#mmff 2023

[eugene-domingo]

CEDRICK JUAN as PADRE JOSE BURGOS in GOMBURZA (2023) | dir. pepe diokno

[selyular]

para sa liwanag

[nakakabaliw]

Mama's Boy ang Santo Bartolomeo ninyo

(Your St. Bartholomew was a Mama's Boy)

[park-hyungsik]

@asiandramanet event 10 — scenery @userdramas get to know me bingo — film: last film I saw in theaters @userdramas creator bingo — template: vintage postcard template

Firefly (2023) dir. Zig Dulay

[lucillenadelulu]

"Nawa'y maging mitsa ang ating pagkamatay, para sa liwanag."

- GOMBURZA, 2023

Study portrait of Padre Jose Burgos in Gomburza :DD

Posting this for the 152nd Death Anniversary of GomBurZa. This post is also to remember how their deaths really sparked the fire that fueled the Filipino generation at that time, which led to our freedom today.

[nicocedes]

hate to be THAT filipino but has anyone made fics for cedrick juan as padre burgos like i have that fleabag urge in me

[steven-grant-gift-shoppist]

Mallari is a good horror film. Piolo Pascual plays 3 characters and he is amazing in each of them. The story kept me glued to the screen. The audience screamed, cheered, clapped, and was very engaged from start to finish. Great theatrical experience. I hope it goes on OTT so I can watch it again soon.. it's a great historical gothic film. Not perfect but the storyline is tight and the different time periods are linked together perfectly.

Gomburza is a well-acted historical film. Now I understand why Cedrick Juan won the Best Actor award for MMFF 2023. He acted the heck out of his role as Padre Jose Burgos. Also, watching this film was like watching a character study - not of one particular named character but the character of a Filipino and how that term came to be and the spark of the revolution that would define our history. Don't compare it to Heneral Luna. That one was another great and spectacular movie, but its fire is different. Gomburza is more of a slow burn, taking its time to lay down the foundations of what the country fought for and the unifying idea that drove it -- the identity of the Filipinos.

Memorable lines include (paraphrased out of memory):

"No indio will rebel. We [the Church] taught them to be obedient."

"... ill-fated and cursed people?" (Malas at sinumpang bayan)

These were the lines that really made me teary-eyed. You already know why, considering the many things plaguing our country.

In any case, it's a movie everyone should watch. I also encourage viewers to watch it with a critical mind, knowing the role of the Church in the fight for independence during the Spanish colonial era.

[sessayyys-corner]

GOMBURZA (2023) - MMFF REVIEW

“Vivan Los Filipinos. Mabuhay ang mga Filipino.”

This film is the story of the three martyr priests. Three Filipinos who were part of the native community who were once under Spanish colonial rule and oppression. If you have been updated, or have been listening in your elementary Philippine history classes, it’s GOMBURZA, not MAJOHA. 

Despite it being produced by Jesuit Communications, the film was able to execute (No pun intended) a factual depiction on a turning point of Philippine history without overused emphasis of religion. It was able to capture how the Catholic faith was used as an instrument of oppression during the Spanish colonial period (This was especially ironic considering how return of the religious orders, including the Jesuits, were the reason for the silencing of the secularization movement). What also impressed me is that almost every single detail in the movie, even in the dialogue, came from actual events in history. It is evident that enough research was made to make this film as accurate as possible.

The film’s cinematography was able to capture life during the period whether it was amongst the Filipino liberals, the Spanish priests, the Governor-Generals, or even the three main characters in our story. With every other scenes of the film shifting from light to dark atmospheres, this symbolized the reality of Spanish colonization — warmth, acceptance, and friendship amongst fellow Filipinos; and ruthlessness, inhumanity, and oppression from the Spaniards (and even traitors). Adding emphasis to GomBurZa’s (2023) cinematography is its sound design. Just by feeling the cinema floor rumbling and the deeply-voiced voiceover in the film’s ending segment, this film can come to a point where it deserves its own IMAX screening.

Dante Rivero and Cedrick Juan showcase over-the-top stellar performances as Padre Mariano Gomez (played by Rivero) and Padre Jose Burgos (played by Juan). Both actors have embodied their roles, not only due to the fact that they, especially Juan, share a slight resemblance with the real life Mariano Gomez and Jose Burgos. It is also because that they were able to portray their emotions from having a friendly conversation, to later condemning their unfair arrest, trial, and death.

Pepe Diokno's time and effort in conducting research and including every important detail in the production is evident in the whole film itself, as it was not only ACTUALLY based on true events, but was able to evoke emotion and outrage, just like how the Filipinos of the 1870s did at the time.

With all of this said, GomBurZa (2023) is not only a history lesson, but also an immersion into the Spanish colonial rule and the lives of the three priests. Being a history nerd and a cinephile who has since learned the names of the three martyr priests as a little girl in elementary, I can definitely say that this was one of the only film experiences where I had witnessed the breaking of the fourth wall. The whole time I was in the cinema, it felt like I was part of their conversation, like I was a witness to their lives and execution.

What also added to this experience was that I watched the film on Rizal Day, and what better way to commemorate our national hero's contribution to Philippine independence than to learn about where it all started? Like what I always preached to my family:

Without GomBurZa, there will be no Jose Rizal. Without Jose Rizal, there would be no Andres Bonifacio. Without all of them, the Philippines and the Filipino would not exist.

GomBurZa (2023) is a cathartic experience that is definitely for the family. This film is a testament to the importance of appreciating and learning our history. Hopefully it serves as a reminder of our collective past, national identity, and the importance of our freedom.

[Metro Manila Film Festival 2023]

(my film review of "GomBurZa" is also available on letterboxd!)

A ★★★★★ review of GomBurZa (2023)

“Viva Los Filipinos. Mabuhay ang mga Filipino.” This film is the story of the three martyr priests. Three Filipinos who were part of the nat