'Contagion' (2011)

Genre: Medical Drama

From Film to Reality:

Critical Perspectives of the film ‘Contagion’ (2011) during the COVID-19 pandemic

By Joey Ting

The turn from the industrial to information age is definitely a big leap. Having introduced the concepts of technological advancements, media digitization, massive information transference among many other crucial innovations and developments (Jenkins-Ford-Green 2013), films are considered to be a potent force if not the only moving art that could be digitized and preserved cinematically of this period. One of the more significant properties of film these days is otherwise known as the story. How does one explain ‘medical crisis’ to people? What causes it? What cures it?

The film ‘Contagion’ is a 2011 American medical thriller of filmmaker Steven Soderbergh, also known for his hyperlink directorial film style where different characters are presented in multi-narrative devices. In the interconnections of plot, these characters are incidentally intertwined in selected providential circumstances. Second-time collaborator of Soderbergh, Scott Z. Burns writes this engaging fast-paced plot. Cliff Martinez provides a compelling almost emotionally-rhythmic in leitmotif music. Cinematographer Peter Andrews and editor Stephen Mirrione contribute immensely in a suspenseful-driven catastrophe. Canted camera shots and fast cuts successfully offer a more compelling storytelling. Marion Cotillard, Matt Damon, Laurence Fishburne, Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow, Kate Winslet, Bryan Cranston, Jennifer Ehle and Sanaa Lathan have comprised an effective casting. The film produced by Participant Media (Jeffrey Skoll) and Image Nation (formerly Imagenation Abu Dhabi) with Warner Bros as film’s distributor is a concrete discussion of putting science and communication together.

The premise of these multiple plots has evolved around the beginning discovery of unknown novel virus MEV-1 which eventually determines to be a bat-borne virus and pigs as conduits at the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The coronaviruses attack severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS CoV) and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS CoV-2) of those who were affected by its origin seen at the end of the film. From Hong Kong, in a well-lit and crowded casino, Beth Emhoff (Paltrow) has been infected by the strain of the virus. As she returns back in Minneapolis to her family, she produces colds, dry coughs, rashes, high-fever and the unexpected seizures in a span of hours. Mitch Emhoff (Damon), also symbolical character of a common man, rushes his wife immediately at the hospital after he sees the saliva-spitting very similar to contusions. Doctors and nurses rapidly attend to Beth as she continuously experienced non-stop seizures until her death. Surgeons have examined the cause of it by peeling off the skin of her back head as an autopsy death verification. While this whole chunk is happening, another incident of a cameo Japanese executive character has suffered the same symptoms similar to Beth and many incidental characters, not realistically connected, have similar cases. The CDC experts are seen in montage reporting of such random incidents including the death of Beth which would call for a pandemic virus outbreak. More characters are introduced. Dr. Leonora Orantes (Cotillard) plays a central character in the film where she represents the World Health Organization (WHO) finding out the host of this virus, hostaged and freed in the end from HK.  Dr. Ellis Cheever (Fishburne), a physician, sees the outbreak as a means to an end and orders everyone else in the CDC to capture the cause of such symptoms as he personally deals with his soon-to-be wife (Lathan) asking not to reveal to others the consequences of all these without the vaccine solution. Alan Krumwiede (Law) is a self-proclaimed journalist-blogger spreading false information causing panic to his viewers. Having been classified as a conspiracy theorist, his thinking expressing renunciation from the CDCs. He becomes the conscience of these doctors, believing in ‘disinformation’ of random speculations from the health organizations. Dr. Erin Mears (Winslet), also has caused herself a victim to the virus, is an epidemiologist-officer from the 1951 established Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) of the biological warfare in the previous Korean War. She frantically but bravely discovers herself infected from the virus while she performs her duties in the virus-infected parameters. Simultaneously, the outbreak has brought other characters on the ground in the film. Dr. Ally Hextall (Ehle) is a research scientist who has helped find a vaccine at the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Rear Admiral Lyle Haggerty (Cranston), also from US Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, HK government officer Sun Feng (Hang) and CDC Custodian and a friend of Dr. Cheever, Roger (Hawkes) have been added to the multi-narratives and multi-plot-centered characters in the virus-massive killing saga of an animal-origin. The film ends with a founded vaccine where sequential select-few has been picked through a lottery of birthdates. Finally, at the last few frames, the film depicts how the infection has spread out from the bats-borne virus to pigs to cooks to waiters to guests and the infinite display of contagion develops alarmingly until the last.

In the case of local marginalized set-ups, Philippine cities have warranted strict implementation of the term coined as Extreme Community Quarantine (ECQ), a soft-termed lockdown while in search for the absolute vaccine and some alternative medications such as in the film’s ‘forsythia’ which can cure the virus. Though the Local Government Units (LGUs) control the limited movement of their constituents, the crowding of people has seen publicly over a media news report the congregation at the wet markets, groceries, food bakeries, drugstores among other substantial food markets. For 135 days or so seen in the film, the solution vaccine, whether for antibodies or anti-infection, has been detected nearly more than three months of waiting. The idleness of the people, in so far as the medical experiments are concerned, has been approximately measured within the 135-day observation, symbolically identical to the film’s timeline. Anxiety, depression, reduced interest in creativity, loss of appetite in studies, sadness, idleness, insights on absurdity and dead-end home routines have established negligence in promoting objectivity rather than the more emotional, subjective views of human experiences against the virus.    

Over nearly three decades and in a period of information, science communication has become more established as a subject of teaching and research in universities across the world (Trench 2012). The nature of it, being extrapolated further in the study of the novel coronavirus 2019 (CoViD-19), concurrently gives us hope through an informed nation such as the Philippines. Like in the film ‘Contagion’, the setting has paralleled the beginning of the CoViD-19 outbreak. Symptoms of sudden intermittent coughing and sneezing conjoined with high-temperature that causes fever and short of breathing are detected to be the characteristic traits of the virus indicators. While the scenes in the film have made it more thrilling especially in the case of Beth’s sudden seizures and saliva extractions and its quick manifestations of the virus, many of our countrymen have suffered severe weakling of lungs that leads to serious case of pneumonia. Speculations relative to pneumonia could be, as stated in the film, meningitis (an acute inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, known collectively as the meninges) and/or encephalitis (an inflammation of the brain). As the film excitingly progresses initially hiding the virus outbreak in public, while the Pinoys are put into an Extreme Community Quarantine (ECQ) provisioned by the Philippine Pres. Rodrigo Duterte’s speech on March 16, 2020 – number of days before the confused and premature knowledge of the pandemic, the internet through the various social media platforms easily spread out the disinformation of fake news and catastrophic information that led to more complex phenomenological attributes of the virus, as synonymous to the blog of Krumwiede.

With the aid of science experts in public communication, as seen in the film through a series of press corps and as seen in our daily news from Philippines’ Department of Health (DOH) officials’ conference to the public, clarifications on what to do and medical bulletin updates of recovered, death and probable cases of the affected virus statistics and a ladder-system to fight the infectious disease from the self-imposed home quarantine, the motion to include in the ASEAN-integrated undergraduate curriculum track courses under highly-specialized Media and Communication Departments (2018) of universities and colleges in the tertiary level are implemented. Subject courses relative to public health like Risk, Disaster & Humanitarian Communication, Science and Health Communication, Social Media Communication, Political Economy of Communication are offered to be utilized for possible collaboration from other interdisciplinary strands in Health, Medicine, Economics and Business.

The vision of the filmmaker Soderbergh in the film ‘Contagion’ is uncontestably vital and vulnerable as similar in the case of science communication. In the Philippine context, the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) to fight the CoViD-19 is an example of both vitality and vulnerability. Because of the diversified agencies called for, their presence and participation have become vital. However, its existence could be vulnerable, short-lived and temporarily-restrained when everything is put to a halt or an end. Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) should continue the existence of it to prevail the continued ally of theory and practice (Clevenger 2019). Moreover, to make it vital for both the professions in media communication and science, scientists and the medical professionals must have appropriate communication training in order to understand fully the sense of immediacy and information transference (2012).

‘Contagion’ (2011) is definitely one significant film that must be accelerated as a form of science communication study. With close tandem in medical professions, media (film as an example) and communication (performative speech preparation for media coverage of plausible indoctrinating science (scientific jargons as examples) to common understanding must be taken conclusively as allies for a better world convergence. While our current quarantine condition manifests the understanding of mythical realm of cinema to real world (Bazin 1967), the real world manifests the understanding and relevance of film in clarifying the unseen forces of the virus to an end through a procedural system on what to do and finally, come up with a resolving vaccine.     

In conclusion, this CoViD-19 global pandemic for sure has positive turn-outs in life experiences. Science communication is seen as a vital component in the medical and health professions as well as in media and communication industries. An immediate convergence must happen. There must be further studies through research and publication to engage and deal with the promising status of the ongoing theories and practices in science and health communication as poignant forces for solidarity despite the interdisciplinary connections of potential agencies against these invisible enemies in an invisible nearly-apocalyptic war.      

References:

Bazin, A. (1967). What is cinema? Vol. 1. University of California Press: Berkeley.

Clevenger, M.R. (2019). Corporate citizenship and higher education: Behavior, engagement, and                    ethics.Palgrave Macmillan: Switzerland.

Jenkins, H., Ford, S., Green, J. (2013). Spreadable media: creating value and meaning in a 

            networked culture. New York University Press: New York.

Soderbergh, S. (2011). Contagion. Participant Media & Image Nation: Abu Dhabi.

Trench, B. (2012). Vital and vulnerable: science communication as a university subject in (eds.) Schiele, B., Claessens, M., Shi, S. Science communication in the world: Practices, theories and                        trends. Springer: New York.   

'Hollywood' (2020)

Genre: Drama

Netflix’s ‘Hollywood’ mirrors the decadence of Philippine film and television culture

By Joey Ting

The premiered Netflix’s ‘Hollywood’ this May 1, 2020 has become one of the nicest things I’ve watched so far under an enhanced community quarantine in Manila. Well, I’ve watched it two days after its release and at first, I thought this would be an interesting interpretation of a ‘Hollywoodized’ scenarios for two hypothetical reasons: One, Netflix, I presumed, is known to be helping out a lot of independent film, theater and television artists all over the world which provides courageous attempts in excellent digital web craftsmanship along with compelling storytelling ideologies and of course, a platform for ‘well thought-of’ screenplay structures both catered for film and film for television productions; Two, content is exceptionally attention-getting and subliminally catchy since the day Netflix has produced contextually-driven pieces of digitally-produced works. Netflix has given us equally excellent-produced and distributed films and series through the web such as ‘Freud’ (2020), originally-produced Korean series ‘Kingdom’ (2020), ‘The Two Popes’ (2019), ‘Marriage Story’ (2019), ‘The Witcher’ (2019), ‘The King’ (2019), ‘Dolemite Is My Name’ (2019), ‘Beasts of No Nation’ (2019), and ‘Dead Kids’ (2019) - which actually gave Filipino filmmaker Mikhail Red his cinematic platform and a once in a lifetime opportunity to showcase his filmmaking mastery and skill. While early on, ‘Stranger Things’ (2016) has been one of the longest running hit web series with its ongoing season 4 in the making this 2020. Creators of outstanding American series Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan thought ‘Hollywood’ to be added feature on the list of films and series to watch for on Netflix in the time of CoViD-19 outbreak across the world.

‘Hollywood’

The basic premise of story touches on the different individual lives of aspiring ‘wannabe’ stars in Hollywood, may it be on camera actors, writers, filmmakers and even producers. The series is basically set in a post-World War 2 where aspiring group led by the ‘everyman’ characters as follows: military good looking veteran Jack Castello (played by dashing David Corenswet), an aspiring Half-Filipino, yes specifically mentioned, filmmaker Raymond Ainsley (Darren Criss), talented black woman, also Raymond’s girlfriend Camille Washington (Laura Harrier), Ace Studios executive-in-charge of production and closeted gay Richard Samuels aka Dick (Joe Mantello), retired military turned businessman-pimp Ernest West aka Ernie (Dylan McDermott), naïve Roy Fitzgerald aka screenname Rock Hudson (Jake Picking), talented screenwriter Archie Coleman, also Roy’s boyfriend (Jeremy Pope), acting coach-mentor, studio executive Ellen Kincaid (Holland Taylor), beautiful Claire Wood (Samara Weaving), also only daughter of Ace Studios owners Ace and Avis Amberg, talent agent, also a self-proclaimed Ace producer Henry Willson (Jim Parsons), wife of Ace Amberg, also took charge of the Ace Studios Avis Amberg (played beautifully by Patti LuPone), Head of the Ace Studios, also Avis’s husband Ace Amberg (filmmaker Rob Reiner) to complete the principal cast. Exceptional performances come from actress Mira Sorvino (played the actress Jeanne Crandall character, also the mistress of Ace), actress Michelle Krusiec (played the underdog Chinese-American actress Anna May Wong, also helped by Raymond to win an Academy award), and finally, actress Queen Latifah (played the black actress character Hattie McDaniel, also the alter-ego and adviser of Camille). These three women actors have played so well and stood-out in the series. There are seven episodes so far completing the first season on Netflix. The series is, of course, not for minors since it has displayed consistently and explicitly contents on sex, nudity and strong language on the episodes. Recurring themes of sexuality, gender, power and race have been the major issues of this very relevant and timely production practices of entertainment particularly of the film and broadcast studio system and the pervading culture of decadence.

Dissipating Power, Energy and Money

After the rise of democratic people power in the original EDSA 1, film and television production studios in Manila have continued in the mid-80s. This continuum has made these studios overwhelmingly acquired a lot of power, energy and money BUT has failed continuously to provide excellent, high-quality and well-planned productions of various mixed-up genres patterned from the world class studios of the Hollywood in the United States. In the long years of film and television studios servicing the Philippine public as referred to the ‘poor mass’ who, almost all of these millions of societal victims, have become continuously ignorant due to the opportunity to be educated, parasitically-driven to the wealth and power of the false gods, hypocritical to its social-economic conditions, are pervasively indoctrinating what Power, Energy and Money can do to twist the continuous fate of our decadent Philippine culture. The culture of the studios in Manila should be put to a halt and to postpone the political empowerment of the abusive(s) and excessive(s) to the innocence of the poor and the fragility of the mass. The conscience of the intellects, as in the academe, provides the soul and wisdom of the nation which many of these academics have witnessed how studio system has thrived to embrace Power, Energy and Money.

Power is not absolute

Loyalty is synonymous to the empires of the Roman emperors. In the Philippine context, loyalty is not objective but more of seeing it as ‘utang na loob at binigyan ako ng break sa pag-arte o pag-direk o pag-prodyus’ (gives false loyalty for the chance of acting or directing or producing) or otherwise, to perform the hypocritical ‘pakikisama’ (conjoining friendships) originated from the Spanish-American confluence. The studios have this kind of a culture, a wronged one. Those who have been offered to sign a contract with them intermittently are those who have submitted themselves to the decadence of this nation. The contract is a pact between the sinners and the sinned which eventually would evolve into a huge networking recruits of more sinners and sinned, a never-ending culture of false worshipping. These television executives who run the studios perform power as absolute regardless of the kind of creative identity and vision produced by the submissive and subordinating followers of power.

Energy for worthless pieces of shits

The publicists or marketing personnel connive unfortunately as these people have signed smaller contracts as well with the false gods, the purveyors of mediocrity in the film and television studios. Hour after hour, one would see, in exchange of the true abilities and creativities of these follower-victims, how each has succumbed to the ideologies of these brainless studio executives whom they think they have acquired the absolute power and authority through their enormous amount of creative energies. Hour after hour, one would see in localized programs, the senseless, almost absurd, decadence of entertainment where it ultimately mirrors the littlest of hopes and ambitions to rise above the manipulative society. Hence, the energies spent to enforce the lowest quality of ideas and concepts in Philippine entertainment are too oblivious. The energies of those who have become part of the studio system through their contracts are the same energies that promote mediocrity, substandard creative juices throughout the period of decadence.

Money makes the world go crazy

Money is the root of all evil and this quote truly makes sense. Every single species who has become part of the studio system wants the pleasure of acquiring the huge amount of money. With money, one can have both the power and the energy. Money makes everyone so powerful yet so vulnerable. Money in the studios comes from the trickery of this materialistic world, the advertisements, the image pronouncements BUT materialistic items are brought to life by those selected few. Still, only a fraction of percentage happens to be those few who have contracts with the system. Studio culture likes and is attractive to money, a lot and so goes with the film and television executives vibrantly amused by the pea brains of those who just nod and follow what pleases them most. Each star devotes their whole time, effort and brainless chores in exchange of huge mansions, luxurious automobiles, expensive jewelries, high-end clothing and accessories because they all thought to establish imagery, symbol like saints and icons to the poor masses. In shows where action scenes take place, actors and actresses should still look good looking and beautiful with make-ups, blushes and lip glosses so they can continue to endorse the decadence of this nation.

Philippine film and television culture is ‘Hollywood’

The system of the studios must change. The culture of studios must change. The people of the studios must be changed. Change is what the Philippine film and television need today. At the turn of the 21^st century and after three decades of impoverished progress, we see the same people running the studios. We see the same film and television executives until we really see them dead, then change might happen. Philippine culture is ‘Hollywood’ culture in a bad way. The influx of interests of the younger generation in appreciating Philippine film and television is definitely an outsider’s view. As you enter the studio gates, an outsider’s view would see the shining, shimmering, splendid things with celebrity stars walking the hallways, producers with their mobile phones, directors puffing their last few fires in their cigarettes and the wannabes continue to bewildered with luxury cars getting of the compound, fans unwavering their support to their idols, some closeted gay film executives sucking the amateurs’ dicks one after another in their well-lit and conducive offices, promising endlessly hopes, dreams and ambitions in this absurdly decaying world of entertainment and the culture of such in this supposedly changed, improved, enhanced realm of world-class Philippine film and television industries.

While the insider continues to produce, to direct, to act even when there seems to be nothing new to offer, receives the pay check because of this five-year contract. Philippine film and television industries lack ‘real’ visionary filmmakers, producers, actors and actresses, those with ‘real’ societal goals and those who can actually change the culture of this nation. The studios must look for them and this is the right time to look for the new ones, principled and still carries ideologies. The existing ones should be replaced and should end their contracts. The culture of ‘utang na loob’ and ‘pakikisama’ must be stopped. This must change so that wider chances to build new concepts and ideas for the ‘poor mass’ to be educated. Those whom they think they are indispensable and those who have acquired material assets and huge amount of money because of the studios, you must be eradicated from this lifetime since the gluttony of everything has given to you - the power, the energy, the money.

The series ‘Hollywood’ provokes one to think, to reflect, to be critical and to be smart. Our country is given another chance, like the Japanese, Chinese, Koreans, this is the period where Filipinos must sense the care and selflessness of the world. We have a lot of stories to tell. The challenge is how each Filipino filmmaker or television producer will make the story a potent force to the world.

            

  

'Parasite' (2019)

Genre: Drama

'1917' (2019)

Genre: War Drama

How to win an Oscar: Cinematic devices of Bong Joon-Ho’s ‘The Parasite’ and Sam Mendes’s ‘1917’

By Joey Ting

            Winning an Oscar trophy in the prestigious Hollywood award-giving body assures each of the filmmaker to finally rest on their laurels and pave the way for another chapter in their so-called artistic film careers. Having the speech onstage as one accepts the award is another daunting yet nerve-wracking obligation despite the prepared monologue and the long-list of gratitude to the artistic and production team of the film that has been recognized. Most especially, if the film announced as run-away winner comes from Asia, a transitionary evidence that this continent will rule the next phase of the world. As Daniel Pink’s book ‘A Whole New Mind: Why Right-Brainers will rule the Future’ states, ‘In recent years, few issues have generated more controversy or stroked more anxiety than outsourcing. These four programmers and their counterparts throughout India, the Philippines, and China are scaring the bejeezus out of software engineers and other left-brain professionals in North America and Europe, triggering protests, boycotts, and plenty of political posturing.’

            In this time of the conceptual age where everyone cares about primarily of their ‘almost’ digitalized life, uniqueness and stamina are two providential characteristics significantly require to sustain the eligibility of being exceptional and genius in the industry of innovative cinema of the world. Brilliant filmmakers South Korean Bong Joon-Ho and British Sam Mendes have acquired it throughout their carefully-mapped out entertainment careers.

            ‘Parasite’ (2019) is an oxymoron where we all thought has something to do with another alien annihilation-type of a film since Bong’s highlighted filmography ranges from crime drama ‘Memories of Murder’ (2003) to a monster film ‘The Host’ (2006) to a post-apocalyptic dystopic thriller ‘Snowpiercer’ (2013) to genetically-modified superpig film ‘Okja’ (2017). His latest has become his most simply-made but socially-relevant to our times these days. The film basically touches on ‘poverty’ and how the victims of it such as, this protagonist family, have used their creativity and ability to bend norms in order to survive and live like real human beings in this decadent world. To indoctrinate the seamless plot, the film action moves like a wind and without the aesthetic disturbances and careless efforts of the filmmaker. Every element in the film has become an ally of the powerful story which made the cinematic experience so extraordinary and poignant, almost like an entirely Philippine-made. Thanks to National Artist for Film Lino Brocka for exceptionally woven the intricacies of social realities of Manila and the weeping characters to it. Bong’s revelation was that he got inspired from the works of Brocka in an interview he had for the film promotion of ‘Parasite.’ Bong has studied BA degree in Sociology at Yonsei University in S. Korea where he has become active as social activist who went out to streets to defend the victims of the hypocrisies of society.

            ‘1917’ (2019) is, obviously, a British epic war, an account of which was told by Mendes’s paternal grandfather Alfred Mendes. The two young soldiers have obliged to deliver an important message to stop the attack to the Germans as the soldier’s brother has to be saved from the massacre. Filmmaker Sam Mendes is known to be a theater director of many dark-themed approach productions such as his works in Cabaret (1994), Oliver (1994), Company (1995), Gypsy (2003), and has made a West-End hit musical The Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2013). His films later have become instant contemporary classics such as American Beauty (1999), Road to Perdition (2002), Revolutionary Road (2008), Skyfall (2012), Spectre (2015). He has received recognitions from his body of work and pronounced as one of the outstanding film directors of the 21^st century by the Daily Telegraph and the Directors Guild of Great Britain. His film ‘1917’ has acquired almost a grand slam in international awards because of the film’s meritorious cinematic elements most especially its cinematographic properties and the filmic style of continuous shot and long takes conception. His story is equally brilliant as I see fit as its greatest strength as well as the actors who have portrayed the characters so natural and engaging. Therefore, summative of the film’s exceptionality and ingenuity.

The two films ‘Parasite’ and ‘1917’ have commonly used powerful devices that made it to winning in international awards and of course, to the hearts of millions of people who have seen it.

            First, the use of unity of time, place and action where the plot is of prominence. Urged by Greek philosopher and artist Aristotle in his seminal essay ‘The Poetics’ that drama should have the unity of time, place, and action. The film ‘Parasite’ has started the plot with the use of time (when the time-bound conflict and peripety has evolved as soon as the doorbell rings), place (where the action and tragedy takes places in the elegant mansion), and action (how the characters are intertwined and trapped to solve to its end). While, ‘1917’ sequentially tells the audiences of the three unities where the event of the war is macroscopically dissected using the two young soldiers in the film. Evident in the film, the conflict is in the time (as message is delivered in a given time otherwise), place (dangerous and destructive), and action (the only plotline curved to focus on the transfer of communication through messengers despite barriers and obstacles). Aristotle’s provocations have been transparent and obvious as successful devices in cinema.

            Second, the discursive ‘romantic realism’ as a device to substantiate the story, has been very evident in the two films. Despising poverty by the majority is an opposite to the films ‘Parasite’ and ‘1917’. The characters move freely without hindrances and obstacles, making it romantically realistic. In realities of life, major factors momentarily have stopped us from dreaming, hence, fulfilling our reachable dreams. In the film ‘parasite’, the family members – son, daughter, father, and mother – chronologically establishes their dream to overcome poverty through lies, falsifications, pretense, and killings. These wrong accentuations have instead become their allies in quest for ultimate happiness and contentment and romanticizing the wrong as right. In the film ‘1917’, the British trenches have been endangered with telegraphs cut and many dead soldiers seen everywhere but the two young British soldiers lance corporals Tom Blake and William Schofield, a survivor of Somme, are ordered by Gen. Erinmore to deliver an important message to Colonel Mackenzie of the second battalion of the Devonshire Regiment to call off a scheduled attack that would probably jeopardize the lives of 1600 men including Blake’s brother, Lieutenant Joseph Blake. In the two soldiers’ journey, like in a maze or characters from a current video game, it romantically provides the travails of the two overcoming the struggles, challenges,and difficulties no matter what happens. In the scene where the rats underground faulted the explosives by dropping it, the two hurdles the explosion, running hurriedly outside of the camp and nothing has paused them from handling the message. Romantic realism is defined as historian Jacques Barzun would state that ‘the romantic realist does not blink his weakness, but exerts his power’, a providential evidence to the two films marked to be exceptional.

            Third and the last, both films have tackled history, culture, and class struggle in very similar but different ways. Bong’s direction is diachronic in nature that the plot has evolved time urgently manifested into a preconceived time unity. His strong sense of culture is made universal, applying to even in Asian economic condition. Mendes’s direction is more synchronic in nature that the plot has also evolved time urgently manifested at a particular point in time, as synchronically used in history which defines the class struggles and cultures in military exercises such as war.

            Whichever one would choose to be its Best Picture as Oscar’s Best Director’s penultimate recognition, the pattern is emphasized, designed to propagate the success of innovation and development in history and culture of the world. Similar to Ms. Universe pageants where at times, the Americans and Europeans have been consistently recognized, and at varying times, the Asians are crowned and glorified. Film artists in all countries of the world, of course, would love to bring home a legacy and history like Bong Joon-Ho and Sam Mendes who tirelessly strive for the recognitions it deserves. Philippine cinema is just an inch away from winning the Oscar’s if not for Cannes, Venice, and Berlinale. 

'UnTrue' (2020)

Genre: Mystery Suspense Drama

‘UnTrue’ sets a grayer standard in both film and plot making

By Joey Ting

The film ‘UnTrue’ (2020), produced by The Idea First Company and released through Viva, sets a grayer standard in both film and plot making which an ordinary Filipino audience member would not really appreciate much of the film if not for the celebrity cast Xian Lim and Christine Reyes.

The film making style of famed ‘Kita Kita’ (2017) director Sigrid Andrea Bernardo is usually to say the least temperamental and moody, perhaps depending on her aesthetic mood of love and despair on specific points in her life and times.

In the case of my favorite ‘Ang Huling Cha Cha ni Anita’ (2013) where flashback and flashforward styles stem from the known filmic techniques of William Wyler’s ‘Wuthering Heights’ (1939), Orson Welles’s ‘Citizen Kane’ (1941), Akira Kurosawa’s ‘Rashomon’ (1950) and Quentin Tarantino’s ‘Pulp Fiction’ (1994) and ‘Kill Bill (2003 and 2004 sequels) among many other unconventional cinematic spectacles, the character of a 12-year old Anita falls in love with an older woman disposing of her mysterious looks, charm and appeal that would eventually carve into a more vivid cinematic styles of expressionism, surrealism and the other tangible art movements in Europe during the advent of the world wars. Director Bernardo has displayed her knowledge and skills in film making through her theatrical and media background for sure and her frequent travels in other parts of the world.

In some of the scenes in the film, actors Xian Lim (plays the character of Joachim) and Christine Reyes (portrays Mara) as set in the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe of the country Georgia, it only backdrops Georgia as an environmental setting but failed to relevantly intersperse with the human-ness of the characters. At some points in the film, it disengages with no intentions and eventually leads up to the idleness of the viewing audiences. There were no doubts about the acting skills of the two main actors but the film excessively diminishes the aesthetics of the intentional expressionism in the film, a grotesque cinematic interpretation of externalized behaviors of these characters as dictated by its physical environment. Thus, setting a gray-scaled standard in film making. However, the expressionist styles have been very effective for the plot it possesses.     

In terms of plot making, ‘Untrue’ is of the same plane and vision as it provides the spectrum of ‘what ifs’ theory in motion pictures. Tom Twyker’s German thriller ‘Run Lola Run’ (1998) and Akira Kurosawa’s Japanese expressionist film ‘Rashomon’ (1950) version, have been the reflexive nuances of the film. Both of these two films have acquired international recognitions and awards due to the innovations made in world cinema. Director Bernardo has that quality if only for her definitive plot styles which usually her storytelling device. The course of her plot movements is deconstructed and bent with intentions, not of natural ways but of seeing and riding with her asymmetrical perspectives. The plot, as it thickens, provides actions of different versions. Hence, a repetition of scenes, dialogues spoken by the two characters. The Joachim character could have been done interestingly by another actor. Lim has his own share of greatness in the film but most of the time without its sincerity. Reyes could have been clearer in her subtlety of expressive acting. Physicalizing anger and forging mental breakdown must be from within and not the surface one since the director implies beautifully the film’s sculpture. Len Calvo (music), Boy Yniguez (cinematography), Maolen Fadul (production design) have been very helpful in realizing the director’s vision. Editing though could have been more experimental and unpredictable. The plot uncovers in the end the intertwined stories retold in like a police blotter’s report as well as the psychiatrist’s sessions. Also, the dark past stories have been excessively melo-dramatized bringing down many of the scenes to idle.  

There are high moments of the film and most of which are the quietest. Scenes have been approached so loudly and literal, putting the delineation between clear black and white and smoky gray areas in the film. The film’s sensibility is not meant for the Filipino mass. Great luck to the rest of the cast and crew of the film’s international release and in competition with the various film festivals abroad. I hope Director Bernardo can bring home something we can all be proud of.       

 

'Block Z' (2020)

Genre: Horror Thriller

Mikhail Red’s ‘Block Z’ excites the new generation of audiences

By Joey Ting

Watching films has always been some kind of an escape for me whenever I was not hiding behind the hangered clothes in my room’s closet. It has become part of my weird personality to hide whenever debates of my parents soared up at the top of their lungs in the living room and avoiding not to be scolded by them because of some non-performing grades in school. In the closet, I see nothing but darkness, of course, since I would even turn off the lights of the room and pretend that I am in my brother’s. In darkness, my imagination really works, terribly scaring myself out and developing that fear into a nightmare in sleep. Since then, my attraction for suspense-horror genres in films has never stopped until this date.

‘Block Z’, directed by Mikhail Red, is a suspense-horror Filipino film that touches on the holocaust of ill-fated virus. In turn, people who have become victims of this virus have transformed themselves into an army of zombies, reflexive of the previous zombie films we’ve had in the past years such as – British film director Danny Boyle’s ’28 Weeks Later’, then the sequel, ’28 Days Later’; German-born Swiss film director Marc Forster’s ‘World War Z’ and the sequel upcoming. Netflix’s ‘Cargo’ is synonymous as well as the film tackles a pandemic virus in Australia. Its directors Ben Howling and Yolanda Ramke have treated the setting in post-apocalyptic aftermath. There were several previous films that have easily turned out into cult classics: ‘Dawn of the Dead’ (1978, 2004), ‘Return of the Living Dead (1985), ‘The Serpent and The Rainbow’ (1988), ‘Night of the Living Dead’ (1968), ‘I am Legend’ (2007), ‘Resident Evil’ (2002) including the Korean Asian hit zombie apocalyptic ‘Train to Busan’ (2016).  

Distributed by Star Cinema, this ABS-CBN Film production in collaboration with Keep Filming, features young talented resident network’s film and television personalities of today’s generation. Taking the lead is Julia Barretto who plays the role of PJ, an OJT medical student of a university along with Joshua Garcia (Lucas), a varsity basketball player, Maris Racal (PJ’s best friend), Yves Flores (Gelo, class president), McCoy De Leon (best friend of Lucas), Myrtle Sarrosa (an ally of Gelo) while veteran actress Ina Raymundo portrays the conflicting mother character with child star-turned-leading man Ian Veneracion who plays the compassionate father. Dimples Romana, from the famed TV soap ‘Kadenang Ginto’ among others, portrays a different character, this time as a lady school guard. The ensemble of the cast is impeccable as shown in their variety of intensity, rhythm and clarity in their character performances. Stand outs could be given to Garcia who has displayed natural truth in struggle and providing sharpness in his performative skills while Racal surely ignites the pulse of sincerity and truth in her portrayal handling both humor and seriousness. Theater character actor Timothy Castillo was a positive scene stealer in the film. He has helped make audiences laugh and scream at the same time. Castillo’s innate acting ability has made him contributed a lot in the film.  

Red is known to have directed critically-acclaimed films such as ‘Birdshot’, a 2016 Tokyo International Film Festival’s Best Asian Film in the Asian Future Section, currently streaming in Netflix. He also directed ‘Eerie’ (2019) under a Singapore-based film company and Star Cinema starred in by Bea Alonzo and Charo Santos. It was in the film ‘Dead Kids’ (2019) where Red has acquired a solid reputation as an international filmmaker, streaming as well in Netflix and served as his main producer. Though Red’s directorial style could have been succinct if some scene intentions have been clarified further especially in the last minutes of the film where Barretto finally decided to finish what has to be done to fulfill its ending.

Undeniably, music, scored by Paul Sigua and Myka Magsaysay-Sigua, makes it as one of the film’s strengths. It did capture the balance between pop and thematic styles specifically when scenes did not call for it. Cinematographer Steven Paul Evangelio tandems successfully with the music. Evangelio provides the necessary frame compositions and lighting techniques to evoke the suspension of disbelief from the audiences. Those shaky camera movements done intentionally brought a deeper sense of discomfort. Editing transitions have helped immensely move the action forward where most of the scenes have fast-paced rhythm. Although competent production design was evident, it lacked interpretation and cinematic symbols. Art direction could have been cerebral to elate the discourse of horror genre rather than make it literal. Over all, the film’s message is very clear and Red’s film direction has captured the tested formula of this genre. I just hope Red gets to evolve and translate future film materials into an IGen’s revolutionary interpretation that would fit to all generations and perhaps landing an Oscar’s nod someday.

‘Block Z’ opens in cinemas nationwide on January 29, 2020.

2019 Metro Manila Film Festival Entry
'Culion' (2019)
Genre: Drama 

The film ‘Culion’ could have been the MMFF’s Best Picture

By Joey Ting

Among the list of official entry films for this year’s annual Metro Manila Film Festival, the film ‘Culion’ could have been cited as the Best Picture. Though this could only happen if the film production team considers the aesthetics a little bit sidetracked (a misnomer artistic team which includes director Alvin Yapan, writer Ricky Lee and cinematographer Neil Daza) and hitting really the central point of the theme’s objectives and nature in its rawest and purest dictate.

I have followed filmmaker Alvin Yapan’s cinematic career and bumped into him one time during the producer’s call for more screenplay entries in now hibernated TO FARM Film Festival years back, and, formerly chaired by the late contemporary film stalwart Maryo J. De Los Reyes. In focus, Yapan’s works speak for itself, regularly both as a writer and director, as in the case of his previous films ‘Oro’ (2016), ‘Ang Tulay ng San Sebastian’ (2016), ‘Ang Sayaw ng Kaliwang Dalawang Paa’ (2011), and ‘Ang Panggagahasa Kay Fe’ (2009) to name a few of his outstanding cinematic works and it really were exceptional because of his sensibilities towards character mapping towards an ultimate goal, structured narrative storytelling and well-thought of mise-en-scene (compositional shots and camera motions). He always does this in each of his carefully-analyzed film after film. He knows I’m a fan of his works as I watched all of them religiously, but at the same time, also a critic and a colleague of his in the industry. His films usually stand out among the other selections because of his usual brave attempts to make it his vision mysterious, often, thought-provoking. Yapan is known for his character intricacies where he makes his cast ensemble dive into making the known unknown which proves of his skill as an academic head and Ateneo De Manila Filipino professor for more than a decade of educational involvement in service.  

Another indicator where ‘Culion’ could have been bagged the Best Film is through the omniscient presence of multi-awarded screenwriter and mentor of many today’s scriptwriters and directors Ricky Lee in the film. His hundreds of cinematic works have shown excellence in his almost tireless number of screenplay credits which we should not forget films like ‘Jaguar’ (1979), ‘Carnival Queen’ (1981), ‘Haplos’ (1982), ‘Himala’ (1982), ‘Karnal’ (1983), ‘Olongapo…The Great American Dream’ (1987), ‘Gumapang Ka Sa Lusak’ (1990), ‘Andrea, Paano Ba Ang Maging Isang Ina’ (1990), ‘Separada’ (1994), ‘Madrasta’ (1996), ‘Miguel/Michelle’ (1998), ‘Jose Rizal’ (1998), ‘Anak’ (2000), ‘Deathrow’ (2000), ‘Sabel’ (2004), ‘Justice’ (2014), and ‘Ringgo: The Dog Shooter’ (2016) just to name the countless films he has written for film. Though majority of them have turned out to be hits in box office and critics’ choices, some have been missed out. Ricky Lee is not just a stalwart. He has written film screenplays to make film audiences realize societal decadence, issues and critical conditions. He made those pivotal periods infallible source of facts and information. He has provided trust-worthy research and immersions.

Lastly, ace cinematographer Neil Daza speaks for the images. With his countless works in the advertising commercial worlds to television glossy-heavy to cinematic sparks, one has to realize how he would have driven the motion of his images as projected to the screen’s language. Films he has handled are ‘Signal Rock’ (2018), ‘The Ghost Bride’ (2017), Etiquette for Mistresses (2015), ‘Emir’ (2010), ‘Feng Shui’ (2004), ‘Dekada ‘70’ (2002), ‘La Vida Rosa’ (2001), ‘Laro Sa Baga’ (2000) and ‘Spirit Warriors’ (2000) just to name a few as well for his countless crucial works in the entertainment industry. He gives what the client wants (in this case, the film’s producer, filmmaker and screenwriter). Though a chief storyteller in the cinematic field, cinematographers usually have to actualize the vision of the film director as well as the screenwriter’s sequence requirements. Daza has the impediment to obstruct whatever he wants on the screen without prior approval of the director, screenwriter and producer. The bureaucratic principles and systems in a capitalist state such as the film’s organizational map out and structure.

With the three outstanding artists combined in one film is obviously a fallacy-in-the-making. The film works best if the breathing smell and natural odor of the story comes out from the mouth of its creator. In the case of ‘Culion’, the diseases did not make the audiences feel uncomfortable, not because of the exceptional visual make-up and prosthetic effects but because no character’s perspective is telling the truth of the leper colony. There must be a single character who would function as in the French term ‘raisonneur’ (author’s character). The filmmaker must narrate the history with a cinematic perspective which, of course, has become invisibly hallucinogenic and sympathetic. This character shoud have told the nuances of the leprosy carriers (Iza Calzado, Meryll Soriano, and Jasmine Curtis-Smith with Joem Bascon. Mike Liwag, Suzette Ranillo and cameo appearances of John Lloyd Cruz, Mercedes Cabral, Joel Saracho, Ruth Alferez) and their other characters in the film the most imaginable and fictionally-described to understand the nature of the victims and how it affects its environment. The ‘raisonneur’ must have helped clarify the film audiences’ understanding of the narrative without the loss of ‘involvement’ and ‘engagement.’ The aesthetics have become an overwhelming to handle such delicate, if not sensitive, film’s performance. Nevertheless, Yapan is not a failure in the film, not the cinematographic properties of Daza nor the narrative structure of Lee but the decision to make it a replicated history is not a favored feature in memory depicting history and accuracy. ‘Culion’ should have been a fictional drama inspired from the history of the American rule in a deserted island of leper colony in Culion, Northern Palawan.  

‘Culion’ has never attracted the masses due not to the nature of the film but through the missing historical viewpoint of this unforgettable and painful memory of the present.  ‘Culion’ could have been the MMFF’s Best Picture for 2019. ‘Culion’ is produced by Shandii Bacolod under the iOptions Ventures Company running for 136 minutes with English subtitles on it. The film ‘Culion’ is still noteworthy to see and experience.

2019 Metro Manila Film Festival Entry

'Mindanao' (2019)
Genre: Drama

‘Mindanao’ is real and deserves our serious attention as Filipino film audiences, not as elitists but as social changers and believers

By Joey Ting

Undoubtedly, the film ‘Mindanao’ is real. In many aspects, particularly the plight of the Mindanaoans, against injustices brought about by corruption, rebellion, drugs syndication, poverty and diseases, the film describes what realism can do to change our perceptions towards abuse of power and social struggle on lands territorialized by the pros and cons of the government.

A 59-year old production designer for advertising turned multi-awarded filmmaker Brillante Ma. Mendoza, is now an important figure / personality in contemporary Philippine cinema today, an instrumental for peace influence in the country, not too late an age to contribute to the very confused and intertwined entertainment and film industry’s diaspora. Hence, the full wisdom, experience and immersive process brought Mendoza in his films into a pedestal of respect and honor. The government film agencies should start curating his body of work that depicts an extended form of combinations silhouetting Mike De Leon’s expressionism, Ishmael Bernal’s surrealism, Lino Brocka’s social realism and now, young Mikhail Red’s hyperrealism. The embodiments of these forms provide Mendoza’s truthful naturalism, almost like a ‘Cinema Verite’ in the 60s of French filmmaker and anthropologist Jean Rouch and the term at present.

In ‘truthful naturalism’, as I proposed in contemporary film interpretation of auditory and visual procedures, the theoretical description emancipates a chilling effect, almost anxious and physically disturbing to audiences who are capacitated with health problems and issues towards heart problems, hypertension and other blood-related diseases. This happens when you get to watch purposively cinematic films as therapeutic as ‘Mindanao’ to confront change in the existing body system, Furthermore, it values an explanation on the discomfort of natural sensitivities and sensorial impediments such as the feast of eyes and ears to hurdle the delicate balance of trusting the film and denying it as a form of entertainment.

However dangerous, ‘Mindanao’ only captures the elitists; the educated, the intellectualists, not the ‘so-called’ masses of vendors, farmers, fishermen, rural townspeople, rebels and poverty level victim of parasites because the filmmaker’s approach has never been ‘empower-mental’ to them; to society; to nation, nor it has never been ‘temperamental’ to strengthen the anthropological behavioral patterns and much awareness of the masses to change. The dilemma is, of course, hypocritical since I see these characters as ‘victimized’ by the leisure of power in entertainment. More so, the works of director Mendoza capitalize on preferentially the ‘victims’ of the social ills and decadence. Mendoza cannot end it with that state condition. He needs to go beyond the film and stir a propaganda or movement  of people empowerment and action.

‘What do you want to happen Direk?’ is a serious question from the contemporary criticism of art and society. You have given us films ‘Ma’Rosa’ (2016), ‘Thy Womb’ (2012), ‘Lola’ (2009), ‘Kinatay’ (2009), ‘Serbis’ (2008), ‘Tirador’ (2007), ‘Kaleldo’ (2006), ‘Masahista’ (2005). Why do you victimize the real people from your characters in all of your films? How would you explain the plight of these real people when all you need to do, as you have said in your previous interviews, is to TELL A the STORY? After you tell a story, what happens to the ‘victims?’ In the animation and the famous for the older generation, the epic ‘Indarapatra’t Sulayman’ are characterized by chieftain heroes in Mindanao who laboriously fight against fantastical characters of throwing fires dragons to save the land. Parallel to the fight against the rebels or anti-government armies, the government soldiers confront the sensitive war against what? There are no clear parameters why they fight so badly. Lastly, women who bear children with inborn sickness and environmental diseases due to pollution and climate change also fight against the tyranny of health disadvantages.  

Multi-awarded actress Judy Ann Santos’s portrayal in ‘Mindanao’ is genuinely and authentically performed, thanks to her excellent eyes on screen. She wins the MMFF 2019 Best Actress recognition because she was truthfully ‘victimized’ by the horrors of life, not for the sake of trophy but because she has thought perhaps to influence and to communicate thoroughly to all the women of the world who suffer and struggle with kids dying of still incurable cancer or malignant diseases tainted with hopelessness, while, despite the irony of soldiers too as they embark themselves in the atrocities of wars in the Southern Philippines in absurd and hopeless circumstances.

When I immersed myself for a week recently years back along with other scholar delegates in conducting a theater arts workshop for a group of people at ‘NPA-infested’ town of Dumingag bordering Zamboanga Del Sur and Norte, I could not physically see the violence and the bloodshed in my stay but the tension and danger grew in my system as days passed and it could really be felt and eventually slowly hearing the cries of the community in their eyes, body movements, and souls and those who were up there scalloping the mystical mountain ranges are there only to survive. To conduct the workshop is just a facilitation of what is more relevant than to hear their plights and screams of terror, of absurdity, and of social decadence that perpetually have become the victims of today’s cancer themselves.

The film ‘Mindanao’ is a testament that film educates and must foster and invite theorists-filmmakers to do ‘theoretical experimentation.’ You become a filmmaker because you want to prove a ‘speculation’ and not just to tell a story, a bullshit cliché of those who pretend to be a filmmaker just to be famous and rich. Let us not go out to the world and pretend as if we are like the circus players of our own circus show. The audiences are our allies and they can feel the maturity of artistry in artists and in the arts. Thus, maturity in understanding Philippine cinema is compelled and should establish a forum of creating more theories and speculations of the film as a medium as we understand how film can influence the world in categorically numerous frames per second.

Watch ‘Mindanao’ for social change sakes! Go to the cinemas while it is still being shown.