MMFF 2019: Review of SUNOD: Maternal Mission

January 8, 2019

Since its inception, there would at least be one horror film in the Metro Manila Filmfest, from the "Shake, Rattle and Roll" series to the numerous Kris Aquino shockers. There was actually supposed to have been another Kris Aquino horror this year entitled "(K)Ampon," but was pulled out due to technicalities. Of the two left, this one "Sunod" was chosen as an entry to the festival and actually won 3rd Best Picture, while the other one "The Heiress" was already shown earlier this month to lukewarm reviews.

Olivia Sazon was a middle-aged woman whose daughter Annelle was suffering from a congenital heart disease. Surgery was needed, so Olivia applied for a job as a call center agent for LGO (short for Liboro Global Outsourcing). This center operated on the fourth floor of the pre-WWII vintage Liboro House in Escolta, a building that used to be a hospital in the 1970s. One night, Olivia befriended a young girl named Nerisa who was seemingly lost. Later though, it seemed Nerisa was a ghost, and she followed Olivia home.

There was much promise to this horror film at the start. The cinematography (by Mycko David) looked great despite the dismal weather and locations. The soundscape and macabre musical score made sure we felt the dread and danger.  As the main setting, the Liboro House was very much a character in the story in itself. Its long tragic history, empty second and third floors, ancient elevator, and sputtering unstable power supply all made sure that we feel that place was undoubtedly haunted. 

Essentially, this was tale of two mothers and two daughters. The central character was Olivia, one of the mothers. For her restrained performance in this role of a desperate mother, Carmina Villaroel deserved her nomination for Best Actress, as she did some of the best acting work I had seen her do lately. The other mother was Perla, played by the ever-reliable Susan Africa, whose startling role in the story will surely leave an indelible memory despite only appearing in the last half hour or so. 

The two daughters were played by a couple of young actresses whom I first saw in action in a couple of Erik Matti films: Kristal Brimner from "Honor Thy Father" (2015) and Rhed Bustamante from "Seklusyon" (2016). Aside from rising to the challenge of playing a possessed girl, Brimner also got to showcase her guitar-playing while singing the song "Inay". With the spooky gray make-up on her face, Bustamante struck dread as the ghostly girl from the shadows looking for her lost mother.

Among the folk at the call center were Mylene Dizon (as Miss Karen Liboro, the stern and unsmiling COO of LGO), JC Santos (as Lance Santos the overly "friendly" team manager) and Kate Alejandrino (as Mimi, the perpetual call center trainee who befriended Olivia). Freddie Webb had a brief appearance as the infirm Don Jaime Liboro. Respected theater actors Teroy Guzman and Dolly de Leon played smaller roles as proud lawyer and mousy receptionist, respectively.

After an engaging and very riveting build-up, the climax was rather a confusing let-down. What were Perla and Nerisa really all about and what made them choose to torment Olivia and Annelle after all these years? While the red-colored yarn was a creepy touch, what really did it represent? There seemed to be some explanatory details left out in the editing room that made the ending a bit unclear. A back story about Perla and Nerisa's turn to the dark side would have been welcome. That said, this was still a solid directorial work for Carlo Ledesma. 7/10.