Author: Wanggo Gallaga

REVIEW: ‘Babylon’ and the wild, crazy, over-the-top love (and hate) letter to Hollywood

Damien Chazelle seems to have directed and co-written a companion piece to his highly celebrated and award-winning movie ‘La La Land’ with his latest offering, Babylon. While ‘La La Land’ explores and navigates through the idealism and hopes of a couple trying to make it big in Hollywood and the music industry in Los Angeles as it comes crashing into reality, ‘Babylon’ feels more like a celebration and a condemnation of that same world. While ‘La La Land’ is tempered and controlled, ‘Babylon’ is wild and excessive, given to moments of grand spectacle and reveling in the chaos of its narrative. While ‘La La Land’ is personal and intimate, ‘Babylon’ brushes with big strokes and can feel very cold and uncaring.

Set during the time in Hollywood when the innovation of sound movies (also known as ‘The Talkies’) had come crashing in on the silent film era, ‘Babylon’ is the story of several characters who try to find their footing in the changing landscape of entertainment. They range from the experienced silent film actor Jack Conrad (Brad Pitt), to the self-proclaimed star Nellie LaRoy (a bombastic Margot Robbie), a Mexican film assistant with big dreams named Manny (that arresting Diego Calva), the established gossip columnist Elinor St. John (by a riveting Jean Smart), a jazz trumpet player named Sydney (Jovan Adepo), and a Chinese American cabaret singer and title writer for films, Lady Fay Zhu (played wonderfully by Li Jun Li). These six (and a whole lot more) come crashing into each other in what is supposed to be both a fairy tale and a cautionary one at the same time.

Photo: Paramount Pictures International

Not only is the cast huge, Chazelle goes on overdrive, trying to out-Baz Lurhmann in grand spectacles by filling his camera frames with a mass of people in the throes of chaotic frenzy. The movie is over three hours long (188 minutes, approximately) and the first act alone is a 40-minute party scene where Chazelle introduces all the characters. There’s a huge orgy – graphic nudity, an overabundance of drug taking, and a lot of dancing – which is to set the tone of the film regarding Hollywood’s excesses. The whole sequence is just an exercise in indulgence (both thematically and filmmaking-wise). But amidst this madness, there is a very interesting, very human moment that occurs: when Manny and Nellie meet and in a cocaine-driven scene end up talking about their hopes and dreams and their love for Hollywood and what the movies mean to people. It’s a very strong scene that manages to nicely contrast the wild debauchery outside their room.

Photo: Paramount Pictures International

From that first meeting, we discover Manny and Nellie’s rising through the ranks, we get a full 360-degree view of the madness of movie-making, from Jack Conrad’s multiple marriages and the inevitable decline of his career, we see Sydney find success, and then face the brutal fact of racism (in the most painful of ways), and Lady Fay, a lesbian, meets the pushback of conservative voices in the latter part of Hollywood’s evolution. And in the center of this is the rise and fall of Manny and Nellie, whose love for this world is not enough to surmount the obstacles ahead.

Photo: Paramount Pictures International

Throughout its running time, ‘Babylon’ is excessive and big. It can get exhausting but it is filled with moments of hilarity and large-scale cinematic moments that would wow anybody. It’s so extra in everything that when it does slow down and quiet down, those moments become so golden. These are most noticeable in Manny’s scenes of self-reflection and a brilliantly written and acted scene between Brad Pitt and Jean Smart as the fading actor goes head-to-head with the columnist on the power and price of fame and glory and immortality.

Photo: Paramount Pictures International

Without a doubt, there’s a lot of love about the industry in ‘Babylon’ but there’s also a lot of hate. What the film lacks is some underlying message that can somehow take all this chaos and bring it to a proper catharsis. The ending attempts at a ‘Cinema Paradiso’ sort of poignancy but the madness and the horrible parts of the film tend to float to the surface and overshadow the good. The ending doesn’t feel as cathartic or as powerful as it is intended because, in the process of going hyper-real and crazy throughout the film, the love and the humanity of it are completely stamped out by the finale.

Magnificent performances from the cast and Justin Hurwitz did a brilliant job with the musical score but while Chazelle was filling up his screen with a spectacle, he failed to land the emotional punch. It’s enjoyable but you have to have the stomach for it.

My Rating:

.

—
Babylon opens in cinemas nationwide on February 1. Buy your tickets here.

January 30, 2023
REVIEW: The deceptively poignant ‘A Man Called Otto’ hits all the right emotional notes

There’s something formulaic and expected from A Man Called Otto. The Tom Hanks-led movie operates in that arena of awards-bait feel-good dramas that put the very likable actor into the role of a lovable, angry old man. It’s based on a Swedish film, the 2015 film ‘A Man Called Ove,’ which was based on the Swedish novel of the same name by Fredrick Backman. It’s the story of a grumpy old man, Otto, who oversees the cleanliness and order of his community with a gruff and hostile exterior. He’s strict with everybody and he doesn’t have the time nor the patience to be warm.

But what Otto is hiding is an overwhelming sense of grief. Early on in the film, it is established that Otto is grieving over the loss of his wife Sonya. So deep are these feelings that he makes an attempt at killing himself but he gets distracted by things that need his attention, and by the appearance of new neighbours: Marisol (the charming Mariana Trevino) and her family.

From that premise alone, you can already tell where the film is going to move towards and it doesn’t disappoint. Otto’s community is filled with vibrant and distinct people who annoy him at every turn (though, they are just being themselves) and while everyone has grown accustomed to Otto’s curmudgeon persona, Marisol is not so easily deterred. The Hispanic Marisol must’ve grown up in a large family and close relations with her neighbors from where she’s from and she carries that with her. She carves a space for herself in Otto’s life and both characters change and grow due to this.

By all accounts, ‘A Man Called Otto’ unfolds and feels like Oscar-bait. Tom Hanks shakes off his nice guy image to play the gruff old man and it doesn’t have the magic of any of his older work. Much like his character from his last film ‘Elvis,’ it feels put on, every grunt feels rehearsed or placed. It’s a performance rather than a lived experience. I was so resistant to the whole thing until halfway through the film, I started to feel things about these people and these characters.

There’s an insidious way by which director Marc Forster turns this little community into something so wonderfully universal that it gets under your skin. There are wonderful moments of cinematography and editing where Otto interacts with the memories he has of his wife – Forster manages to show how grief is such a present thing – and how all the little things about Otto’s day-to-day, his routine, and his daily rounds betrays his need to hold on to something. It’s in the little things; the little moments that happen every day that add up into a life and the film presents this in such a subtle and undramatic way.

Halfway through the film, I was surprised at how I was reacting. I was getting goosebumps and I was getting invested in the story and, at several important story beats, I found myself fighting back tears. The film doesn’t pretend to be anything it isn’t, but it is done with such love and tenderness and it is filled with such beautiful humanity that it really got me tender and vulnerable.

‘A Man Called Otto’ is a lot of things. It’s about grief and pain and trying to find a reason to continue on after you’ve lost your original reason for living. It’s about community and how we really have to take care of each other. It’s about family – the ones we choose for ourselves – and it’s about growing up and growing old and realising that you are never, ever really alone.

There is nothing that happens in this movie that I wasn’t expecting but it still hit me so hard. The way it was unapologetically what it was as a film; I let my guard down thinking it was just one of the same usual feel-good movies that I was not prepared by how hard I would be hit by the film’s third act.

‘A Man Called Otto’ is a deceptively beautiful movie blossoming with humanity. Bring tissues.

My Rating:

.

—
A Man Called Otto opens in cinemas nationwide on January 25. Buy your tickets here.

January 18, 2023
Customize Coron: a hassle-free adventure to one of the most beautiful beach destinations in the country

There isn’t enough being said about Coron, Palawan. In an archipelago of over 7000 islands, our country is blessed with many gorgeous beaches but the islands of Coron are probably some of the best beaches you can go to locally. With travel restrictions loosening up, the island of Coron is seeing the return of tourists. All we needed was to show our vaccine cards and we were allowed to go straight into our Coron adventure from the airport.

Kayangan Lake

ALSO READ
Travel Itinerary: Coron, Palawan

The thing about Coron is its close proximity to over 50 islets and you will have to take a boat to visit the different tourist spots and beaches around the area. From a previous trip (pre-pandemic) I had in Coron, we had to book a boat separately at the port to go and visit Kayangan Lake or the Twin Lagoon or Siete Pecados. Because of the protocols from the coast guard, you would usually leave by 9 am and you’d get to all the beaches and diving sites at the same time as everyone else.

But on this most recent trip, we booked at Casa Fidelis, a gorgeous forest resort away from the hustle and bustle. What separates Casa Fidelis from other resorts is that you can customize your Coron trip with them, as they provide meals and boat rides for your entire stay. You don’t have to book the boats separately, everything is handled by Casa Fidelis for you – including meals.

Casa Fidelis at night.

For our trip, we had a jam-packed 5-day, 4-night adventure. On our first day, we visited one of the calm and quiet beaches around the area as we had just arrived at the airport. On our second day, we had a jam-packed day as we visited Kayangan Lake, Twin Lagoon, Barracuda Lake, Banol Beach, Siete Pecados, and Maquinit Hot Springs. Our third day had us take a trip to Pass Island, where we slept overnight under a blanket of stars before heading out to Black Island and Dibutanay Island. And for our last day, we decided to stay in the resort, swim at their pool and relax until it was time for our flight.

The Cave at Black Island

I was with my friends who are active and energetic and so they wanted such an itinerary. All of this was arranged through Casa Fidelis. They picked us up from the airport and, as they have their own boat and their own separate port, they can leave earlier than 9 am so, on our second day, we were able to get to Kayangan Lake by 7am before any other tourists were there. We had the whole place to ourselves!

We also had lots of fun eating delicious meals on the boat on our way from one island to the next.

Lunch at Banol Beach.

That’s what’s great about this trip, it was completely customized to the experience that we wanted. This group wanted to make the most of our trip. If I had been with my other set of friends, we might have requested for less destinations per day and maybe added more cultural side trips – like a visit to the St. Augustine Parish Church or a visit to Culion island – or we could have stayed in Casa Fidelis on our third day just to relax and enjoy a trek in their forest. There’s no signal at the resort so you have no choice but to go on full vacation mode, which can be such a blessing, surprisingly.

Having their own boat and port is such a blessing because it meant we can go wherever we wanted and at whatever time was convenient for us. Since we didn’t mind sleeping early and waking up early, we were able to make the long boat trip to Pass Island so we could see the gorgeous sky filled with stars at night. I thought the sand of Banol beach was some of the finest I have encountered, but there’s nothing like the sheer beauty of Black Island and the fine white sand there.

Pass Island (Photo by Mark Lim)

Because the trip is completely customized, the price range adjusts depending on the itinerary and the size of the group. We were a group of ten, staying for 5 days and 4 nights, and we had a jam-packed itinerary so we were charged a little over 7k per person per day (exclusive of airfare and entrance fees to the various destinations).

When you consider how much we were able to do and that all the food and transportation were covered, it was quite a steal. The resort itself is large, comfy, and filled with the comforts of a great resort – hot water, A/C, comfortable beds – and they even have life vests and snorkeling gear.

Coron is really a place that everyone has got to go to and as tourism is beginning to pick up now, it’s really the time to book a flight and experience it before the large influx of tourists comes. Coron can be overwhelming and complicated but you can simplify your life and customize your trip before you even go by booking at Casa Fidelis. They’ll take care of everything the moment you land on Busuanga Airport.

January 16, 2023
REVIEW: Irish horror meets Filipino mysticism in ‘Nocebo’

Not reliant on jump scares or bombarding you with frightening images, the Irish and Filipino co-produced psychological horror film Nocebo settles comfortably as a mood piece and a supernatural mystery. It’s an intimate movie revolving around four characters, really, but it is unafraid to play around with the audience’s expectations. Interestingly enough, the presence of Chai Fonacier – not as a support but as a lead character as written – threatens to upend the narrative in interesting ways.

As a horror film, the tension comes from what the audiences assume. There’s danger, for sure, but from what? ‘Nocebo’ follows, at first, Christine (played by Eva Green). She’s a children’s fashion designer, who receives a call one day with some disturbing news (that is left hidden from the audience), and then she is visited by a mangy dog filled with scabs and large ticks. The dog shakes vigorously in front of her and, bombarded by the ticks, Christine begins to deteriorate physically, mentally, and emotionally.

Eight months later and she’s a broken woman. Her marriage with her husband Felix (played by Mark Strong) is strained by her new condition and her relationship with her daughter Bobs (Billie Gadson) is hanging by a thread. She has fits, cramps, shakes, and delusional episodes and she is suffering from memory loss. She has even forgotten that she has called Diana (Chai Fonacier) to come to their house as a helper, and worse, she forgot to tell her family.

Felix and Bobs are not pleased but Diana quickly proves her worth, cooking a delicious Filipino meal and proving to be helpful in calming Christine during one of her episodes, and completely unfazed by Felix and Bobs’ low-key attempts to make her feel unwelcomed. Christine, on the other hand, is entranced by her and is willing to try Diana’s folk remedies to cure her from her illness.

Maybe intended for a Western, global audience that is more attuned to seeing a white protagonist and an exotic, Asian character as an other, ‘Nocebo’ sets the stage for a little mystery game. For those unaware of the Filipino culture of shamans, witch doctors (mangkukulams and albularyo) they would immediately connect Diana with the strange occurrences of Chrstine’s affliction. The film leans into Diana’s otherness and presents all her actions as suspicious.

But as a Filipino, who grew up with these folklores and tales (like there’s no way that dog at the opening with the ticks isn’t some reference or allusion to the Visayan sigbin), there was a part of me that saw Diana, who even admits that she had taken the power of an elemental, that maybe the film is leading the audience on a red herring. After all, Christine is getting better and their growing bond has become a point of increased tension between Felix and his wife. My mind began to race: is the man at fault here?

At a compact 96-minutes, the film focuses on Christine and Diana and how their attempts to cure Christine from her ailments lead us to a shocking discovery that turns the whole film on its head, narratively – after all, as the story unfolds, we begin to see more and more of Diana’s backstory back home in the Philippines – and by three-fourths of the film, it becomes clear that Diana’s role in the film is more than just that of support. It is her motivations and intentions that carry the film through. Fonacier stands on equal footing with Green in carrying this movie. While Eva Green is no stranger to these desperate and broken characters, it is Fonacier who surprises at every turn. There’s a maturity in her approach to Diana and every creative choice she makes becomes clear as the film’s mystery is cleared up at the end.

If you are keen and quick, it is not hard to guess the mystery behind this story and the way it unfolds at the end, while over dramatic, is done in such a static way – it is an inevitable resolution so the moment it reaches its climax, the urgency of the film is lost. The moment the final act plays out, there’s no way that the film can end in any other way and that sort of takes away from the overall enjoyment of the film.

It’s great, though, to see Filipino culture and folklore play so prominently in a Western setting and done so with so much respect and authenticity. It is done on equal terms with that of the English and that made the film that much more rewarding. In a year where Filipinos are being featured prominently in films from all over the world – from ‘Triangle of Sadness’ to ‘Plan 75’ to ‘To the North’ – it feels really good to be seen on equal footing in the landscape of international cinema.

My Rating:

.

—
Nocebo opens in cinemas nationwide on January 18.

January 13, 2023
MOVIE REVIEW: What makes ‘M3GAN’ scary is how it depicts our relationship with technology

There is an unmistakable campy tone to ‘M3GAN’ that I didn’t pick up from the trailer and I should have. It made the experience quite jolting (which is a good thing) that even if the film does go by-the-numbers in terms of the progression of the story, there was a thrill about seeing how the film wasn’t afraid to be silly or weird. It’s very aware of its genre and is not afraid to play around (such as two musical interludes that come out of nowhere, which got me laughing so loud but it sort of made all the sense in this film). I was expecting a straight-up slasher film and instead, I was experiencing a polished, refined satire that was equally as funny as it was scary.

But what made the film scary, more than the idea of an artificially intelligent robot companion for children going homicidal is the fact that the film manages to really present the dilemma of the youth’s attachment to technology on how they deal with their issues and trauma. The film is about Gemma, a roboticist who is working on AI toys, whose sister dies in a car accident leaving her niece to live with her. Unprepared to raise a child, she uses technology as a means to connect and introduces her niece Cady to M3GAN, an android that is built to learn from their user to become the perfect companion.

Photo: M3GAN Trailer

While it is in the complexities of AI technology plus the company’s rush to produce a working prototype to sell to the market that pushes M3GAN into her killing spree, the film illustrates so cleverly the way by which Cady prefers to connect with the machine rather than another human being. Yes, there’s something creepy about the way M3GAN resembles a human but doesn’t and how dangerous it is due to its robotic features but the real scare that is found in this film is the way with which Cady retreats into her relationship with the android and opts for distraction rather than the confrontation of her true feelings.

Photo: M3GAN Trailer

This is something that I’m witnessing now among a younger generation that is more keen on connecting online through social media than on face-to-face interactions. While the film is set in a futuristic time (robots and AI technology seem to be easily acquired), the way with which it harkens to present-day issues is so apparent that it is what actually sent a chill down my spine.

And while we are at it, the whole discussion on AI art online is reflected as well in this film. How quickly the corporations are ready to jump into AI technology because of the profits that it can bring them, how much they’ll push to sell M3GAN before any proper testing has been done is a plot point in the film but it mirrors the way we continue to embrace AI technology today without regards to films like ‘Terminator’ and ‘A.I.’ that discusses the dangers of this since as far back as the history of the genre of science fiction. The movie, though not new in discussing the dangers of AI, is still relevant because it seems no one is listening.

Photo: M3GAN Trailer

And so ‘M3GAN’ as a film is both scary and funny at the same time. It is scary because director Gerard Johnstone and screenwriter Akela Cooper (from a story by Akela Cooper and James Wan) are both aware of the themes that push against present-day issues but also because it’s scary when a robot goes on a murdering spree. It’s technology-based and much stronger, faster, and processes information faster than a human being. But it is also funny because it’s not afraid to be silly (again, there are two musical numbers that is a highlight for me and was so unexpected) but it is also making fun of us, for how dependent we’ve become to technology: in the way that we use it to help us through our day-to-day lives to the way we use it to distract ourselves from ourselves and our humanity.

Photo: M3GAN Trailer

I would have wanted it to be sillier. I would have wanted to care more about Cady and Gemma or the other characters in the film but as it is, it’s an enjoyable film that’s great for the thrills and the laughs. The CGI and effects are brilliant and while it does have a few jump scares, the film relies more on the imagery of M3GAN as its focal point of fear. We laugh or dismiss it as something fictional now but this is where we are going. At some point, ‘M3GAN’ won’t be a fictional story. And that’s scary.

My Rating:

.

—
M3GAN is now showing in cinemas nationwide. Buy your tickets here.

January 9, 2023
Revenge is Sweet: a review of the first 6 episodes of ‘The Glory’ with Song Hye Kyo

After having seen over a hundred Kdramas in the last three years, it’s glaringly obvious that the new Netflix Kdrama ‘The Glory’ is unlike any I’ve seen before. As a Netflix original, it is direct to the streaming platform and so it can do away with certain things we’ve come to expect: it only has 8 episodes (and its part two will be released sometime next year around March), its adult themes include imagery of graphic sex and some nudity, and way more graphic displays of violence. The show doesn’t pull any of its punches and it doesn’t have to since it isn’t released on Korean television, it doesn’t have to abide by their television regulations.

So the revenge story that is at the heart of ‘The Glory’ can get very graphic and detailed. There’s an almost campy way by which the bullies of the story, as they are depicted in the series, can appear one-dimensional and on the extreme side of evil. They have no redeeming factor and the victim, Moon Dong-eun, is a poor girl out of luck. No one is on her side and after a tremendous amount of bullying (as depicted in the first season), she has chosen to turn her whole life into an instrument of revenge against her bullies.

Photo from Netflix

This incident happened in 2004 and the story is set in 2022, so 18 years have passed and what unfolds is a dangerous game of vengeance that has been carefully planned for years. Dong-eun has been stripped off of all her dignity and her soul and she is ready to commit worse upon her tormentors. At the center of it all is her becoming the homeroom teacher of the daughter of the biggest bully of the group, Park Yeon-jin.

The show is polished and slick. It can be campy in how evil the bullies are (after 18 years, they have not mellowed in any way; they are just as cruel only older) and how steadfast Dong-eun is set on her revenge. It revels in its formalist tone with great lighting, amazing set pieces, and fantastic drone shots that really create a sense of place and bigness to the show. The largeness of the filmmaking makes Dong-eun’s scheme to exact her payback seem biblical, almost divine, even when scriptwriter Kim Eun Seok (of ‘Descendants of the Sun’) writes a stirring narration from Dong-eun that she doesn’t believe in god. How could she? The narration, written as letters from Dong-eun to Yeon-jin, reveals the deep obsession she has over her tormentor. It’s almost like the dark side of love. It creates a frightening effect that can really put a chill down your spine when you realize how far someone will go for revenge.

Photo from Netflix

The show is quick to justify Dong-eun’s vengeance, you even root for her, but it also manages to temper that bloodlust with a sense of humanity. On her way, Dong-eun finds people who are keen on helping her in her path, whether intentionally or not. And this is when the show is at its best.

Early on, she meets Mrs. Kang, who becomes a sort of partner. She also meets a young doctor Joo Yeo-jeong, from whom she learns the game of Go (the reasons of which are all part of her plan), who also falls in love with her. It’s in her interactions with these two people that Dong-eun finds herself in a moment of grace; a chance to feel like a human being and while she quickly holds her ground to maintain her purpose and determination to continue on her path of revenge, it’s in these moments where the show really shines.

Photo from Netflix

Song Hye-kyo’s last drama ‘Now We’re Breaking Up’ was not a good comeback for her as the character she played was flat and uninteresting and her performance didn’t help create any sort of texture for the character at all. Here, as Dong-eun, she is once again in that same vein – a person who is holding back, creating walls, and trying to look fierce as she goes head on against her former tormentors. In long stretches of scenes, she can play off on one note and so it becomes a breath of fresh air when she does have moments with Yeo-jeong (a very charming Lee Do-hyun) or with her interactions with Miss Kang (played excellently by Yeom Hye-ran), the two people who can bring out her softer side. It’s there where we can see the Song Hye-kyo of ‘Descendants of the Sun.’

Photo from Netflix

The bullies, on the other hand, Lim Ji-yeon, Park Sung-hoon, Cha Joo-young, Kim Hi-eora, and Kim Gun-woo, are having a blast being as evil as possible. They are chewing up the scenery at every turn and it seems they are having fun with it so we have fun watching their world slowly crumble as Dong-eun returns into their lives and turns the tables.

Photo from Netflix

With only 8 episodes on the first season, of which the first 6 does an excellent job at setting up the stakes and raising the tension, ‘The Glory’ is poised to be another daring Netflix original show that is set to explore the dark side of revenge. Strangely enough, it makes us root for the victim-turned-tormentor and gives us a space to really express our darkest thoughts against the topic of bullying and bullies. It’s not a comfortable feeling, this blood lust, but it’s an interesting one to explore and dig into as we enter a totally new year. How do we address the issues of bullying? And how long are we to accept a system that protects the rich and powerful?

‘The Glory’ shows us that revenge is sweet but also asks, “at what cost?”

My Rating:

.

—
The Glory starts streaming on Netflix this December 30.

December 29, 2022
REVIEW: ‘Night at the Museum: Kahmunrah Rises Again’ doesn’t really stand out from the Disney+ catalogue

I’ll be completely honest and say that I have not seen a single film from the ‘Night at the Museum’ franchise. None of the three installments, starring Ben Stiller as Larry Daley, the night guard at the American Museum of Natural History, who discovers that an ancient mystical tablet brings the exhibits to life. So when I saw the animated film ‘Night at the Museum: Kahmunrah Rises Again’ on Disney+, I don’t know why I clicked on it but I wanted something different from all the things I’ve been watching lately – heavy, dramatic, or with a language that I don’t know – so I thought it would be nice to see something light, wholesome, and not anything that I needed subtitles for.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WdSQFdMYZg

Surprisingly, ‘Night at the Museum: Kahmunrah Rises Again’ was an easy film to follow. Even without having seen the first three movies, I was able to quickly figure out the dynamics and relationships of the characters that were present – Larry, his son Nick, and the exhibits Theodore Roosevelt, Octavius, Jebediah, Sacagawea, Laaa, Joan of Arc, and a whole bunch of other characters. The frenetic pacing and the animation style really made it feel that this was made for the kids, as a light-hearted for-the-family entertainment type of movie for a weekend movie night.

In this fourth installment of the franchise, Larry is off overseas to take over a new museum and makes a decision to let his son, Nick, take over the job as the night guard. Nick is now in high school but is suffering from the teen angst of not having enough confidence in himself. He wants to try out for the school’s jazz band and ask the girl he likes out but he’s clumsy and doubts himself. So Larry suggests he takes his old job as it has done wonders for him and his self-esteem.

All seems to be going well except Kahmunrah, an exhibit with ambitions for world domination, manages to escape from the basement (due to Nick’s lapse in judgment) and begins to wreak havoc in and around the museum with the goal to take over the world.

There’s very little plot and character work happening in this film as it really is just Nick and the other exhibits trying to stop Kahmunra (and his partner Seth) from taking over the world. It’s one gag after the other with shallow attempts at pushing for Nick to get more courageous.

But there’s no real depth to the story, no real internal struggle that needs to be solved for Nick or any of the characters. It’s loud and fast-paced and full of spills and thrills that are meant to keep the kids watching engaged until the end of the movie. Maybe, hopefully, it will get them interested to go to a museum but with no real big spectacle or memorable moment or particularly heart-warming scene, ‘Night at the Museum: Kahmunra Rises Again’ doesn’t really pop out or stand out from anything else Disney+ has to offer.

Without even the familiar voices of the stars of the live-action films like Ben Stiller or Owen Wilson, there’s very little to attach new viewers to this installment. With all the amazing films and tv shows one can watch on Disney+, this will have a hard time finding its place in the catalog. The platform is going to have to work harder to make its IPs like ‘Night at the Museum’ stand out from Disney+’s connection to Star Wars, the MCU, or their animated films and collaboration with Pixar. There’s just too much in there for something like this to find its audience.

My Rating:

.

—
Night at the Museum: Kahmunrah Rises Again is now streaming on Disney+.

December 21, 2022
With stunning visuals and an immersive storyline, ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ is a must-see-in-the-cinema treat

There is no question that James Cameron can deliver a truly cinematic experience. From the first two films of the ‘Terminator’ franchise, to his installment of ‘Aliens,’ the massively epic ‘Titanic,’ or even the lesser-known ‘Abyss’ (which has to be seen with the director’s cut), James Cameron knows how to tell a story with a camera. His pacing, choice of narrative beats, attention to detail, and the way he fills each shot with such care for the story all amount to a very satisfying time in the cinema. It doesn’t matter if he can get cheesy (like in ‘Titanic’) or even basic and by-the-numbers (like the inescapable comparisons of the first ‘Avatar’ to films like ‘Pocahontas’ or even the animated movie ‘Fern Gully’), when you are in that cinema and watching his movies, you will be beguiled and entranced by what he puts on screen.

And that’s exactly what you get with Avatar: The Way of Water. His sequel to his 2009 massive hit ‘Avatar,’ expands the world of Pandora and follows the story of Jake Sully and Neytiri (Zoe Saldana) and their growing family. In the 6-minute opening sequence, we catch up on the events that happened after the first film as Sam Worthington narrates as Jake Sully, the former soldier who, in the body of a Na’vi, has become the Toruk Makto, a war leader for the Na’vi. We discover that Jake’s family has grown with the addition of four children (one is an adopted daughter from a ‘miraculous birth’) and that the life of a Na’vi seems very much in agreement with Jake.

Except, the humans come back, with a larger force and an even more insidious means by which to oppose the native forces that fight against them. In an attempt to protect the forest and their tribe, Jake takes his whole family and brings them to the south to the lands of the reef people. The reef people are Na’vi (with a light green skin color) and biology more suited to living in the water. But Jake left because the marines are after him and, of course, they come looking for him and Jake must fight to protect his family (and newfound tribe) from the human forces.

‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ is a 193-minute immersive science fiction epic that truly brings us deeper into the world of Pandora and shows us what lies beneath the crashing waves of Pandora’s seas. We were first made to experience the joy of flight in the first movie as Jake discovers the joys of flying with his winged beast. In ‘Avatar: The Way of Water,’ James Cameron explores the beauty of the ocean depths of his fictional world through Jake Sully’s children.

He takes his bloody time to show us the lush fauna and flora of this new aspect of Pandora while building upon the new characters he has brought into the sequel. His children become friends with the chief of the reef Na’vi and all the kids take a familiar archetype – there’s the dutiful eldest son, the troubled middle child, the special adopted child, and the innocent youngest – but because we spend so much time with them and get to explore this gorgeous world together, we begin to forgive them for their annoying habits (they are typical children after all) and we cheer them on when they do achieve something.

There’s a clean, old-school storytelling that James Cameron employs in his film structure that no matter how much he dawdles plot-wise, we are constantly filled with wonder, character work, and narrative placement that when the climax happens, we are excited, invested, and completely spellbound to the whole ride. Even at 3 hours, I did not once see someone stand up to rush to the bathroom. We were all transfixed to the screen and followed the story tightly.

And we followed it even if, at some point, we start to see the hollowness of the script. There’s a one-dimensional quality to the film: the humans are capitalist monsters who would destroy everything in their path to get what they want while the Na’vi are the locals, steeped in faux spiritualism that is completely in touch and in tune with nature and the planet. It’s all great on paper but it never becomes a real representation of real-world ideologies. In the end, what is Cameron really saying? That Capitalism is bad and that we have to return to nature? But he doesn’t say how? And, while it is a science fiction film and an adventure, it never really presents the nuances of a possible solution except direct opposition. The film culminates into a huge battle (you can see this in the trailer) and while we can’t wait to see it because we know it’s going to look great, it sort of reduces this whole film into saying that war is the only recourse.

Is Cameron saying that all cultures ravaged by imperialism should fight back? The Na’vi have all manners of cultural traits of our reality’s non-white races. The Na’vi have dreadlocks or braids, speak with an accent, and use spiritualism akin to Asian and African beliefs. The humans are primarily white and have an ideology like the imperialist west. Is ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ a denouncement of western imperialism and a call to action from all oppressed and colonized countries to push back and fight back?

And it doesn’t help that Jake Sully seems to not have grown since the first movie as a person. He begins completely in thrall to his new life as a Na’vi father and a part of a true community but the moment he returns to soldier mode on the return of the humans, we see him quickly return to warrior mode and become a questionable father figure. While Zoe Saldana, as Neytiri, spends most of the movie angry at him or her children. She becomes the stereotypical angry, fierce mother. Where are the two characters who have gone through so much in the first movie?

No, this film is for their children, and interestingly enough, the human child that was born and raised in Pandora. Spider, as he is called, has all the imagery of Tarzan but by way of Pandora and he has his own very interesting character arc to follow.

While I do have a lot of things to say about the story and the ideologies behind the film, I will still stand by the fact that everything about the way this movie appears on screen is just gorgeous. Cameron has used technology in such a way to give us a truly immersive cinematic experience that one of my friends called “like watching a sophisticated video game” and it is like actually being there. In an IMAX 3D cinema, you will be completely overwhelmed (in a good way) about how intricate this world is. I’ve never seen anything like it before. At first, my eyes were not used to seeing a film in such a manner. It looked off and unrealistic but after the first half hour, I was completely drawn into the world.

There are camera angles and movements that I’ve never seen before and as Cameron uses it to explore the gorgeous world beneath the surface of the Pandoran sea, it’s magical. It’s why we go to the movies. You are actually transported into an alien world. It’s the same feeling as watching Cuaron’s ‘Gravity.’ You’re in that moment and you can’t let go.

You have to see it in 3D and, if possible, 3D IMAX to get the full experience of this film. It’s what cinemas were made for.

My Rating:

.

—
Avatar: The Way of Water is now showing in cinemas nationwide. Buy your tickets here.

December 15, 2022
What To Do With Old Things: a review of ‘Plan 75’

Absolutely quiet and still, ‘Plan 75’ is a chilling look into a dystopian world where Japan has found a startling way to handle its growing elderly population: a government program that offers assisted suicide to all citizens aged 75 and above. The program itself, the titular Plan 75, offers a cash handout for the volunteers to do with as they please and are assisted all the way through cremation services to make everything easy and tidy. By all means, this film falls under the realm of science fiction but first-time feature film director Chie Hayakawa is not interested in the macro view of this imagined bleak future. Instead, she focuses her camera on three characters: at its center is Michi (played by the arresting Chieko Baisho), a 78-year-old woman with no family, who is struggling to keep her independence in a society that sees no value in someone of her age; Himoru Okabe (played by Hayato Isomura), a sales agent for Plan 75, who truly believes in the cause until he meets an estranged aged family member who signs up for the program; and rounding out the cast is Maria (played by Stefanie Arianne), a Filipina caregiver, who is working in Japan to pay for her daughter’s expensive life-saving surgery, who accepts work from Plan 75.

As a film, ‘Plan 75’ is a character study. The film’s central premise pushes these three characters towards their own crisis of faith and in the process, we watch as this world normalizes death and the discarding of anything that is no longer deemed as valuable. Hayakawa, who co-wrote the screenplay with Jason Gray, covers this deterioration of society with almost no fanfare, as if this was ordinary and normal and it’s a chilling reminder of how bureaucracy and keeping the status quo seems more important on a larger scale for civilizations than the slow degradation of our humanity.

Photo courtesy of TBA Studios

‘Plan 75’ poses its questions and arguments through Michi, Himoru, and Maria. The film is never loud with its objections or statements. We are invested in Michi’s desire to remain “useful,” At 78, she’s struggling to find work to support herself as all her friends are succumbing to old age. Without a family, she is completely on her own and society is pushing her towards volunteering for Plan 75 as there are no opportunities available for her to keep on living.

This is all done without drama, without highlighting the emotions involved. It’s a quiet film that basks in the silences of heavy thought and meditation. Even when Himoru wavers from his own convictions and takes a more personal approach to assisting his uncle with his plans, the film never judges him nor pities him. It is what it is. When Maria discovers, through her work in the Plan 75 facility, what happens to the things left behind by the seniors who have passed on, the film never underlines the sadness or the horror of the insights that are gleaned from this.

Photo courtesy of TBA Studios

What the film manages to do is show us how society and the world is slowly just accepting these questionable changes happening around us. How, in the name of efficiency and the common good, we are allowing people to be left behind and pushed away in favour of those who can contribute more. There’s a hierarchy that is proposed in this film that mirrors what’s happening in real life and ‘Plan 75’ manages to highlight the impact this can have on the people intrinsically linked to it.

Photo courtesy of TBA Studios

This is not an easy film to watch but it is an important one. It skillfully manages to ask important questions over a hypothetical situation and by putting front and center Michi, an elderly woman with no family, no one to vouch for her or fight for her and defend her, the film asks us to make a decision about her. While Hayakawa manages a burst of hope, a moment of urgency at the film’s third act, it still leaves the final verdict to us. Are we as powerless as Maria, victims of our own circumstances or will we have a crisis of conviction such as Himoru, or will we have the strength to stand up against the forces that dictate our worth?

This is not an easy film to watch but you have to watch it.

My Rating:

.

—
Plan 75 opens in cinemas nationwide on December 7. Buy your tickets here.

December 6, 2022
MOVIE REVIEW: The Unflinching ‘An Inconvenient Love’ Showcases the Power of Belle Mariano and Donny Pangilinan’s Love Team

There are three things that the film ‘An Inconvenient Love’ wants you to know within the first act of the film’s narrative. First, that this is a good old-fashion Star Cinema/ABS-CBN Films rom-com with all the magic that those qualifiers imply. Second, that the world is tough (with images of a rally and protest staged by workers against their employers juxtaposed by the struggles of the working class just getting to work everyday) and that in the hustle and bustle of daily living, really, love is such an inconvenience. It can derail everything. And thirdly, that the chemistry of lead stars Belle Mariano and Donny Pangilinan is electric and can light up a whole theater with their onscreen sparks.

There’s so much to enjoy in director Petersen Vargas’ ‘An Inconvenient Love.’ From the way it opens with real-world challenges (such as the aforementioned strike) and a revisiting of the typical rich boy-poor girl rom-com dynamic to the way with which the film pushes all that aside to make way for the romantic thrills that comes with the movie and how it all manages to get all these narrative points intertwined again for its dramatic ending. This film is a healing salve to these troubled times as it is not afraid to juxtapose pressing issues of labor and economic struggle with the highs and lows of romantic love. There is an escapism that is formed in the second act of the film when all the social awareness issues head to the background to focus on the kilig moments – when the film embraces its rom-com tone and atmosphere head on – but easily brings it back for its satisfying resolution.

It’s the story of a rich boy, Manny (Donny Pangilinan), who is a shop owner and is rebelling against his dad by supporting the workers of his dad’s company, who are on strike. Manny meets Ayef (Belle Mariano), a working student, whose dream is to finish school and work in Singapore. They meet on a bridge, with Manny running away from a protest gone violent and he asks for Ayef’s help to get away. It’s love at first sight for the two as the adrenaline from the situation heightens each other’s senses and they become fully aware of each other.

Both Manny and Ayef are attracted to each other but there are more practical concerns that need their more immediate attention. At this point in time, love really is an inconvenience and the film really finds interesting ways to highlight this.

But love is such a tempting escape and both decide to make a contract for a love that is convenient and practical; a contract that would not hinder both parties – Ayef most especially as she wants to continue her dreams of flying off to Singapore – from living their lives.

But that’s not how these things go and the film manages to explore the consequences wonderfully.

This is my first time watching Mariano and Pangilinan and I get it now. The chemistry is palpable. Pangilinan does have moments (usually his scenes without Mariano) where he’s not in the moment as I would like him to be but when he’s working a scene with Mariano, it’s pure magic. She, on the other hand, has a very un-self-conscious way about her that makes her feel so real and grounded. She doesn’t rely on pretty to make her character work and she’s so enjoyable to watch.

Amongst the ensemble, Teresa Loyzaga and Matet De Leon are the ones who truly stand out and don’t feel at all like supporting characters. They inhabit their characters so fully that you feel like you can make a separate film on just their characters alone.

Vargas does an incredible job at juggling the elements he’s working with and knows the strengths and weaknesses of the film. He even playfully plays around with some Kdrama tropes at the beginning of the film – the umbrella sequence, someone falling and someone catching the other, even mentions of Kpop fandom – but is quick to let it go once his movie is in full swing.

Overall, ‘An Inconvenient Love’ is such a return to form for ABS-CBN and Star Cinema. It’s vibrant and playful and unflinching to both its genre and its story’s own message.

My Rating:

.

—
An Inconvenient Love is now showing in cinemas nationwide. Buy your tickets here.

December 1, 2022