Pinoy Blonde Part II
I've thus far piqued the curiosity of two j-boys to see Peque Gallaga's latest film, and so I take this as encouragement to be a little more aggressive in my campaign, which I feel more strongly about now that I've actually seen the movie.
Pinoy Blonde is, in my opinion, the best movie I've seen this year (second only to "Sideways", which technically should fall under last year since that was its theatrical release in the country of origin, but never mind; I just want to extol our local movies for a change). Whether this means it's been a bad year for movies in general or that this is really just a good movie, I'll leave that up to you to decide should you actually see it.
The premise is simple: it's about two guys delivering a package for their mobster uncle. It helps that the two guys are film buffs, because thanks to this little character facet the film becomes a tongue-in-cheek deconstruction of Filipino films, and in some ways of film in general.
Think of everything wrong with Filipino movies: the overacting, the cardboard characterization, and the prosaic dialogue. This movie is not afraid to lay it all bare. Whether or not Gallaga intended it to be, this movie, with its digital video and independent sensibility, is the wave of the future, given that studios and overprivileged "artistas" obsessed with the bottom line are increasingly shying away from films given the fact that there isn't that much money in it anymore. This is a movie that says "we made this because we love making movies," and in doing so, it kind of makes an "out with the old, in with the new" declaration.
Technically, is it on a par with its Hollywood counterparts? No, but the brilliant thing is, Gallaga works with his resources. He doesn't make a movie obsessed with apeing megabudget meisters like Spielberg or Cameron. Rather, he draws inspiration from master penny-pincher Quentin Tarantino, whose strengths have always been in razor sharp wit and rich characterization. Well, the latter part isn't quite so nuanced in the case of the two heroes, but the heart is there.
With this, and Mark Meilly's La Visa Loca, Filipino filmmakers are apparently making a hugely heroic effort to divorce themselves from the overwrought melodrama of the past. We should really, really reward their efforts.
In other words: PLEASE see this film.
Pinoy Blonde is, in my opinion, the best movie I've seen this year (second only to "Sideways", which technically should fall under last year since that was its theatrical release in the country of origin, but never mind; I just want to extol our local movies for a change). Whether this means it's been a bad year for movies in general or that this is really just a good movie, I'll leave that up to you to decide should you actually see it.
The premise is simple: it's about two guys delivering a package for their mobster uncle. It helps that the two guys are film buffs, because thanks to this little character facet the film becomes a tongue-in-cheek deconstruction of Filipino films, and in some ways of film in general.
Think of everything wrong with Filipino movies: the overacting, the cardboard characterization, and the prosaic dialogue. This movie is not afraid to lay it all bare. Whether or not Gallaga intended it to be, this movie, with its digital video and independent sensibility, is the wave of the future, given that studios and overprivileged "artistas" obsessed with the bottom line are increasingly shying away from films given the fact that there isn't that much money in it anymore. This is a movie that says "we made this because we love making movies," and in doing so, it kind of makes an "out with the old, in with the new" declaration.
Technically, is it on a par with its Hollywood counterparts? No, but the brilliant thing is, Gallaga works with his resources. He doesn't make a movie obsessed with apeing megabudget meisters like Spielberg or Cameron. Rather, he draws inspiration from master penny-pincher Quentin Tarantino, whose strengths have always been in razor sharp wit and rich characterization. Well, the latter part isn't quite so nuanced in the case of the two heroes, but the heart is there.
With this, and Mark Meilly's La Visa Loca, Filipino filmmakers are apparently making a hugely heroic effort to divorce themselves from the overwrought melodrama of the past. We should really, really reward their efforts.
In other words: PLEASE see this film.
posted by Jim Arroyo at 6:09 PM
1 Comments:
Yeah but what sucks is that not too many cinema houses are showing this film. How can you get people to watch if cinema houses won't show 'em?
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