Manila (CNN Philippines Life) — One of the rare pleasures in a film lover’s life is watching a film nobody has heard of and discovering that it is good. It is that turning point that would push him to question the established processes of the market that allows mediocrity to flourish and the arguable masterpieces to remain in obscurity. It is that defining moment that would instigate him to spread the word — or not.
The beauty (or the damning disadvantage) of iflix and other video streaming services is that it removes the moviegoing experience from being communal to being private. Anonymity is now an option. A filmgoer can indulge in the delights of a critically savaged movie without having to own up to the experience, the little secret he shares only with his streaming device.
In any case, iflix, which is the largest video-on-demand subscription service not only in the Philippines but in Southeast Asia, has recently expanded its lineup to include more Filipino films. More importantly, independently produced films that weren’t given a fighting chance during their theatrical releases or festival runs are being granted another opportunity at redemption and re-evaluation. Here are 10 such movies that have unfortunately slid into obscurity but have fortunately been made readily available on iflix as worthwhile alternatives to the usual John Lloyd Cruz romcoms and telenovel reruns.
“My Paranormal Romance” (Victor Villanueva, 2011)
Victor Villanueva’s “My Paranormal Romance” was released during the 2011 Cinema One Originals Film Festival, the same edition that saw the releases of Antoinette Jadaone’s “Six Degrees of Separation from Lilia Cuntapay,” Shireen Seno’s “Big Boy,” and Sari Dalena’s “Ka Oryang,” which took much of the attention of both critics and audiences. Sure, Villanueva’s debut is riddled with shoddy effects and other technical gaffes, which can be attributed to the lack of time to adequately finish a film of such ambition. However, it can’t be denied that the film bears an off-kilter charm that makes it all worthwhile.
“Colorum” (Jobin Ballesteros, 2009)
Jobin Ballesteros is better known as a composer, having done the scores of various films including Erik Matti’s “Prosti” (2002), Eddie Romero’s “Faces of Love” (2007) and Kanakan Balintagos’s “Pisay” (2007). “Colorum,” which was an entry to the very crowded fifth edition of Cinemalaya (which also saw the releases of Veronica Velasco’s “Last Supper No. 3,” Pepe Diokno’s “Engkwentro,” and Alvin Yapan’s “Ang Panggagahasa kay Fe”), is part buddy movie, part road trip, part history lesson, with a plot revolving around a duo who travel from Manila to Leyte in what seems like an allegory of recent events in Philippine history. It won a Special Jury Prize at the festival, but was slowly forgotten over time. It deserves a second look, if only to nudge Ballesteros to get back to working on films.
“Prologo sa Ang Dakilang Desaparecido” (Lav Diaz, 2015)
Before “Hele sa Hiwagang Hinapis,” there was “Prologo sa Ang Dakilang Desapareido,” a roughly 30 minute short that served as Diaz’s springboard to the more complex themes that he tackled in his Berlin-winning epic. The short centers on the desperate and often perilous search of Oryang (Hazel Orencio) for the remains of her husband, Andres Bonifacio. In a way, this distilled version of “Hele” delivers a heftier emotional effect with its concentrated focus on the immediate turmoil of a distressed widow, unperturbed by all the loftier rhetorics and pageantry of its star-studded eight-hour expansion.
“Pantasya” (Brillante Mendoza, 2007)
Yes, there was a time when Brillante Mendoza’s name was not synonymous with prestigious international film festivals. In 2007, right after getting some acclaim for “Masahista” (2005), “Kaleldo” (2006), and “Manoro” (2006), he made a direct-to-video flick called “Pantasya,” an omnibus of various snippets that each feature male-to-male sexual encounters. What separates “Pantasya” from the rest of its ilk is how, despite its penchant for exposing male body parts, it never fails to address the absurd realism of queer fantasy — how it is inherently connected with the desire for what is forbidden, with its episodes detailing scenarios involving relations with blue-collared workers, athletes, bosses, and the like.
“Echoserang Frog” (Joven Tan, 2014)
Joven Tan’s “Echoserang Frog” is quite a conundrum. It is evidently a bad film, a carelessly crafted flick that features an obnoxiously funny lead in a quest to star in his own movie. Yet it is exactly the fact that it is bad that makes it so difficult to ignore. Unlike Marlon Rivera’s “Ang Babae sa Septic Tank,” which satirized everything except itself, Tan’s little film isn’t afraid to poke fun at itself, making its blunt observations about independent filmmaking even more resonant. In fact, the film is so cool about self-parody that it also features such industry greats as Lav Diaz, Jaclyn Jose, Jose Javier Reyes, and German Moreno poking fun at the reputations they have built.
“Vox Populi” (Dennis Marasigan, 2010)
If you talk about the great talent that is Irma Adlawan, you would often reference her work in Jeffrey Jeturian’s “Tuhog” (2001), Dennis Marasigan’s “Sa North Diversion Road” (2005), Alvin Yapan’s “Ang Panggagahasa kay Fe” (2007), or Hannah Espia’s “Transit” (2013). “Vox Populi” will rarely get mentioned. However, her turn in that film as a mayoral candidate whose campaign changes her is arguably one of Adlawan’s most nuanced performances on screen.
“Puti” (Mike Alcazaren, 2013)
Mike Alcazaren’s “Puti” is that rare genre film whose ambition to be something arguably greater than what its genre dictates of it has hurt its bid out of obscurity. The film features a painter who is being haunted by his past. Alcazaren displays ample restraint in setting up the mysteries of his film, which in turn makes it a very taut and efficient thriller. Unfortunately, its affiliation with the ethics of the art world becomes its undoing, with the film rushing to complete a moralistic picture while abandoning its more morbid delights. Despite that, “Puti” is still a wonderful work, one whose ambitions and failures are all noteworthy.
“Buenas Noches, España” (Raya Martin, 2011)
Time, space, relationship, history, and drugs. That’s essentially Raya Martin’s “Buenas Noches, España” in five disconnected words. The film, which can be described as an experiment veiled with the trappings of science fiction, mostly features a couple on a trip, both literally and figuratively. Martin replicates the feel of being under the influence of drugs through cinema, and allows his characters to freely flow in and out of space and time and into footnotes of Philippine history — via a Juan Luna painting in a Bilbao museum — by distorting celluloid.
“Nasaan Ka Man” (Cholo Laurel, 2005)
Cholo Laurel’s “Nasaan Ka Man” is arguably one of the best films Star Cinema has made, and it’s such a shame that nobody knows that. The film, which is essentially a gothic ghost story that is mis-advertised as just another one of those tepid, Claudine Barretto-starring romantic dramas that the studio so frequently produces, is ahead of its time. The film subtly tackles incestuous relationships, necrophilia, and other distasteful things the very careful studio normally wouldn’t even dare touch. Laurel’s direction is top-notch, allowing the cold and foggy setting that is Baguio to pervade the narrative without being too obvious.
“Sa Aking Pagkagising Mula sa Kamulatan” (Ato Bautista, 2005)
“Sa Aking Pagkagising Mula sa Kamulatan” is as independent as you can get. The film, which applied for a Cinemalaya grant but was denied, was made from the generous contributions of Ato Bautista’s relatives, friends, and colleagues. The result is quite remarkable, an angry little film that does not see the need to restrain itself. Bautista has made several films since, and while his more recent films display exemplary craftsmanship, none has matched the raw intensity of his debut, which thunderously displays a pent-up hunger to create.
