1. PROJ. IMAKULADA
The film that first fascinated me is Project Imakulada by Jan Bernardino. It depicts a story of a young girl who lives with a man who fantasized about living in the past. The man is a writer who is obsessed with the 70s lifestyle. He then found a young girl from the province and hired her to become his puppet. The deal was for her to live according to his scripts, however, the man broke the deal and molested her. Enraged, the girl hit the man's head using the empty bottle of beer and finally called her Dad declaring her resignation.
The concept is what I like best about this film. It's not common and was far from being predictable. The film is very fresh, unique, and most importantly, the message is well-delivered. I like the arrangement and the cinematography. The film has this vintage aesthetics that perfectly matches the concept. My favorite scene from the film was when the girl said "Wala ng itlog." with anger and hatred in her eyes after remembering the moment he molested her. She could have killed him but she chose to do the right thing which is to escape and report to the authorities.
2. GÁRING
My next liked film is "Garing" by And Pablo. Garing tells the story of a mother who lost her child because of a sudden accident. Concha, the mother, is selling candles, prayer booklets, and bracelets outside the church for a living while his son Natoy helps by selling sampaguitas. Unfortunately, Natoy was hit by a vehicle which led him to a coma thus urgently needs surgery. Concha who can't afford his son's surgery was forced to steal the Virgin Mary figurine from the church. Sadly, it's all too late as Natoy passed away the next morning.
What I liked about this film was how the actors portray their characters in the story. They were able to deliver their lines with so much emotion and clarity. The bond between mother and child was really evident in their dialogues. I was teary-eyed the whole time as I was empathizing with the mother's sorrow. Moreover, the cinematography is also great and is cinema-worthy. My favorite line in the film was when Concha asked Natoy what she's been reminding him and right away Natoy answered, "An obedient child will always be blessed." Overall, the movie is clear message-delivery-wise and is sentimentally touching.
3. WHEN THE SEA TURNS RED
Lastly, the film that adds to my favorite list is "When the Sea Turns Red" by Ian Caacbay. The film is the most different and intriguing among my top 3 films as it contains no dialogue yet the message conveyed was clear and powerful. The story shows a girl who's alone in the middle of the sea wearing nothing but white cloth covering her head. A man with a red cloth cover on his head appeared and approached the girl moments after. In my understanding, the film depicts the story of a girl who, in the beginning, is pure and untainted with that white cloth on her head. However, when the man on the red cloth appeared, he caressed and kissed her which eventually tainted her white cloth. More other girls appeared right after they caressed each other; girls who are also tainted by the same man who tainted her.
In correlation to reality, I think that the film portrays an issue related to controversial diseases like Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) and Sexually Transmitted Disease (STD), which I perceived as being contained by the man on the red cloth. He infected those girls to ruin their lives and make them suffer the way he did. He evilly shared his disease with his victims by deceiving them, eventually changing their lives forever.
The film's cinematography was great and it has stable camera movements. It is interesting as it portrayed such a controversial issue in a uniquely artistic way. Obviously, I don't have any favorite line from the film as it contained no dialogues. Overall it is fresh, artsy, and compelling.
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