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To Think About the Future is to Arrive at a Decision
This piece is a mildly revised version of an essay that appeared in the 2023 issue of UP Cinema’s Kino Punch magazine which theme revolves around Fate and Future.
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Breaking the Glass Air
There is no salvation in the saying of words –But what weapon do we useagainst that which oppresses & chokes?Silence overwhelmsbut we must keep on inventing the wordthat will smashthe thick glass of air between us.Edel Garcellano, “Words” There is no need to fear or hope, but only to look for new weapons.Gilles Deleuze, “Postscript…
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On Cinema and Parapolitics
If there’s anything that the cancellation of the GMA Public Affairs’ Lost Sabungeros Cinemalaya premiere reveals to us, it is the nature of the Philippine parapolitics. If you have been following the writer-peasant rights advocate Jayvene Timblique in his socials, particularly in his twitter, you will recognize where we intersect in this topic. Jayvene introduced…
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On CCP’s Gawad Alternatibo
Almost a year ago, I was invited by my friend, Adrian Mendizabal, who was overseeing that year’s Gawad Alternatibo congress, to sit in one of the panels for Film Criticism with three other participants to say something about the “Role of Local Film Criticism and Cinephilia in the Critical Reception of Gawad Alternatibo and in…
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Celluloid Regression and Sadness
My kneejerk reaction to the trailer of Khavn’s soon-to-be-released film Makamisa is nothing less than disappointment – mainly due to the fact that the work is shot in celluloid. The trailer – and the film – closes the circle among the “trailblazers” of the so-called “Philippine New Wave” of the 2000s who regressed to using…
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Casting Doubt to a Barber’s Tale
I tweeted some days ago: “Weird how the perception towards Philip Salvador and his collaborations with Brocka shifted with his support for the Duterte Admin but never Nora Aunor whose support for the Marcoses has been unwavering since the 1970s.” This was just some off-the-butt thing, nothing to follow through. A sigh of frustration, perhaps. …
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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…