Vivamax: Review of KAHALILI: Bizarre Boldness

 August 19, 2023

Martha (Stephanie Raz) was sent by her agency to the mansion of Rod (Sid Lucero) and Isabel (Millen Gal) to be their housemaid. Isabel was a conservative religious woman who often quoted Biblical verses. When the couple found out that Martha was still a virgin, Isabel offered her a million pesos to be the surrogate mother of their child. However, as Isabel was a devotee of the divine, she wanted Martha to conceive her a baby the natural way. 

This particular Vivamax film directed by Bobby Bonifacio Jr. has the most ambitious concept that I have seen in recent memory. This is Bonifacio's fourth feature film for Vivamax, after intense drama "Tahan" (2022) and a couple of comedies "Bula" (2022) and "Salamat Daks" (2023). For his newest project, Bonifacio goes back to horror, the genre of his first film of note "Numbalikdiwa" (2008) and his comeback project "Hospicio" (2016). 

It is interesting to note that Bonifacio brought back some elements from "Hospicio" into the story of "Kahalili," like sisterhood and drug addiction. By the end, it would be evident that the title "Kahallili" (or "replacement") would mean more than its more apparent reference to surrogate motherhood. The style of horror in "Kahalili" was ritualistic and hedonistic, reminiscent of Dario Argento's "Suspiria" (1977) and Ari Aster's "Midsommar" (2019).

Stephanie Raz has been featured in several Vivamax films since her debut in "Pornstar 2" (2021), mostly in supporting and antagonist roles. Her two more conventionally beautiful sisters, Micaela Raz ("Bata Pa si Sabel") and Angela Morena ("La Querida"), both had their solo breakout films already much earlier, and now it is Stephanie's turn. Stephanie may seem miscast at first, but as the story turned out, her casting as Martha was actually astute. 

Sid Lucero underplayed his part Rod here, but his eyes can project intensity. After low key roles in several Vivamax films since Virgin Forest (2022), Millen Gal makes a grand bid for stardom as the barren desperate, and deranged wife Isabel. This is stud du jour Victor Relosa's third consecutive Vivamax film in three weeks, playing Martha's no-good boyfriend Carlos.  Mercedes Cabral lent her indie cred here in a smaller but significant role as Martha's sister. 

The screenplay by Juvy Galamiton was bold, bitter and bizarre. The technical elements, above average for a Vivamax film, all deserve commendation: the eerie sound design by Armand de Guzman, the atmospheric musical score by Emerzon Texon, the mind-boggling jump cuts by editors Nelson Villamayor and Noah Tonga, the eclectic production design of Sigrid T. Polon and Junebert Cantila, and the moody cinematography by Michael Henree J. Bautista. 6/10.