I've been assigned to do another film review for tomorrow's Spanish Film Festival opening film El Secreto de sus Ojos (Secret in the Eyes) and I'm excited because its the first Spanish film fest that I'm covering as a film reviewer.
Looking back on my journalistic life in ABS-CBN, I've done quite a number of film reviews, mostly on international films and some homemade titles (but very limited).
My Lifestyle editor Karen Galarpe said my last review was good and I'm happy because I think I'm improving little by little. More than two years ago, my first review earned me the ire of the filmmaker. (I wrote a review on an indie film, then.) I stopped writing for awhile but my editors kept on sending me over for coverages. After a few months, I got over the confrontation and am trying my best to write decent reviews.
I really want to become a good film critic and I hope I'm moving towards the right direction. I love films and I love all the symbols that are ingrained in them. Here are the film reviews I have written (minus the first one):
'Home': Stunning and meaningful environment film
MANILA, Philippines - On June 5, 2009, while the Philippines’ attention was on the dreaded Influenza A (H1N1) virus, photographer and environmental crusader Yann Arthus-Bertrand was under the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France, waiting for the premiere of "Home", his first feature film.
"Home" is a film about the earth and the impacts of climate change. First screened on World Environmental Day, "Home" was also released in major formats like theater and DVD in 181 countries. It can also be watched for free on the video-sharing site YouTube. MORE...
Eiga Sai's 'Fourteen': A film review
MANILA, Philippines – There are movies that make you laugh, cry, curse and regret wasting your hard-earned pesos--those, regardless of how entertaining, you easily forget.
But there are movies that stay with you, lingering after the credits rolled and the moviegoers thinned, those that follow you home, cropping up every now and then as the scenes stand out one by one, showing signs and messages you never noticed while they played. MORE...
Eiga Sai's 'How to Become Myself': A film review
MANILA, Philippines – When one mentions 'movies targeted for girls,' the immediate genre in mind would be romance. But How to Become Myself veers away from this and instead, narrates a story on dysfunctional families, on knowing the self, and on keeping friends regardless of distance—with the help of modern technology.
Based on a book by Mado Kaori, How to Become Myself is one of the movie offerings for the 2010 Eiga Sai, a Japanese film festival hosted by the Japan Foundation. MORE...
Film Review: The Battery Future in our Hands
MANILA, Philippines – Baseball is to Japan what basketball is to the Philippines. The sport has a huge following that it seeped through various existing popular media: manga, anime, movies. There are probably thousands of existing Japanese baseball movies in the market so it’s not surprising that a movie on the sport ended up in the lineup for Eiga Sai 2010, the Japanese Film Festival sponsored by the Japan Foundation.
Directed by Academy Award-winning director Takita Yojiro, The Battery, Future in Our Hands (Batterii) seems like a typical sports movie on friendship and playing sports. But for a country where the number of sports movies is close to none, Batterii is a good sports film for the Filipino audience. MORE..
Film review: Dutch film sparks Christmas love
MANILA – In wide-eyed horror, my initial reaction when the opening of "Alles is Liefde" (Love is All) started rolling was: "this is the Dutch version of the 2003 British film 'Love Actually.'"
But after the first scene, the film shies away from its English counterpart and establishes a story of its own. The film is directed by Joram Lürsen. MORE...
Film Review: Mike Sandejas’ Dinig Sana Kita
MANILA – Can Mike Sandejas recreate the same waves he made last year with his semi-biographical Tulad Nang Dati with his new film Dinig Sana Kita?
For someone who have seen and marveled at the former and was contemplating whether seeing the latter in a crowded theater house is worth it, the response could be an immediate ‘No.’ MORE...
Film review: Pepe Diokno's 'Engkwentro'
MANILA - Dark, dirty, and dangerous would be the words to describe Pepe Diokno’s "Engkwentro", the only Filipino film in the lineup of the 66th Venice Film Festival. "Engkwentro" focuses on two brothers and the choices they are forced to make in a night's square-off.
Literally translated as "an encounter", "Engkwentro" narrates the story of Richard (Felix Roco), the embattled gang leader of "Bagong Buwan" (literally meaning "new moon" who is hiding from the City Death Squad (CDS), a group of government-supported vigilantes known to gun down delinquents in the streets. MORE...
I think there's a few more that I could not unearth now. I remember writing one on Manila and on another indie film but I can't find the links in google.com. Right now, I still need to finish my Danish film review and another one for tomorrow's Spanish film. :)
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