Author Topic: Mulawin the Movie  (Read 3334 times)

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Offline Mr. Big Boy

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Mulawin the Movie
« on: Dec 28, 2005 at 11:27 PM »
When a Mulawin falls… so bad!
Date: 12/28/2005 9:09:21 AM
Source: YEHEY! Contributors
By: Rianne Hill Soriano


Starring: Richard Gutierrez, Angel Locsin, Eddie Gutierrez
Directed by: Mark Reyes, Dominic Zapata


Is this movie really Rated A as rumored? Other than having a good teaser/trailer, everything about it is a pure D – disappointment. The worthless shouting of “AAAAAHHHHHH” and “YAAAAHHH” of Aguiluz, Alwina, Ybrahim, and the rest of the fighting human birds in battle can’t save the bad acting. It is overused that it turns out so irritatingly funny. See bloodless swords after countless slashings and Alwina supposedly dying and losing too much blood already but still in dashing glossy lipstick and heavy blush! Some reasonable bloodstain wouldn’t add to the gore to have it classified R-18! Better yet, see Aguiluz’s make-up even heavier than Alwina’s. BAD. Looks like Mulawin the Movie loses wings to fly…

Knowing that the Mulawins and Ravenas are human birds, the fight scenes could have been seen mostly in the skies. But it looks like they are fond of fighting on the ground only, except for the protagonists who are given minimal exposure in mid air. Talk about budget constraints… But it’s not an excuse. “Huwag ipagpilitan kung di naman pala kaya.” The wings look fake. It is possible that the audience won’t be able to get away with the idea that the actors and actresses are shot in a blue or green screen while hanging in a harness. The shots in chroma are always too grainy and they are obviously different from the non-chroma shots before them. The texture and the cut from one shot to another especially when there is a visual effect involved looks just too obvious, too fake and too awful. A lot of crane/mini-jib shots can’t cover up the lousy special effects.

The production design gives highlight only to what can please the eyes. But there is a lot more than just
putting glossy make-up on the main actors and actresses, crafting splendid costumes and making the sets look grand. Don’t just concentrate on the prosthetics of Ravenum. Try to put some ash or some bloodstain on the faces and bodies of those in battle.  A dust on their faces wouldn’t hurt, neither would a sweaty face (I’m not sure if these human birds don’t normally perspire or bleed enough when hit by a sword…). Let close-up shots of clean swords remain on the out-takes if the shots come after a complete slashing of a Ravena’s or a Mulawin’s body. Take note of the continuity. Justify what should be surreal and what should be real. Don’t just research on how the costumes and backdrops would look. Research on even the smallest detail to have credible and convincing props and sets because some people watching would really notice.

No doubt Angel Locsin really has the face. She is better off as a commercial model if she can’t improve on her skills. Acting-wise, a number of workshops might help… During dramatic scenes, her character adds a bit to the emotional build up, but she needs more talent to become, at least, a ‘good actress.’ During fight scenes, she looks ‘lampa’ and she doesn’t even have the stance of a second rate warrior. Her funny shouts during battle are not just problematic in dubbing but also in execution and quantity.

Aguiluz plays the flute so pathetically. See his fingers shifting from one hole to another without matching the music heard. A private tutor on playing it could have saved this simple boo-boo. Or perhaps, the editing could have helped. Too bad, the said music is a powerful cinematic tool to uplift the emotions, but the goofy type of playing of Aguiluz ruins it.

There is only one dragon fighting the Tres Aves in mid air. I wonder if there’s a meteor shower, or bombs planted, or the place of attack is within a volcanic land that causes countless blasts on the ground everytime the major battle scene is shown on screen.  Actually, I can’t really get convinced that it is a meteor shower or a fireball coming from the dragon because the explosions generally don’t come from mid air that strikes the land. The blasts mostly come out from the ground like the usual explosion effects in an action movie. However, I can’t even say it’s a normal thing within that area of the Ravena’s territory because it has only started upon the attack of the dragon. And what’s most obvious is that these explosions always serve as background to the major characters’ fight scenes – especially Dingdong Dantes’. This is a crappy way of copying the look of a
classic epic as LOTR. Dingdong portrays the role considerably well already. He is effective as a warrior from Encantadia. And there’s no need to bring further attention on him by making explosions behind him all the time. The Mulawin race is about to be annihilated, but there is no enough mark of tension. There is no much build up of emotions in the scenes. Even the deaths during battles don’t get to create a blood rush or a tear rush in the audience. The bit players are obviously not given any importance at all (from make-up to crowd-directing, it’s terrible). Knowing that there are lots of fight scenes, it should be treated as an ensemble. Even the tiniest movements of the heads are important to constitute the whole scene. A bit more close-ups and showing of facial reactions during battle scenes (combinations of major characters and bit players) could have helped evoke more touching cinematic scenes.

There are too many characters but most are not well-developed. The story is entangled with a number of half-baked plots and characters – all crammed in. The movie could have been treated more intelligibly and in a more creative way. It could have been more artistic and fun to watch if the Musang race is given a more meaningful part in the battle as allies of the Ravenas, or I fnot, at least give a brief background about it (especially to those who are not into watching the TV series) than just making a ‘cameo.’ This is just a suggestion so as to add more dimension and texture to the dull battle scene of swords and shouts. Dennis Trillo’s role as Gabriel is a waste of time, talent and film rolls. Other than always being behind the stardom of Aguiluz and Alwina, the story can work without him. Meaning, he is not given the proper characterization to make a significant role in this movie version. Even his defeat during his fight scene with Ravenum doesn’t give him any kind of redemption. The only moment to prove a bit of his acting prowess is his struggle from his Ravena side that is trying to come out. But this never really gets to help the story progress. The script is really lousy.

The special effects can’t save a bad script. But having a bad script executed with awful special effects is worse. Bad acting, lack of research, problem with continuity to add up to the list… what else can a spectator complain for? With the status of the technological advancements in our film industry, it is considerably forgivable to imitate Hollywood special effects and treatment. The Encantado’s language similar to Elven as depicted in LOTR, the vampire-like state of morphing of Aguiluz and Alwina from being a Mulawin to an ordinary-looking human when touched by sunlight, the R2D2-looking creatures in Encantadia, the story about light versus dark, the use of nature, elements and elementals for a fantasy story… they are but okay. But making too much of a rip-off is terrible. The map during the opening billboard is a blatant copy from LOTR. It could have been utilized in a more creative fashion - with a touch of being a “Mulawin” or a mark of being a Filipino film.  Aguiluz’s speech is a mere combination of Aragorn’s and Balian’s (Orlando Bloom in Ridley Scott’s Kingdom of Heaven) speeches. The initiation scene of the Mulawins left – each to become ‘sugo’ of their race – seems copied from Kingdom of Heaven. The scene where Balian initiates the outnumbered people of Jerusalem to become knights to defend their city seems copied in bad taste. Personally, I have gotten irritated by it being too alike (we’re not talking about copying special effects here). The shouting of AAAHHH’s and YAAAAHHH’s during battle reminds me of the latest King Arthur film of Antoine Fuqua where the knights tend to shout RAAAHHH during battle. If there’s a call to imitate something, make sure it is of the same caliber or even better than the original.

The melodrama part of this movie is okay for a fantasy TV series. But the loopholes in the script combined with bad special effects are really disappointing.  Honestly, I really expected something more. I have never really liked to say bad things about a Filipino movie, but I can’t help but write about what I see and how I see it. I am confident of my words. It’s a democratic country anyway. I just hope the other MMFF entries are better than this. This fantasy flick lacks budget, and worse, lacks creativity.
« Last Edit: Dec 29, 2005 at 01:56 AM by Mr. Big Boy »

Offline llanesmark777

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Re: Mulawin the Movie
« Reply #1 on: Jan 02, 2006 at 12:40 PM »
Overated movie. Trailer palang alam mo na yung story. nakakasawa, Why should I waste myn time and money on this one.

Offline X44

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Re: Mulawin the Movie
« Reply #2 on: Jan 02, 2006 at 06:01 PM »
Mulawin is one of the worst movies of the year.

This is what happens when you rush a movie into production.

Doubly disappointing because 7 has been kicking their unimaginative rival's rearends in the fantaserye department.

Offline garee

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Re: Mulawin the Movie
« Reply #3 on: Jan 03, 2006 at 01:28 PM »
pati acting ni Angel sa fight scene parang may epilepsi o bulate sa 'wet, hindi mapakali hehehe
puro sigawan ng AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH

Offline El Zar

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Re: Mulawin the Movie
« Reply #4 on: Jan 09, 2006 at 09:55 AM »
Rated "A" = Ang Sama !

Offline rascal101

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Re: Mulawin the Movie
« Reply #5 on: Feb 08, 2006 at 12:53 PM »
Overrated naman ang Mulawin. Even in tv.