Director and screenwriter Petersen Vargas manages to deconstruct Manila (and consequently the rural province where the story unfolds) as both a battleground and, for survival’s sake, a marketplace for society’s outcasts. His latest film, ‘Some Nights I Feel Like Walking,’ captured through Russel Morton’s exquisite cinematography, renders Manila as gritty, dangerous, and at times vulgar. The story follows a new and young street hustler who finds himself entangled with a small gang of other hustlers. Vargas maps out the city’s the darker corners, to the infamous cinema houses where men engage in the flesh trade.
Within the first twenty minutes of the film, we see desire and longing become commodities that are bought and sold, while the hustlers’ bodies are sometimes used as shields to protect them from law enforcement who would rather rough them up than help them find education, work, or shelter. For some, these spaces are the safest grounds to express and explore their identities – the queerness which a large sector of society shuns and demonizes – under the shadows but for others, like Vargas’ characters, it’s where they find their next payday, a dangerous work environment that offers no security or stability, and sometimes, no hope.
But on a chance encounter, Zion (Miguel Odron), a runaway turned hustler, shares a trick with Uno (Jomari Angeles). As their client takes pleasure in their bodies, their eyes lock, their breathing falls in sync, and something sparks between them.
Later, when Zion has a violent run-in with Bayani (Argel Saycon), part of Uno’s inner circle that includes Rush (Tommy Alejandrino) and Miguelito (Gold Aceron), it is Uno who tends to Zion and shows him the ropes. Something is budding there, something daring to blossom, until Uno receives a frantic call from Miguelito, who is with a client. Zion and Uno rush to find him, only to find Miguelito in the throes of an overdose until he passes.
With no money, no support system, and dismissed by polite society, the hustlers decide to take Miguelito’s body back to the province to heed his final request to be buried home.
Throughout this movie, Vargas shifts the mood and atmosphere of his film from that of a gritty, concrete nightmare to a neon-colored dream. As the outsider, Zion becomes our way into the lives and the world of Uno and his friends. As Zion and Uno’s connection gets deeper, Bayani’s suspicions of Zion’s motives turn threatening, and the world around these young men start to reveal how dark and cruel it is to people who don’t fit the mold. Odron anchors his performance with the heavy weight of Zion’s coming-of-age into this hostile world. He barely smiles. He’s almost constantly numb from the pain and loss and it’s only with Uno where he finds peace.
Angeles delivers a captivating performance that shows Uno’s resilience, the brave face and the charm that he needs to get through this life, but when he’s alone with Zion, he subtly shows us Uno’s cracks, the internal collapse. It’s such a measured performance and really invites us into their vulnerability. As counterpoint, Saycon is sheer brute force and instinct. He’s frightening, as he gets territorial with his friends. But Saycon’s genius is how flimsy his bravado is when things get really emotional and his character just softens. Along with Alejandrino and Aceron, this cast just works magic.
‘Some Nights I Feel Like Walking’ truly is a love letter to outcasts, to those who feel disenfranchised, and exiled. It’s a story about the found family and the importance of community. It shows us how hope still inches forward even when everything seems so dark and cruel, and in a twist of sheer brilliance, Vargas also shows us the light.
The film is slow but layered and textured. The character work of the actors is delightful to see; Uno and his team have a shorthand built by good chemistry that makes everything so real and believable. And the way the film talks about these issues, it always feels honest and authentic no matter how far Vargas pushes us into the realm of the dream-like or the nightmare.
With an incredible 20-minute or so one-take finale, ‘Some Nights I Feel Like Walking’ is a triumph of a movie and is definitely in the running for one of my favourites of 2025.
My Rating:
Raw, daring, unforgettable. Films like this don’t come often, catch Some Nights I Feel Like Walking while it’s on the big screen. Get showtimes and book your tickets here.