Haunted Hospital,""Himala: Isang Musikal," and "The Kingdom." (Note how some of the titles have changed since then.) Five more films, judged based on finished film submissions, were revealed on October 23, 2024, to complete a list of 10. 

I was fortunate to have been invited to three press previews prior to the first day on December 25 -- all of which turned out to be the 3 of the 4 films cited as Best Picture. I was away during the final week of 2023, so I was only able to watch the rest of the 7 films when we came back home after the New Year. This is how I ranked them based on the ratings I gave each of them:

10. HOLD ME CLOSE by Jason Paul Laxamana (MY FULL REVIEW) 

Laxamana added a touch of the supernatural to explain how Lynlyn got her mysterious ability, but its full mechanics were rather unclear. Suspension of disbelief aside, it does provoke you think critically about possessing such a talent. Is it really good if you can predict your future with a certain person? If you can sense that someone can someday cause you pain, how would you decide to abandoned him if this person is making you feel happy now?

9. AND THE BREADWINNER IS ... by Jun Robles Lana (MY FULL REVIEW) 

This movie is Jun Lana's unsubtle way to tell these families to wake up to the plight of their relatives working their bones out abroad. Bambi's dramatic highlight was a monologue saying that he needs to rest once in a while. In return, the family back home have to make sensible investments to make the money grow. Watching his parasitic family making all sorts of lame excuses and throwing spite at Bambi was appalling to watch. 

8. TOPAKK by Richard Somes (MY FULL REVIEW) 

I watched the R-18 cut, so there was certainly a lot of bloody graphic violence. When bandits cut the necks, they don't just slash it once and it's over. Their knives must've all been dull that day, so we had to watch them sawing back and forth, as the blades were ripping skin and muscle open. Queasy folks will probably need to watch through their fingers to be able to get through this and other similarly brutish scenes involving cutting heads off. 

7. UNINVITED by Dan Villegas (MY FULL REVIEW) 

Dan Villegas comes back as director for the first time since 2018 in a genre as far from his rom-com comfort zone as can be.  A crime thriller with melodramatic sensibilities, "Uninvited" could be the most mainstream script of horror writer Dodo Dayao,.  The film is good-looking no doubt, but there were big plot holes, too-convenient clues, lucky coincidences, impossible scenarios, and a lack of Lilia's background that made it feel like it could've been done better. 

6. ESPANTAHO by Chito S. Rono (MY FULL REVIEW) 

Each deaths this time feature various farmland pests -- giving these scenes a definite squeamish feeling of disgust. Chito Rono's execution of these scenes prove that he is a master of the genre. Fans can still catch the sassy witticisms of writer Chris Martinez peppered among his juicy convolutions and stunning revelations. This was especially true in the scenes featuring the shaman Georgia, played by Eugene Domingo. 

5. MY FUTURE YOU by Crisanto B. Aquino (MY FULL REVIEW) 

Writer-director Crisanto Aquino intertwined the Lex-Karen love story with the stories of their respective families, which apart from the other timeline films before it. Stories that involve time are very tricky and prone to plot holes, especially when several characters are involved. Aquino crafted his tale with so much care and heart that even the most jaded viewers will be moved so much that little questionable details won't matter anymore. 

4. STRANGE FREQUENCIES: TAIWAN KILLER HOSPITAL by Kerwin Go (MY FULL REVIEW) 

A remake of the Korean horror film "Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum" (2018), this was supposed to be the first meta found-footage Filipino film ever. This whole film was a high achievement in cinematic technical elements -- film editing, production design, visual effects, musical score and especially the award-winning sound design -- all of which director Kerwin Go successfully used to create an immersive, realistic experience of fear for audiences.

3. THE KINGDOM by Michael Tuviera (MY FULL REVIEW) 

You can clearly see the efforts of director Michael Tuviera, scriptwriter Michelle Ngu and production designer Nestor Abrogena Jr. to build this alternate reality within which our country existed in the film. They were advised by professors of history and anthropology to guide their world-building. They were meticulous in details of fashion, ornaments, tattoos, and interior decor. Direction, screenplay, production and costume design merit award consideration.

2. GREEN BONES by Zig Dulay (MY FULL REVIEW) 

Ricky Lee and Anj Atienza told this crime story from two perspectives -- Gonzaga's first, then Dom's. Director Zig Dulay's knack for visual storytelling was topnotch as he riveted our attention from beginning to end. The scenic island location for the penal colony, complete with stately lighthouse and an old tree with a dramatic crown of leaves, was surely a dream come true for cinematographer Neil Daza. Nominations are forthcoming for all of them. 

1. ISANG HIMALA by Pepe Diokno (MY FULL REVIEW) 

A solar eclipse occurred over the cursed town of Cupang. That day, a 29 year-old country girl named Elsa (Aicelle Santos) said that she saw the Blessed Virgin Mary who granted her the ability to heal. The parish priest (Floyd Tena) was skeptical, but Elsa went on with her mission, assisted by her mother Saling (Bituin Escalante), best friend Chayong (Neomi Gonzales), grateful neighbor Sepa (Joann Co) and local socialite Mrs. Alba (Sweet Plantado).  

Director Pepe Diokno grabbed the formidable material by the horns and made sure all its key plot and message points come across clearly and engagingly to the audience. Vincent de Jesus's big dramatic songs transitioned very well onto the big screen. Ricky Lee's religious debate of a script, with its biting socio-political commentary, remain as complex and thought-provoking as it did before, proof of its timeless and lasting significance. 

MMFF 2024: Review of HOLD ME CLOSE: Testing by Touch

January 7, 2025

Coming from a home with marital strife, restless nomad Woody (Carlo Aquino) has been moving around city to city all around the world trying to find his "perfect home." If he thought the place was wrong for him, he would spin his trusty globe around and point randomly at any country to choose his next destination. This time, he found himself in a small quiet seaside city on the island of Kyushu, Japan called Karatsu. 

At the local market, Woody was attracted to the stall of three Filipino siblings selling fresh squid. The eldest girl was Lynlyn (Julia Barretto), and her brothers were Tantan (Jairus Aquino) and Botbot (Migo Valid). Woody noted Lynlyn behaving weirdly, touching his hand and face. Lynlyn revealed that she had the ability to tell if a stranger was positive or negative for her just be mere touch. She had neutral reaction with Woody.

This is already the second film of writer-director Jason Paul Laxamana to be set in the Saga Prefecture on Kyushu, Japan, both using grants by the film commission there. The first one was "Between Maybes" (2019), starring Julia Barretto and Gerald Anderson. Like he did for Saga previously, Laxamana used the picturesque sights of Karatsu to their full potential, particularly the bright yellow canola fields and the observation deck on Mt. Kagamiyama.

Carlo Aquino's rather careless hair styling and make-up here made him look gaunt in some scenes, betraying the 12-year age-gap between him and Barretto in real life. Romantic chemistry may not have been instant, but luckily, the sincerity of Aquino and Barretto's acting eventually convinced us of their characters' true feelings for each other, over and beyond the alarming warning signals sent by Lynlyn's prophetic touch. However, making Woody resort to alcohol so much did not exactly help making him look more positive.

Laxamana added a touch of the supernatural to explain how Lynlyn got her mysterious ability, but its full mechanics were rather unclear. Suspension of disbelief aside, it does provoke you think critically about possessing such a talent. Is it really good if you can predict your future with a certain person? If you can sense that someone can someday cause you pain, how would you decide to abandoned him if this person is making you feel happy now? But also thought-provoking was why Lynlyn and bros were in Karatsu in the first place.  5/10

MMFF 2024: Review of AND THE BREADWINNER IS ... : OFW Ordeals

January 6, 2025

Bamboo "Bambi" Salvador (Vice Ganda) has been working multiple jobs in Taipei for 15 years, regularly sending money and goods to his family back home in Arayat, Pampanga. He had a widowed Momshie (Malou de Guzman) and three younger siblings, namely Biboy (Jhong Hilario), Buneng (Maris Racal) and Boy (Kokoy de Santos). Biboy was married to Mayet (Gladys Reyes), and had two kids, Danda (Kulot Caponpon) and Argus (Puge). 

Bambi had been receiving updates from his family about the house he was asking Biboy to build for them. So this year, Bambi decided not to renew his contract and booked a flight home to surprise everyone on his birthday. However, he was dismayed to discover that there had actually been no new house built at all. Worse, all the money he had been sending home went to failed investments, and their old house had been mortgaged to pay off a debt.

The story should be very familiar to Filipino moviegoers, many of whom have members who have been overseas workers. It is quite well-known that the family back home depended so much on the earnings and gifts of their parents or siblings working abroad, so much that the OFWs have to take on extra jobs and shifts in order to comply with all the family expenses and requests. Even if the OFW willing takes on this responsibility, this is an unfortunate reality that is still prevalent even if it had already been tackled in several previous OFW-themed films.

This movie is Jun Lana's unsubtle way to tell these families to wake up to the plight of their relatives working their bones out abroad. Bambi's dramatic highlight was a monologue saying that he (and others like him) need to rest once in a while. In return, the family back home have to make sensible investments to make the money grow. Watching Biboy et al making all sorts of lame excuses, and even have the gall to throw spite at Bambi, was appalling to watch. We hope they serve as mirrors to reflect to those concerned how ugly this behavior looked.

Lana also threw shade on OFWs who go abroad only to abandon their relatives back home when things do not work out as planned, like Bambi's eldest sister Baby (Eugene Domingo). Lana also brought up the issue of how desperate people would resort to scams to gain money not rightfully theirs. This part of the story was disturbing as it may sound like they were even rationalizing the crime, especially with that cutesy persuasive speech by Maris Racal (who coincidentally also played a scammer in another recent film, "Marupok AF").

Despite the generally melodramatic premise of the film, Lana did not deny Vice Ganda fans his signature brand of slapstick comedy that they were expecting in his MMFF comeback after a 2-year hiatus from films. During the Taipei scenes at the start of the film, we see Bambi's silly interactions with his co-workers Jovie (Lassy) and Mikha (Petite). We get to see Vice dressed and made-up in a number of his past film characters (Praybeyt Benjamin, Girlie Jackstone and Gandarra) in ironically outrageous ways to remain incognito. 6/10. 

MMFF 2024: Review of TOPAKK: Triggered by Trauma

January 4, 2025

Miguel Vergara (Arjo Atayde) led his team of elite military command force soldiers against notorious bandits. Only Miguel survived this deadly encounter, and he witnessed his men executed by cutting off their heads, including his best friend Leon (Enchong Dee). Provoked into action by his explosive fury, Miguel single-handedly killed all the bandits there. However, he subsequently suffered from a debilitating PTSD that cost him his job.

He took on a job as a security guard of a huge abandoned warehouse.  On his first night on the job, he caught siblings Weng (Julia Montes) and Bogs (Kokoy De Santos) enter his area of responsibility. They had witnessed the rub-out of a gang of drug pushers by a group of crooked anti-narcotics task force led by Romero (Sid Lucero). The cops were under pressure from the big boss mayor herself to catch these loose ends and eliminate them ASAP.

Despite his fair mestizo looks, Arjo Atayde preferred to be involved in action-drama projects than rom-coms. Since he gained mainstream recognition playing Police Capt. Joaquin Tuazon, the first main antagonist of Cardo Dalisay on "Ang Probinsyano" (2015), Atayde never shirked from playing roles of damaged men, like Benjo Malaya from "Bagman" (2019) or Anton dela Rosa on "The Cattleya Killer" (2023). And now, Miguel Vergara joins that list.

Atayde's security guard Miguel had a flat monotone voice of deep timbre when he talked, and a flat monotone affect on his face whatever was happening around him. These details Atayde gave Miguel made him look and feel more imposing than his relatively slim build may suggest. Atayde's slight physique was in stark contrast with Sid Lucero's formidable heft in their final showdown fight, but by then we already know and accept that Miguel was invincible.

Julia Montes's Weng had already quit being a drug runner for Banjo (Jeffrey Tam), but because of Bogs' foolishness, she was forced to step back in. You just have to be amazed at the fortitude of Weng's constitution at the way she can recover so fully after being repeatedly stomped on her belly and having her head repeatedly banged against a metal surface. The loud sound made by every blow on Weng's body can cause viewers double up in pain.

The direction and execution of the action scenes reminded me of Somes' previous "We Will Not Die Tonight" (2018), where the main story also just happened in the course of one long night. Somes' production design still consisted of empty warehouses with a lot of plastic sheets hanging around, but this one had a flame thrower and a rotatory saw table in there. Again, Jaymie Dumancas' clean flawless editing deserves award citation. 

I watched the R-18 cut, so there was certainly a lot of bloody graphic violence. When bandits cut the necks, they don't just slash it once and it's over. Their knives must've all been dull that day, so we had to watch them sawing back and forth, as the blades were ripping skin and muscle open. Queasy folks will need to watch through their fingers to get through this and other similarly brutish scenes involving cutting heads off. I wonder how much of these scenes were cut to tame it down to R-16.  6/10

MMFF 2024: Review of STRANGE FREQUENCIES: TAIWAN KILLER HOSPITAL: Horrific Hoopla in Haunted Hospital

January 3, 2025

Actor Enrique Gil came up with "Strange Frequencies" where he would lead a group of celebrities to visit some of the most haunted places in the world. For its opening salvo, Gil chose to visit the infamous Xinglin Hospital in Taiwan. This hospital had been closed down 30 years ago after reports of malpractice that led to multiple patient deaths. Since then, it had attracted ghost hunters the world over, even if many of them do not live to tell their tales.  

Gil invited a motley group of celebrities for this trip. This includes his friends from show business like Jane de Leon, Rob Gomez, and Alexa Miro, along with beauty queen MJ Lastimosa, ghost-hunting YouTuber Ryan "Zarckaroo" Azurin and gay tarot card reader Raf Pineda. Despite warnings from a Taiwanese medium that their planned show disrespected the spirits trapped in that place, Gil and his foolhardy crew still proceeded with their plans. 

The first remarkable thing about this film was that the main cast of actors were starring as themselves. Apparent early on was the satiric take on showbiz types -- ever-conscious of the talent fees they were going to earn after this project, which was dependent on the social media engagement they can generate with their live stream. There was a goal to reach a magic number of 3,000,000 views, for which each actor will get double their fees.

Production designer Jerann Ordinario should be commended for creating those spooky sets of the children's ward (with those creepy crayon drawings and old photo albums) and the operating room (which was turned into demotic ritual temple). It was also very interesting to see modern equipment used in ghost-hunting, like electromagnetic field (EMF) detectors, ghost balls, radiating electro-magneticity (REM) pods, EVP spirit box and strapped on camera rigs focused on their faces (which caused a lot of vertiginous shaky scenes). 

Being a show aiming to generate views, certain "roles" were given to the actors, like Rob as the loud annoying prankster, Alexa as the reckless, "anything for a hit show" one, MJ as the pragmatic non-believer. With "I Am Not Big Bird" and this, Enrique Gil is determined to break away from the love team movies he used to do. But here, it was Jane de Leon as the most level-headed team member who got the more stressfully grim acting moments, fully deserving her Best Actress nomination. Try to read the comments of the netizens watching the live video, as they can be quite darkly funny (like the Darna reference for Jane). 

A remake of the Korean horror film "Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum" (2018), this was supposed to be the first meta found-footage Filipino film ever. This whole film was a high achievement in cinematic technical elements -- film editing, production design, visual effects, musical score and especially the award-winning sound design -- all of which director Kerwin Go successfully used to create an immersive, realistic experience of fear for audiences. 8/10

MMFF 2024: Review of MY FUTURE YOU: Testing the Tides of Time

January 3, 2025

Alexander "Lex" Ramos (Seth Fedelin) is a 21 year-old fine arts graduate from Cebu. Karenina "Karen" Lopez (Francine Diaz) is a 21 year-old business administration graduate from Marikina City.  On one night when a big comet was in the sky, they simultaneously registered on an online dating app and were matched right away. They started to chat with each other, with Lex called himself Aquarius Boy, while Karen was Libra Gurl.

It was instant attraction at first online sight for both of them, and they got along very well in their daily chats. Not long afterwards, Lex suggested that it was time for them to meet up in person. When Karen agreed, Lex proposed that they meet on September 14 at 7 p.m. in front of the Centennial Clock at Kilometer Zero in Luneta Park. Lex flew over to Manila and excitedly went to their meeting place at the specified time. Sadly, Karen did not show up.

From there, this story of young love took a turn for the supernatural as they realized that their respective timelines were actually 15 years apart. This was not an original plot by any means as we have seen this played out in films like the Korean film "Il Mare" (2000), which was then remade in Hollywood as "The Lake House" (2006), the Japanese anime film "Your Name" (2016), and more recently, the local film "Love You Long Time" (2023).

However, writer-director Crisanto Aquino intertwined the Lex-Karen love story with the stories of their respective families, which apart from the other timeline films before it. Stories that involve time are very tricky and prone to plot holes, especially when several characters are involved. Aquino crafted his tale with so much care and heart that even the most jaded viewers will be moved so much that little questionable details won't matter anymore. 

Both Seth Fedelin and Francine Diaz shine brightly in this debut film of their love team. Fedelin in particular gives a winsome, star-making performance as the charming artist Lex. Bodjie Pascua, Peewee O'Hara, and Vance Larena play Lex's family, while Almira Muhlach, Christian Vasquez, Marcus Madrigal and Izzy Canillo play Karen's. Aquino's story intricately weaving in all these characters proved to be such a rich tapestry when it unfolded.

Now, let's talk about that ending. I can imagine that Aquino's biggest challenge was how to show Lex as a 36 year-old man. I'm afraid that it didn't work too well for me, not too convincingly executed.  However, by that time, the #Franseth partnership had already built up so much good will, and the lines were so eloquently written, most audiences would just accept it as the sweeping, timeless romantic moment that it wanted to be. 7/10. 

MMFF 2024: Review of UNINVITED: Defying Destiny

January 2, 2025

One night, single mother Lilia Capistrano (Vilma Santos) attended a fancy birthday party held in the mansion of the very wealthy Guilly Vera (Aga Muhlach), who was celebrating his 55th birthday. Introducing herself as Ms. Eva Candelaria, a donor of Vera's foundation, Lilia was able to strike up conversations with several people whom she actually did not know, including Vera's wife Katrina (Mylene Dizon) and their daughter Nicole (Nadine Lustre).  

Lilia's presence at the party, uninvited and under cover, was brought about by a heinous crime committed against Lilia's daughter Lily (Gabby Padilla) -- truly a nightmare which could push any parent over the edge. However, Lily was no shrinking violet when it came to getting justice for her child's sad fate. Unlike other mothers who would flee to forget the pain, Lilia wanted to face her daughter's tormentors to demand an eye for an eye.

Fresh from her surprising (for me) Best Actress win for "When I Met You in Tokyo" at last year's MMFF, Miss Vilma Santos is back in her darkest role since "Tagos ng Dugo" (1987) and "Lipa Massacre" (1994).  Even at age 71 now, Santos can still pull off playing a mother of a college student. And more than that, this role got her to drive cars, shoot guns, and best of all, attempt to kill goons twice her size. Now that is what you call tenacity as an actor.

Two usually wholesome actors really went way out of their comfort zones here. Aga Muhlach started played the evil Don Guilly with seriously scary sinister vibes. However, he went overboard in the third act, winding up with a caricaturish, inadvertently funny portrayal right at the film's climax.  In contrast, Nadine Lustre's Nicole had scenes doing drugs, having sex, cursing like a sailor, but in the end, she had an award-bait acting moment and nailed it. 

A crime thriller with melodramatic sensibilities, "Uninvited" could be the most mainstream script of horror writer Dodo Dayao.  The circumstances of the crime against Lily and Tofy (Elijah Canlas) were reminiscent of the 1993 Elieen Sarmenta - Allan Gomez rape-slay case. This suggests that the character of Guilly Vera may have been inspired by the notorious mayor involved in that sensational crime. 

Dan Villegas comes back as director for the first time since 2018 in a genre as far from his rom-com comfort zone as can be.  The film is good-looking no doubt with its lush cinematography and elegant production design. However, there were big plot holes, too-convenient clues, lucky coincidences, impossible scenarios, and a lack of Lilia's background that made it feel like it could've been done better. 6/10 

MMFF 2024: Review of ESPANTAHO: Painting of Pestilence

January 2, 2025

After her recently deceased father Pabling was buried, Monet had the "pasiyam" (nine-day prayers for the dead) held in their old house. Her husband Jack (JC Santos) had business out of town, so Monet was only left with her young son Keith (Kian Co), loyal helpers Frida (Donna Cariaga) and Henri (Nico Antonio), and her short-tempered, over-protective mother Rosa (Lorna Tolentino) with her during this stressful time. 

Among the things Jack left behind was a eerie-looking painting of a scarecrow in the middle of a field. The next day, Pabling's bitter and demanding legal wife Adele (Chanda Romero) marched into the house, together with her two children, Roy (Mon Confiado) and Andie (Janice de Belen), wanting to sell the properties which she claimed. However, people in the house began disappearing one by one in mysterious circumstances.

In her first film in 5 years, Judy Ann Santos shows that she hasn't lost her touch for nuanced internal acting in her portrayal of long-suffering martyr Monet. Lorna Tolentino shone her moments of fearsome rage, but the true nature of her Rosa was quite obvious from the start. In contrast, the fabulous Chanda Romero played the furious Adele to the hilt of camp, especially in that nauseating scene when something was coming out of her mouth.  

When the characters here started dying in bizarre ways, one was reminded of director Chito Rono's acclaimed horror classic -- "Feng Shui" (2004), and we recognize how Roño was and is such a master of this genre. However, instead of being preceded by Chinese zodiac creatures, the deaths this time feature various farmland pests -- giving these scenes a definite squeamish feeling of disgust. It was quite distracting though why Rono allowed one of the deaths to break the pattern and did not involve a pest.

This was only the second full-length horror written by Chris Martinez after "Sukob" (2006, also with Rono as director). Even then, fans can still catch his sassy witticisms peppered among the juicy convolutions and stunning revelations in his script. This was especially true in the scenes featuring the shaman Georgia, played by Eugene Domingo. However, I felt that final detail about a Chinese businessman to be too much, which made the third act prone to plot holes. 7/10

My Yearend Roundup: The BEST FOREIGN FILMS of 2024 That I Have Seen

January 1, 2025

Here are the best foreign films I had seen and written about in the year 2024. Not included in this countdown were the 2022 films only shown locally in 2023, like "Anatomy of a Fall" or "The Holdovers." Also not included here were outstanding Oscar-primed 2024 films, but have not yet been released in the country, either in cinemas or streaming sites (no VPN), like "The Brutalist," "Emilia Perez," "Sing Sing," "A Real Pain," or "Maria."

Like previous years, I divided my yearend best-of-films list into two: foreign films (both in English and not) in this post, and Filipino films in a separate post (LINK). I was out of the country during the QCinema filmfest this year, so I was sadly not able to watch Cannes Palme d'Or champion "Anora" and other films like "The Room Next Door" by Pedro Almodovar, "All We Imagine as Light" by Payal Kapadia (India), and closing film "Cloud" by Kiyoshi Kurosawa (Japan).

HONORABLE MENTIONS 

30. HORIZON: AN AMERICAN SAGA -- CHAPTER 1 by Kevin Costner (MY FULL REVIEW)

28. STRANGE DARLING by JT Mollner (MY FULL REVIEW)

27. SMILE 2 by Parker Finn (MY FULL REVIEW)

26. THE FIRST OMEN by Arkasha Stevenson and Antonio Campos (MY FULL REVIEW)

26. KINGDOM OF THE PLANET OF THE APES by Wes Ball (MY FULL REVIEW)

25. WOMAN OF THE HOUR by Anna Kendrick (MY FULL REVIEW)

24. A QUIET PLACE: DAY ONE by Michael Sarnoski (MY FULL REVIEW)

23. BAD BOYS: RIDE OR DIE by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah (MY FULL REVIEW)

22. HIT MAN by Richard Linklater (MY FULL REVIEW)

21. INSIDE OUT 2 by Kelsey Mann (MY FULL REVIEW)

20. CABRINI by Alejandro Gómez Monteverde (MY FULL REVIEW)

19. LONGLEGS by Oz Perkins (MY FULL REVIEW)

18. FURIOSA: A MAD MAX SAGA by George Miller (MY FULL REVIEW)

17. CIVIL WAR by Alex Garland (MY FULL REVIEW)

16. THE APPRENTICE by Ali Abbasi (MY FULL REVIEW)

15. BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE by Tim Burton (MY FULL REVIEW)

14. LATE NIGHT WITH THE DEVIL by Colin and Cameron Cairnes (MY FULL REVIEW)

13. CHALLENGERS by Luca Guadagnino (MY FULL REVIEW)

12. LOOK BACK (MY FULL REVIEW)

11. THE FALL GUY by David Leitch (MY FULL REVIEW)

10. TRANSFORMERS ONE (MY FULL REVIEW) by Josh Cooley

This new animated feature by Paramount Animation and Hasbro Entertainment reintroduced us to the younger, more foolish versions of Optimus Prime and Megatron before they had their iconic names. We also meet future Autobots like Elita One and B-127 (a.k.a. Bumblebee), and Decepticons like Starscream and Shockwave. It told the story how their epic rivalry began, but I personally thought it was a bit simplistic (unless more details will be revealed later). 

9. EXHUMA (MY FULL REVIEW) by Jang Jae-hyun

Surely, the all-star cast was a factor for its box office. Choi Min-sik's magnetic screen presence as the authoritative geomancer has not diminished at all. Hearing Kim Go-eun and Lee Do-hyun as shamans chanting spells was quite memorable. The eerie atmosphere and ghostly effects had us at the edge of our seats. That giant wire-bound coffin was terrifying sight in itself, but more so when we see the samurai creature inside rise up to its full towering height.

8. HOW TO MAKE MILLIONS BEFORE GRANDMA DIES (MY FULL REVIEW) by Pat Boonnitipat

I am sure most Gen Z's can see themselves in the way Billkin portrayed M, as their Gen X parents see themselves as Mengju's children. Surely, most tears shed by the audience are tinged with guilt, as the movie makes us reflect about our own elders, and how we are treating (or treated) them. With the ominous title, as well as the opening scene in the cemetery, we know how the film will end. However, the twists and turns getting there are worth our while. 

7. THE WILD ROBOT (MY FULL REVIEW) by Chris Sanders

The animation style was described to be a cross between classic Disney (particularly "Bambi") and Miyazaki (particularly "My Neighbor Totoro"), and this was quite evident. The color palette was deep and rich. The animal designs were very cute, from the sea otters who turned Roz on first, Fink the fox, mommy Pinktail and her baby opossums, peaking in that Noah's Ark situation with all the wildlife gathered together under one roof during a destructive storm. 

6. CONCLAVE (MY FULL REVIEW) by Edward Berger

Notwithstanding that this election was happening in the hallowed halls of the Vatican, it was still a political activity among men, so there will be sides to choose from. Here, it was also a face-off of liberals (who were pushing all their woke advocacies) and the traditionalists (who wanted none of those). Catholics in the audience will also find themselves rooting for their own sides -- that was how effectively Peter Straughan wrote the arguments in his script.

5. THE SUBSTANCE (MY FULL REVIEW) by Coralie Fargeat

This audaciously shocking body-horror film written and directed by French filmmaker Coralie Fargeat did not shirk from showing exaggeratedly disgusting scenes of graphic gore and grotesque deformity to drive home her satiric points against ageism in show business and the extremes done in order to maintain beauty and fame. Demi Moore gave a bravely meta portrayal of fading star Elisabeth, which can lead to an Oscar nomination for Best Actress

4. WICKED by Jon M. Chu (MY FULL REVIEW)

Oscar nominations are expected for the technical aspects of this film, led by the inspired direction of Jon M. Chu, who grasped the ambitious scale of this production by the horns and succeeding, despite some issues with pace.  Nods in production design, costume design, hair and makeup, visual effects and sound are in the bag -- as exemplified in complex numbers like "Dancing Through Life," "Popular" and, of course, "Defying Gravity." 

3. DUNE PART TWO by Denis Villeneuve (MY FULL REVIEW)

The technical merits of this sequel maintains the high standards of cinematography (Greig Fraser), film editing (Joe Walker) and musical score (Hans Zimmer) set in the first film. The scenes featuring the sandworms were excellently executed, from the exhilarating first time Paul rode the giant grandfather worm Shai Hulud, or that scene where the Maker Keeper (Alison Halstead) demonstrates how to extract the Water of Life from a teenage worm.

2. DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE by Shawn Levy (MY FULL REVIEW)

The main driving force of this Shawn Levy film is the terrific interaction between the two title characters who both have the power of regenerative healing, which meant that they can slash, stab, impale, shred through each other with their Adamantium blades and survive to inflict more. On a more humorous vein, there was a generous dose of gay bromance gags between the two guys, peaking in that climactic costume-popping "Time Ripper" scene. 

1. GODZILLA MINUS ONE by Takashi Yamazaki (MY FULL REVIEW)

The story of this new prequel film brings viewers back to a sensitive period in world history, showing how World War II had affected the common people in Japan. The threat of Godzilla came at a time when Japan was at its most vulnerable and desperate -- dealing with the socio-political aftermath of a war they lost, having their entire weapons arsenal decommissioned, and unable to get international assistance that they needed in this crisis. 

Then, there was also the personal story of our protagonist, as only the Japanese can tell them. Shikishima was a flawed man, haunted by the guilt of being a coward and a failure. He was unable to bring himself to marry Noriko, the woman he loved, because his internal war was not over yet. We see how traumatic circumstances finally brought to fore the hero in him, of course, with help from his friends. 

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My list for 2023 is posted HERE. 

My list for 2022 is posted HERE. 

My list for 2021 is posted HERE. 

My list for 2020 is posted HERE. 

My list for 2019 is posted HERE. 

My list for 2018 is posted HERE.

My list for 2017 is posted HERE.

My list for 2016 is posted HERE.

My list for 2015 is posted HERE.

My list for 2014 is posted HERE.

My list for 2013 is posted HERE.