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Mga sipi mula sa kasaysayan ng tunggalian ng uri at Kilusang Manggagawa sa Sineng Filipino (Part 1: 1951-1961)
Ang sulatin na ito ay bahagi ng proyektong Krisis at Pelikula na naglalayong ihanay ang kasaysayan ng Sineng Filipino sa kasaysayan ng Filipinas bilang kasaysayan ng tunggalian ng uri. Sinimulan ang proyekto noong 2017 at ngayon ay tinatangkang tapusin bilang isang mahabang monograpo na nahahati sa anim na kabanata. Ang sulating ito ay pagtatangka na…
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Mga tala hinggil sa “legacy” movie
Madali na siguro sabihin na aligned sa pagiging “legacy” movie ang Agitator (2001) ni Takashi Miike. Madali makita ang impluwensya ng serye na The Yakuza Papers (1973-2003) ni Kinji Fukasaku dito. Mula sa pagpapakita ng gyerang-yakuza bilang karimarimarim at magulo, hanggang sa pag-subvert nito ng mga tema na noo’y sinusubukan ding pagnilayan ng mga pelikula…
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Katangahan at Pasismo: Tugon sa Op-ed ni Stephanie Mayo
Ang pinaka-importanteng tanong na naisip ko matapos na mabasa yung sinulat na komentaryo ni Stephanie Mayo hinggil kay Darryl Yap (sa Tribune, February 12) ay kung sino ba ‘tong “we” na tinutukoy nya sa title nung op-ed nya? Syempre, walang tiyak na punto. Hypothetical ang “we” ni Stephanie Mayo, pwede mo na lang isipin na…
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Maid in Malacañang (2022)
At first look, Maid in Malacañang has the makings of a hugot film it is easy to mistake the film being directed either by JP Habac or Jerrold Tarog due to its dullness and dumb dialogues. If we speak strictly about its director, Darryl Yap’s past works at least were interesting spectacles that oftentimes lag…
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Karmalink (Cambodia, 2021)
Karmalink attempts to bridge science fiction speculation and religious beliefs. It presents the rather weird idea that there will be a time when science will be used to validate religious spiritual dogma, like karma, in the pursuit of “spiritual” knowledge. This speculative imagination makes us observe how such marriage between science and religion may affect how…
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Ip Man: The Awakening (China, 2022)
In recent memory, Wing Chun master, Ip Man, may have already surpassed the mythical status of his student turned famous screen actor Bruce Lee. Adding to this mythification is Li Xijie and Zhang Zhulin’s Ip Man: The Awakening, set in the period that all the other Ip Man films have skipped – the master’s brief stay…
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Autohystoria (2007)
Autohystoria (2007) was released at a time when earlier forms of digital feature filmmaking are gaining attention and, at the same time, getting more suspicion. Part of the suspicion came from exactly what Autohystoria’s filmmaking stands for: “long-takes” and “contemplative shots” are often conflated to “lazy” filmmaking. But it was admittedly a very novel take…
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Funky Forest: The First Contact (Japan, 2006) & The Warped Forest (Japan, 2011)
Third Window Films’ Blu-ray release of Funky Forest: The First Contact and The Warped Forest is a cause for celebration for fans of Japanese cult cinema. For a very long time, Funky Forest was only available on DVD, which did not do justice to the experience of watching the film, considering that its running time of 150 minutes challenges the limits…