Barber's Tales (Mga Kwentong Barbero)

Director: Jun Robles Lana
With: Eugene Domingo, Gladys Reyes, Sharmaine Buencamino, Iza Calzado, Nonie Buencamino, Nicco Manalo, Sue Prado, Eddie Garcia, Daniel Fernando

Could this film get any more hype? Well, in the Philippines it could use some because my audience when I saw it was only a handful and its marketing is virtually non-existent here. But internationally, Barber's Tales is a big deal especially after winning several awards such as Best Actress for Eugene Domingo at the 2013 Tokyo International Film Festival, Best Director for Jun Robles Lana (also director of Bwakaw; writer of Jose Rizal, Muro Ami, Bagong Buwan) at the 2014 Madrid International Film Festival and was also awarded 3rd Place, Audience Award at the 2014 Udine Far East Film Festival. Amazing!

So all these awards set the bar high prior to watching the film. I think it's safe to say that it lived up to it because the craftsmanship of director Jun Robles Lana who also wrote the film was fully established. It's artsy, it's neat, it's beautifully shot and is something to be taken seriously. Like Bwakaw, its setting focused on a small town province in the Philippines but this film tackled a crucial period in the Philippine history which is the Marcos regime during the height of rebellion.

Not gonna lie, it's a bit surprising how heavy the film actually is. I expected it to be dramatic but I didn't anticipate the importance and the history that it enacted. It's a good thing because the Philippine cinema, from what I've observed, is lacking period dramas lately and Barber's Tales is a refreshing Filipino film that can be added among other great historical films like Dekada '70 and Aishite Imasu 1941: Mahal Kita to name a few. So lots of kudos to Jun Robles Lana for continuously writing and directing films that are relevant, films that showcases Philippine history. Also, much like Dekada'70, one of the elemental themes of Barber's Tales is women empowerment.

However, Barber's Tales is not the most exciting and gripping film. Its pacing is a bit monotonous, building so many characters, story-arcs in the middle. But the slow build up is rewarding in the end as it made the shocking events even more electrifying like a cobra finally eating its prey after keeping an eye on it for so long. Okay, that's a strange comparison but it's totally apt. The last 10 minutes of the film is very exhilarating. It doesn't hurt that the film surprised its viewers with a pleasant cameo by a superstar. :3

We're so used into laughing at Eugene Domingo's antics in movies but here, she never tickled anyone's funny bones. Most of the time, she's in her depressing facial expression mode that got a little tiring at some point, but there's really nothing more we can ask for with this actress. She's phenomenal whether in drama or comedy. "Death defying stunts and full frontal nudity? CHECK." I still prefer the funny Eugene though and the good thing is, it will always be there. Her performance in Ang Babae Sa Septic Tank will never be outstripped. TV PATROL ACTING :). Aside from Eugene, the film's ensemble is pretty rad. Great performances from Eddie Garcia, Gladys Reyes, Nonie Buencamino, Nicco Manalo, Iza Calzado and Sharmaine Buencamino.

It's rare nowadays to witness a great Filipino period drama so I really hope this film gets the number of audience it deserves. It won several awards for a reason. For Filipinos who keep on complaining about the never-ending mainstream love stories, well Barber's Tales is not mainstream for one, and it's definitely not a love story. So no more excuses. LOL #sapilitan

Chito Roño's Boy Golden

Boy Golden

Director: Chito Roño

With: Jeorge Estregan, KC Concepcion, John Estrada, Eddie Garcia, Gloria Sevilla, Dick Israel, Leo Martinez, Roi Vinson, Tonton Gutierrez, Mon Confiado, John Lapus

There are two possible outcomes after watching this MMFF entry, Boy Golden: 1) You're dumbfounded by the whole thing because it has a lot of WTF moments and campy gimmicks 2) You're smiling on your way out of the theater because of the same reasons I've mentioned in number 1 and you think that the film is actually fun and good. You'll either love it or hate it. Me? I definitely enjoyed it and more inclined with number 2. ^_^

The film is loosely based on the life of Arturo Porcuna (Jeorge E.R. Estregan) during his gangster life as Boy Anino to Boy Golden. Along his journey, he met a dancer named Marla Dee (KC Concepcion) only to find out that both have the same mission in seeking revenge against one of the most notorious gangster, Razon (John Estrada).

In Boy Golden, Chito Roño celebrates classic Filipino action films while maintaining his modern style and including more crazy tactics. The vibrant colors of the set screams his style wherein neon colors of blue, red, purple and green enrich the old school Manila vibe. It actually reminds me of Feng Shui and Only God Forgives' (nuks!) color schemes but it also worked well here in Boy Golden. Revenge is one of the most common themes, not only in Philippine action films, but in the whole action film genre. That's why I find it necessary that Roño included comedy and camp, something we rarely see in any Filipino movies, and it indeed made the film unique in comparison to the usual action films. It made the film a lot livelier, crazier and funnier: from epic names such as Tekla, Bungal, and the best among the rest, Datu Putla. Ridiculous characters varying from a cliché Chinoy, spoiled brat gangster son who plays spectacular piano, gay sidekick to one of the biggest bosses and a mama's boy gangster. Campy and gory action scenes like parkour, where a number of regular guys jump from roof to roof, KC Concepcion's kickass one-on-one fight against a Crouching-Tiger-Zhang-ZiYi like woman who creates Chun-Li growls along their fight, Gloria Sevilla unleashing her inner cruelty while plucking her armpit hair and more scenes that goes beyond your serious imagination. And when I say more, there really is more. Describing them through words won't suffice the campness of those scenes. Surprisingly impressive musical score by Carmina Cuya also gives each scenes life varying from fun and chill to romantic and melodramatic to heart racing sounds. The film is also not devoid of depth and twists proving that this is not another pointless action comedy. There's even a scene justifying the true missions of gangsters and the failure of the police in capturing them. All this while a montage of what seems like a real-life pictures of past Filipino gangsters like Nardong Putik flash on the screen. There really are numerous reasons why this film works.

While the lead Jeorge Estregan acts terribly as hell, I guess it sort of works in this kind of film. But thank goodness to the ensemble for giving a variety of awesome performances, with Eddie Garcia looking more epic in each scenes he appear in, notably old Dick Israel who I may also call as legendary in this film, Gloria Sevilla enjoying a role I don't think she's ever portrayed before, and Baron Geisler as Datu Putla embracing his very maputla makeup that's reminiscent of Skyfall's Raoul Silva, what more can a moviegoer ask for? Even KC Concepcion shined in this, aside from her reaction when John Lapuz slapped her in the beginning of the film. That's kind of funny. But these are iconic characters giving more oomph to the film.

The film still needs massive improvement in terms of make up and visual effects but with the film's goofy nature, these imperfections are easy to overlook. If there's one person who truly enjoyed this film, I'm pretty sure it's Chito Roño. He's never afraid to try new things proven even in his past works. He's not afraid to take risks and be corny or cheesy in this film, thus, making it more solid. I guess it would be a stretch to compare his work in this film to Quentin Tarantino's, but I really do think that most of the scenes are inspired by his movies. I can see this being a terrible film for some, but truth is, I really enjoyed this film that I can't wait for more people to see it so I can discuss and laugh at all the hilarity of this film with them.