Author Topic: Cinemalaya 2023  (Read 488 times)

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Offline Klaus Weasley

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Cinemalaya 2023
« on: Aug 05, 2023 at 12:01 AM »
It starts today actually. I will post my reviews of the films I catch in this thread.

Feature Film Lineup:

Maria by Sheryl Rose Andes
Gitling by Jopy Arnaldo
Tether by Gian Arre
Ang Duyan ng Magiting by Dustin Celestino
Bulawan Nga Usa (Golden Deer) by Kenneth De La Cruz
Rookie by Samantha Lee
Huling Palabas by Ryan Machado
When This is All Over by Kevin Mikhail Mayuga
Iti Mapupukaw (The Missing) by Carl Joseph Papa
As If It’s True by John Rogers

Short Film Lineup:

Tong Adlaw Nga Nag-Snow sa Pinas by Joshua Caesar Medroso
HM HM MHM by Sam Villa-real and Kim Timan
Golden Bells by Kurt Soberano
Hinakdal by Arvn Belarmino
Kokuryo: The Untold Story of Bb. Undas 2019 by Diokko Manuel Dionisio
Ang Kining Binalaybay Kag Ambahanon Ko Para Sa Imo by Kent John Desamparado
Maudi Nga Arapaap (Last Dream) by Daniel James Magayon
Makoko sa Baybay by Mike Cabales
Sibuyas ni Perfecto (Perfecto’s Onion) by Janura Yap
Sota by Mae Tanagon
« Last Edit: Aug 05, 2023 at 12:03 AM by Klaus Weasley »

Offline Klaus Weasley

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Re: Cinemalaya 2023
« Reply #1 on: Aug 06, 2023 at 08:55 AM »
I was gonna see Rookie but that sold out so this is my first Cinemalaya film:

Gitling (Jopy Arnaldo) ***1/2 - A Japanese filmmaker attends a film festival in the Philippines where his latest film is being screened. While there, he bonds with a young woman hired to translate and subtitle his film. For those who know me, my day job is actually a subtitler so finally a movie about me! Yay! But seriously, I saw this film yesterday and the more I think about it, the more I actually love it. It's basically Lost in Translation in the style of Wong Kar-Wai and it also cuts deep just as hard as those films. I wouldn't call it a romantic film but there are elements of it here but, I can't explain, it goes sort of beyond romance in a way, if that makes any sense.  I won't spoil it but I found myself actually emotional in the ending of this film.  It helps that the two central performances are excellent. Gaby Padilla and Ken Yamamura nail their roles. This is a Cinemalaya entry and an excellent one at that.

Offline Klaus Weasley

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Re: Cinemalaya 2023
« Reply #2 on: Aug 07, 2023 at 12:26 AM »
When This Is All Over (Kevin Mayuga) ***1/2 - A young man living in a fancy condo, awaiting for his immigrant visa so he can join his mom and her new family in the U.S. deals drugs to upper-class young people to augment his allowance. Then the COVID-19 pandemic hits, causing some complications. As I was watching this, I just realized how there are so few narrative films that deal with the pandemic directly. This is one of them and it's quite effective. It blends elements of a stoner comedy, a family drama and a satirical look into the lives of the spoiled privileged youth in the context of Filipino society quite seamlessly. It has some nice performances including the lead Juan Karlos Labajo  but whoever played the perpetually high drug supplier is hilarious and steals the movie every time he's on-screen. That combined with some trippy cinematography courtesy of Martika Ramirez Escobar (if you know, you know) make this a splendid little film that's worth checking out.

Huling Palabas (Ryan Machado) **1/2 - A teenage boy living in a small provincial town during the early 2000's passes his time watching VHS tapes at his neighbor's house and longs to look for his father. Then two people suddenly arrive in his town that may change the course of his life. This is a queer coming-of-age film which kind of goes into all sorts of directions and personally, I don't think it completely works. There is an excellent film in there somewhere but it's various elements sort of clashes with one another instead of blending with one another. There are elements of magic realism which, in my opinion, are underdeveloped and some left turns in the narrative which I kind of found a bit off-putting.  Overall, this is a fine effort but it's personal not one of my favorites of the festival.

Offline Klaus Weasley

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Re: Cinemalaya 2023
« Reply #3 on: Aug 12, 2023 at 12:01 AM »
Iti mapupukaw (The Missing) (Carl Joseph E. Papa) **** - A young man without a mouth recalls the time he was abducted by aliens when he was young but memories can be deceiving. This is rotoscoped Filipino animated queer science fiction feature film and it's quite simply one of the best films I have seen this year so far. The interesting visual palette for this film is just a joy to watch. However, the fantastical elements are in service of tackling a very delicate subject matter which I won't spoil (although it becomes obvious by the second act) and it turns out one of the best films I've ever seen to handle this particular element. It is quite an achievement and features excellent performances including a nice supporting performance from Dolly de Leon. I hope this gets a wider release so more people can see it and more people SHOULD see it. 
« Last Edit: Sep 30, 2023 at 10:57 AM by Klaus Weasley »

Offline Klaus Weasley

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Re: Cinemalaya 2023
« Reply #4 on: Aug 14, 2023 at 12:18 AM »
Here is the full list of winners for Cinemalaya 2023:

Best Film (Full-Length Feature): “Iti Mapukpukaw”
Best Film (Short Feature): "Sibuyas Ni Perfecto"
Best Director (Full-Length Feature): Ryan Espinosa Machado for "Huling Palabas"
Best Director (Short Film): Mike Cabarles for "Makoko Sa Baybay"
Best Actor (Full-Length Feature): Mikoy Morales for "Tether"
Best Actress (Full-Length Feature): Pat Tingjuy for "Rookie"
Best Supporting Actor (Full Length Feature): Bon Andrew Lentejas of “Huling Palabas”
Best Supporting Actress (Full-Length Feature): Dolly de Leon for “Iti Mapukpukaw”
Best Screenplay for Full-Length Feature: “Gitling”
Best Screenplay for Short Film: “Hinakdal”
Best Cinematography: “When This Is All Over”
Best Editing: “Rookie”
Best Production Design: “When This Is All Over”
Best Original Music Score: “When This Is All Over”
Best Sound Design: “Tether”
Audience Choice Award for Full-Length Feature: “Rookie”
Audience Choice Award for Short Film: “Hinakdal”
Special Award: "Ang Duyan Ng Magiting"
Special Jury Award for Short Film: "Hm Hm MhM"
Special Jury Award for Full-Length Feature: "Ang Duyan Ng Magiting"
Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema (NETPAC) Full-Length Feature Award: "Iti Mapukpukaw"
Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema (NETPAC) Short Film Award: "Hinakdal"

Offline Klaus Weasley

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Re: Cinemalaya 2023
« Reply #5 on: Aug 15, 2023 at 12:18 AM »
Ang Duyan ng Magiting (Dustin Celestino) ***1/2 - This is film interweaves connecting vignettes and chapters of various members of society during the Duterte administration: A police officer, a professor, a social worker, two students, etc. and the violent incident that unite them all. This is a film clearly written with a lot of passion and a lot of anger. I can relate. I share the writer's politics and frustrations too. Though the film's episodic structure makes it uneven and it does have the tendency to become almost too preachy, there are a lot of great moments here. The acting ensemble led by Dolly de Leon, Paolo O'Hara, Jojit Lorenzo and Agot Isidro are all outstanding. It doesn't quite reach masterpiece-level but it's still an admirable piece of work that can still ignite fiery emotions upon its audience.

Offline jas

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Re: Cinemalaya 2023
« Reply #6 on: Feb 28, 2024 at 08:10 AM »
Cinemalaya Best Film winner, Iti Mapukpukaw (The Missing), is now on Netflix.

Offline jas

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Re: Cinemalaya 2023
« Reply #7 on: Feb 29, 2024 at 07:42 AM »
Iti Mapukpukaw / The Missing (2023) - A rotoscoped adult animated film that is a fantastic and groundbreaking achievement in local feature animation. Before it being shown (and winning Best Film) at Cinemalaya 2023, I never even knew that such a local production is being done or can be done. Besides the animation, the story itself is also well structured as a science-fiction type mystery. Although you can guess the reveal coming, it does not diminish the relevance of the film's topic.