Rei's Review corner

||Hi~ I'm Rei! This is a review blog where I post reviews on movies and other interesting stuff!||

[akareikoureviews]

Blog #4: Mise en Scene:Hero (Zhang YiMou)

I love watching historical referenced/ set films, there’s something with seeing how things were like before our current era, before modernization. It’s so interesting to watch how people are before, how different they think, they believe and value those around them, so it was not surprising that I would choose a film set on the medieval times. I was really torn between watching “Romeo + Juliet” and “Hero”, both films have something in relation to the old era, unfortunately, I can’t find a good copy of Romeo + Juliet, so the decision falls to Hero. I was really looking forward to watching both films so no worries, *laughs* I will gladly watch both films when I have the time to.

Anyways, going back to Hero. “Hero”  by Zhang YiMou  is a  visually brilliant martial arts epic set in ancient China, an unnamed fighter (Jet Li) is being honored for defeating three of the king's most dangerous enemies. The story follows the main protagonist, Jet Li through his recounts and stories of the three best assassins.

I actually know who Jet Li is, I remember my family watching his movies. If he’s one of the actors involved in the film then I would immediately have an impression that it would be a great martial arts film, that’s how good he is.

And Lo and behold, The film “Hero” definitely did not disappoint in the slightest and was even better than what I have expected. Before I talk about the plot of the story I just want to applaud the beauty of the images presented in the film. The cinematography and visual composition of the film are spectacular, The photos below shall give you the answer if you’re doubtful of my claims.

I particularly love the visuals of the scene below. The blood red of Flying Snow’s cloth made it more compelling to my eyes. It’s just so beautiful to look at. The sway of her dress combined with the orange leaves falling to the ground as it slowly turns the color of blood.

The fight in this particular scene between Flying Snow and Moon was gorgeous, especially the part where the surrounding was slowly turning red as she held her last breath.

The beautiful visual of this film is just a bonus! The use of said visuals is actually more than what it was supposed to be. I really love the way the visuals were used by Zhang YiMou to assist what narration was going on with the story. The visuals are not just for beauty but also for narrative purposes. I just want to point out how each scene of  Nameless’s recount of the three assassins’ story change color according to what the scenes may truly convey and it was very beautiful. The monochromatic colors did the job on the emotions each scene.

I can feel the intense emotions of love, lust, anger, and betrayal with the scene bathed with blood red. It truly enhanced how I viewed the scene and the character since the color red symbolizes “passion, lust and other intense emotions such as anger and betrayal” The choice of colors helped me to get sucked in with the story.

I particularly love the changes of the colors with “Flying Snow’s visual appearance”. We all can see she’s a very gorgeous woman but each color gives an additional feel and emotion not just with her beauty but also with the personality she expresses, the same with the other characters. It feels as if each shade of color shows us the different sides of the characters self and also their story.

Focusing on the plot, All I can say was until the very end, all the plot twists were unexpected. I have this habit of judging how films end and I was unable to with this great film. As the main protagonist “Nameless”, the story is truly mysterious and unexpected.

The plot of the film was really one of a kind, I was surprised until the very end. I really love the part near the end. I love how the story unraveled the King, the king that we all thought was a tyrant was just a King wanting peace more than we think. I really loved how the King’s story was developed. He was established differently from the start, making us think that he was indeed a tyrant who only wishes to protect himself from danger caused by these three great assassins, but guess what he actually had a higher purpose than that.

I just want to commend Nameless’s choice in the end, despite his sufferings in life, he chose to not kill the King for the greater good. He believed the king’s and Broken Sword’s words, He believed that the King can really unite China to end all wars between the Seven Kingdoms. He also believed the King who caused the downfall of his own family... Despite Nameless’s stoic personality, he was really a person with great emotions, a person who’s willing to sacrifice everything for the greater good, a Hero who’s willing to sacrifice his own emotions of revenge for the greater good of China. His character and personality were truly remarkable.

The film greatly tackles “Heroism”. All I can say is all the characters were heroes on their own, heroes willing to sacrifice themselves for the greater good of others. Isn’t that what a “Hero” truly means? To be able to sacrifice oneself for the others, and the film did the job of showing each character’s heroism, although tragic, their stories are still very inspiring.

Kudos to all those behind this epic film! I can’t say how much I want to praise all of you personally, Thank you so much for creating this visual and martial arts monster of a film! I would love to watch it again sometime!

[akareikoureviews]

Bonus Blog#2: QCinema: Hintayan ng Langit

I watched Hintayan sa langit last October with a friend of mine also taking the same scineapp class!

Hintayan ng Langit a film directed by Dan Villegas based on Juan Miguel Severo’s literary work, staring two veteran actors; Miss Gina Pareno and Sir Eddie Garcia. It was one of the film entries in this year’s QCinema international film festival last October 2018.

Despite having several other international films alongside this movie, I was particularly highly interested to watch this film, it would probably be because of its unique concept, upon reading the title, one can guess the movie might involve the concept of “death” which was a concept that has been in my mind since the passing of my beloved father, almost 3 weeks before the start of the festival. I will be honest, I’m still very shaken to my core even during the very day I watched the film until now. I had thought that if I watched the film, there could be some sort of understanding of the meaning of death and life, even just a little would be enough for me since I was still grieving the loss of a loved one.

I really don’t know, I’m probably a masochist (*laughs) I literally cried watching the film, especially the scenes were Sir Eddie Garcia, played the role of a dead father worried over his daughter who he left behind after death. It was so painful to see and realized that those who are left behind are not the only ones who are grieving. I may or may not believe the existence of heaven and hell (since I’m agnostic) but I’m still very touched as a human being with emotions especially on how they portrayed a father’s caring love to his daughter. I  still can remember the words Eddie Garcia’s character said (not exactly): “ Bakit, hindi naba ako pwede magalala sa anak ko ngayong patay nako?”. It hurt my heart so bad yet at the same time caressed it so lovingly. Those very words made me bawl really hard, yes it was painful but I realized that it is part of a human being’s life, especially a life of a father, even death cannot take away the love you have felt for another human, the love you have felt for your daughter, your family...

Even if you disappear from the face of earth, the relationships and the emotions of love you carry for your loved ones will be forever engraved in your heart and soul. Whatever happens, the emotions you felt for the people you care about will flow with your very existence and that is lovely. It is lovely to think of your happy memories and the emotions of love you felt for your loved ones instead of focusing on the concept of parting.

The film is actually not entirely focus on the individual lives of Sir Eddie and Miss Gina’s characters, the film was actually about the relationship of the two main characters. These two main characters were ex-lovers who both found their way back to each other on a place called “Hintayan sa langit”

The words Miss Gina said “ Till death do us part lang naman ang kay Nestor” as she gently smiled at Sir Eddie’s character made my heart warm. That very phrase meant that Gina’s character is still willing to be with Eddie’s character despite whatever past they both experienced, good or bad and whatever situation their in, this just shows how strong love can be, this couple showed that despite not having their time on the living, nothing will prevent them from enjoying whatever time they have on a different existence even if that meant they’ll be together only as ghosts. They’re willing to become wandering ghosts just to be with each other! That sheer devotion of love, that did not fade even over all those years and circumstances! I applaud their decision, the bravery and the love they have, willing to break rules just to be together.(*laughs*)

The film involved very few characters and is very simple yet I felt that I realized a lot of things after watching it. It was really worth my time and would recommend for everyone to watch this very touching film, it’s not just about romance, or that long lost love, it is about you as human being. It is about the sheer power of a human’s emotions, emotions of love that can defy a lot of things if challenged.

Overall this is a good watch! I would love to watch this again in the cinemas if I was given the chance to. Once again congratulations to the makers of the film! truly touching and an spectacular film!

[akareikoureviews]

Blog #3: Ang Larawan

Ang Larawan is a film adaptation of Larawan, A musical play based from the literature “A Portrait of the artist as Filipinos” by the National artist “Nick Joaquin”,

It was depicted numerous times in different mediums, making it one of the most established Filipino literature, but despite its success, one may question what this great literary piece truly depict?

What is the film “ Ang Larawan” really about?

At watching the first few scenes of the film, the majority may say it’s a film about the struggles of the two sisters “Candida” and “Paula”. The film clearly follows these two main characters and their challenges in life which made the film roll forward.

While at first glance at the film poster, People may conclude that the film may be about romance based on how the characters are positioned on this particular poster (*laughs*)

I have a lot of issues with this poster, to be honest, Don’t get me wrong, as a graphic artist, I do commend the skills of the designer of this poster, what made an issue to me is the placement of the characters, yes I love Paulo Avelino, I have been a fan of him since his early days as a co-star of Coco Martin in Walang Hanggan (HAHAHA) and of course my admiration for him strengthened when he played Goyo in Goyo: Batang Heneral, but putting those aside, his placement at the center of this poster actually felt a bit wrong, Their positioning actually “almost” turned this poster into some kind of “Love triangle” romance poster which may affect the perception of the people who have never heard of the literature and may assume that it’s just a generic love story of girls falling for the same guy which the story is definitely not about, we don’t want the wrong marketing happening here right? anyways I just had to put my thoughts out about this particular poster before I truly answer the question posed above.

Without further ado, here’s my simple answer to the question: What the film “Larawan” is really about?

The film is about the soul and passion of a TRUE FILIPINO ARTIST. The film basically revolved around an unseen painting of the father of the two sisters. The film revolved around the notion of HOW and WHAT IT TAKES TO STAY TRUE TO ONE’S LEGACY AND BELIEFS AS AN ARTIST. 

Remember the scene where Paula and Candida’s Ninong visited?

The two sisters, especially Candida, felt that their beloved Ninong betrayed his own love for the art because he became a Government official, the sisters believed that their Ninong abandoned his love for art for money, for better living conditions...the sisters were masking their jealousy of their Ninong’s wealthy lifestyle in pretense that they do not support what their Ninong has become but they truly believed that if only their father had not ultimately followed the path of an artist, they might have been living an affluent lifestyle (married to the man of their choice).

The two sisters were proven wrong when they realized that their Ninong did not ultimately lose his passion for art, the sisters realized that the passion and love for art does not change, faith and destiny may have other plans for you but what you are as an artist do not change, it is within your being.

Upon their realization, the sisters started to understand what their father might have meant. What their father truly wanted.

The realization of their life as “mga alagad ng sining” really took flight when the sister “Paula” ultimately made the decision of not selling the artwork for their own personal wealth but instead destroying the artwork itself, this action clearly symbolizes how an artist will forever stay true to their craft whatever happens, even if faced with extreme issues. This particular scene in the film clearly shows that the two sisters, realized what their father really wanted: to embrace art and their life as artists.

The ending scene where they all had gathered, including the father, watching the  “Birheng Maria Prusisyon” really established that despite the hardships and struggles of following the path of an artist, a true artist will be one with their craft, passion, and beliefs and will continue struggling until the end for it is the path one chose to follow, when becoming a ful pledge artist.

[akareikoureviews]

Film review: Campeones Pelicula

Last Saturday, (October 6, 2018), I watched Campeones at Greenbelt 3 together with friends! We were actually on the brink of losing seats, well “almost”, we probably had to go home without watching the film if we came later that day, Also, I just want to note that Campeones’ lunch here in the Philippines was a success (at least during the day we watched) considering that we came an hour earlier, just to buy tickets yet all the seats were almost sold out. 

The fact that Campeones, a film about mentally disabled players was warmly supported here in the Philippines made me really happy and proud. ( faith in humanity restored  *laughs*). Also, I just want to add that one of the audience who watched the film was a disabled girl and she looked really happy I just want to hug and encourage her (she was seated near us at the front row but I don’t want to take her picture because of privacy and respect). 

Before I forget,  The director, Sir Javier was also there to make a quick short introduction~ he’s a funny guy judging from his speech and attitude, it was nice seeing the director himself support his own film during its premiere on a different country! kudos to him!

Okay, now that I’m able to throw all the other important details of my experience, let’s get back to our main focus. The film itself, Just a brief introduction of the film, Campeones or “Champions” (translated in English”) is a Spanish drama and comedy film directed by Sir Javier Fesser is about a middle-aged basketball coach, working as a coach for mentally disabled players in order to fulfill his community service given by the law.

Not gonna lie, Campeones’ story concept of “mentally disabled basketball players” really caught my attention, enough to make me watch the film. I’m kind of familiar with disabled athletes’ stories but not too much with “mentally disabled” players, so I  was really intrigued on how things would work with that kind of premise.

I have a habit of judging the first few scenes of films, and I can say that the first scenes of Campeones were good. They immediately showed how the main character( the coach) perceives mentally disabled people in a subtle comedic way, which is actually a good way to move the plot since it immediately gives the explanation to a lot of plot points later on. If I remember correctly, Coach Marco (played by Javier Gutierrez) says (not exactly): “ they really hire the brightest people for this job” in a very sarcastic way to the obviously mentally disabled parking staff/enforcer. This just shows that he’s not the most patient and understanding person when it comes to the mentally challenged people of our society.

So it was not really surprising to see how troubled he was when he was ordered to coach mentally disabled people to become basketball players. He was not used to coaching this kind of people and like what I said above, he’s not the patient and understanding type of guy, well his temper caused him all of this in the first place when he punched his co-coach on the face on a well-covered match. In addition, he also seems to have problems with his wife due to his attitude. Basically, he’s a problematic guy trying to teach mentally handicapped people basketball. I was actually so excited to see his character development as I watched the film.

And his character development was really on point! It was not the kind of character development which was suddenly thrown to the face of the audience, no, it was the slow one. His character development was all made possible by the lovely players! I just love all the players, each of them has these quirks that are very endearing and funny.

I like how the film showed that mentally disabled people are, well “people” too. People with their own jobs and lives. 

They’re not just nuisance like most people think, they don’t need you to do the work for them all the time, in fact, they can function like us if we give them the chance to!

I remember one scene where Coach Marco was shocked to see one of the players drive a motorcycle home, he was worried of the fact that letting that player drive may cause an accident because well, he views mentally challenged people lowly as seen on the first scenes of the film, so it was really a slapped on his face to realize that these so-called “mentally disabled” players, in fact, live normally. Then the film shows each players’ normal lives as employees etc, giving us the sense “humanity” of these players, drawing us, the audience to their individual stories as people like us.

I have mentioned above that these players were the main instigators of coach Marco’s character development, well I think they did not just teach coach Marco, They actually taught us all something very important yet we ignore  in favor of achieving what we believe is successful, it’s also not about being mentally challenged..what they taught is something universal, something that all of us faces at some point... They taught us how to accept one’s failures with a smile. This was clearly shown during the end of the game with the dwarves, they lost yet all the players were cheering each other as if they were not enemies just a while ago during the play. 

Even coach Marco was taken aback, he was so consumed of winning that he forgot that everything is not about winning, sometimes you just have to accept what you have like how these mentally disabled players accepted their disabilities with a smile. 

I remember one player telling coach Marco that he also wouldn’t want to have a mentally challenged child but he would be very grateful to have a good father like Marco. This specific part of the story shows how mentally challenged people like the players, hope nothing more than a kind and understanding perception of their disability. That they are very grateful to those who despite their challenges, still try to support and understand them as a fellow human.

 I actually felt that Coach Marco was like a window for viewers to view a different perspective, to see how mentally challenged people are really like, not the common negative stereotypes, but the real scenes of their daily lives and how they cope with what they have with a positive outlook despite having other people bring them down.

Overall,  I would rate the film 10/10, the entirety of the plot was well constructed, all the scenes were important and are connected to create one massive great film! I would recommend everyone to watch this film! It’s a real eye-opener. A really hilarious great drama film that I would watch on the cinemas again if I have the chance to.

[akareikoureviews]

#2 Film Adaptation: Jack and the Beanstalk

Jack and the Beanstalk is a classic children story that existed up until the present time. I have personally read this story as a child and I was always fascinated with its magical story, it was short yet Jack’s adventure to the world of the giants above the magical beanstalk brought great entertainment to me as a child.

Thus, I was both happy and excited to watch the film adaptations of this classic story. To be honest, I already have set expectations for the films since  I grew up knowing Jack’s story. So I was really surprised (in a good way) when I watched the two of the films based on this children’s book.

“FILM: Jack and the Beanstalk: An adventure of gigantic proportions (2009)”.

To say that I was surprised was a bit of an understatement, I was actually astounded at the first scenes of the film! It was totally different to what I expected in a Jack and the Beanstalk film...I expected a farm boy but what came was the complete opposite.

Never knew farm boys can be this ”sci-fi”! I actually had to double check the title of the film just to make sure I’m watching the right movie! (hahaha)

The film, later on, reveals a completely different world where our protagonist Jack is a schoolboy in a fairytale academy (his classmates are fairytale characters like him! cool right!).

The major elements of the original story still existed but it was tweaked into a completely different existence to adhere the new story plot. Just like how the cow Jack was supposed to sell was a game device instead of a real cow. I think the way the writers and director changed the story, fitting the modern generation of children ( and still keeping the main elements of the original story) was a great idea because children can relate more to Jack’s struggles (with his grades, leisure, and goals in life)

The second film adaptation I watched was "Jack the Giant Slayer (2013)". This film was actually based on two stories combined: Jack the Giant Killer and Jack and the Giant Beanstalk.

It was really an action-packed film and again the major key elements of the original story were present but the entire narrative was completely different which makes it more compelling to a wider range of audience. This adaptation just makes the original Jack and the Beanstalk story applicable not just for children's entertainment but also for adults’.

It was really a brilliant idea because children who grew up knowing the classic story can revisit their favorite children's stories as adults without getting bored knowing what will happen during the rest of the film. This kind of adaptation gives you that sense of familiarity yet still very entertaining and unexpected due to various plot twists and plot story changes.

All in all, I'm not disappointed by film adaptations and I can't really understand why people always try to compare the original and the adaptation. I'm actually confused as to why people whine over the differences between the film adapations and the original story. I mean, would you actually want all the films based on the original story be completely similar? wouldn't they get bored watching the same thing over and over again?

I see adaptations as spin offs, they could have the same key plot elements but might have entirely different premise or sometimes even main characters.

I'm okay with having the same narrative for the adaptations but somethig different from the original story is also greatly appreciated too, It excites me to see how things would work with the changes in the adaptation, makes me more interested and curious to watch than having to watch the same thing multiple times in different films.

[akareikoureviews]

#1 Film Review: Goyo, Ang batang heneral

“Goyo, Ang batang heneral” directed by Jerrold Tarog is a direct sequel to the hit Filipino film “Heneral Luna”. Both films succeeded in creating a compelling storyline depicting the Philippine history during the American regimen. The cinematography and the plot progression are also on point and is well thought out, given that both have the same director and studio (TBA studios).

To be honest, I was highly interested to watch Goyo since Heneral Luna was really a good film (in my opinion), and Goyo did not disappoint, the plot and how it was narrated was indeed good, I like how the first few scenes of the film did not just tied and connected the film to the previous film installation (Heneral Luna) but it also became the key plot point to introduce our new protagonist “Goyo”, this just shows that each and every detail in the film is highly thought out. There are other  several scenes that also showed brilliance in narration along the way but the way the film started promised a good journey ahead so I had to mention it.

There are several good points to focus and mention in the film but I will focus on Goyo, Gregorio Del Pilar as a character since the whole film is basically dedicated to him (the film itself is titled after him) and also because his character is very relatable and interesting.

In comparison to Antonio Luna, Goyo is relatively young thus is less experienced when it comes to his own decisions and priorities. There are times he felt conflicted about the decisions he made and will make. Luna and Goyo are somewhat “polar opposites” of each other, Luna clearly knows what he wants and where he stands but Goyo despite having one of the highest ranks, (a general) he is still indeed  a young man on his early twenties, a boy general who is currently on his way in finding who he truly is and the real reason behind the cause he is fighting for.

That particular scene above started Goyo’s internal struggles. All throughout the film, Goyo kept remembering Bernal’s words. This made him start to hallucinate and actually triggered his past traumas. Bernal clearly implies that Goyo does not have his own ground in all of these, he’s just a “dog”, a loyal dog of “Miyong”, (Emilio Aguinaldo).

All throughout the film, we see Goyo reflecting his own decisions and struggles.  His internal struggles and past traumatic experiences brought fear of his own death to the point he needed his brother’s words to remind him of who he was supposed to be and what was expected of him.

I actually felt that Goyo’s way of coping with his own monsters was through dating and playing around (dating and flirting with several women at that). I actually thought he’s not serious with Remedios but their exchanges proved me wrong. Remedios’ character and words actually knocked some sense to Goyo as seen in the film, when he read Remedios’ letter. Prior to that scene, their group was heavily struggling, trying to find a safe place to camp out. Goyo came up with a plan right after surveying the valleys surrounding them, this shows how he is clearly inspired by Remedio’s letter. Goyo was now determined to survive and set his priorities straight. At this point, I felt hope surging through my veins and was really excited with how things will proceed. 

As anticipated, everything was doing good for Goyo’s side, they were able to strategically fight back the American troops but unfortunately, their strategy did not last long. I kind of knew in my gut that a Filipino will cause their downfall, and lo and behold, I was right. A local actually guided these American soldiers to outfight Goyo’s camp. (That person was probably forced and was scared to death... but still...)

At this point, Goyo’s camp is losing and I was really prepared to see him die just like how the history books narrated Goyo’s unfortunate fate. I was prepared for a heroic death but what I got was something unexpected. One moment he was just peacefully contemplating his life and priorities through a series of flashbacks and the next thing I knew,  he’s shot right on the lower part of his face.

  I was seriously thinking: “ Nah, that one shot won’t kill Goyo, he’s gonna stand up and fight back with all the strength he got and he’ll be really cool and heroic...” but this time I was wrong, he literally died right away... his death was somewhat uneventful for a protagonist but is very realistic when compared to the real world.

 I was just expecting a really heroic death scene just like how Luna’s death scene was but guess they’re truly opposites...even in their death scenes.

I kind of understand why the writers did this kind of death for Goyo, they wanted to portray something realistic. They wanted to show how Goyo is just like one of us, how Goyo is just a human too despite being a General at a young age. I felt that the writers wanted us to learn and internalize like Goyo, he was not made to greatly awaken our passion for our country like how Luna was portrayed... Goyo was made for us to think and reflect on our own priorities, actions, and decisions as Filipinos and as individual human beings.

All in all, it was a really good film with a relatable hero! (but I still can’t move on from his anticlimactic death scene LOL ) Kudos to the production team and to Director Tarog for making this incredibly good film!

[akareikoureviews]

Hello~ (an introduction)

                                              Hi! I’m "Rei". 

This blog will serve as my platform for all my reviews on movies and other interesting stuff~ Hopefully, you enjoy your visit~

Also, my favorite hobby is sleeping HAHAHA just kidding~ anyways this is a quick-anime-style watercolor artwork a tribute to my love of sleep~

PS. I will post my first movie review on Monday! stay tuned!