MMFF 2011 Hoolabaloo

Shake, Rattle and Roll
I have always been fascinated with Chris Martinez ever since he came up with Last Order ng Penguin. Till his first film with Eugene Domingo in here comes the bride, for me he captures and gets most of the moments. "Relevance", in line with the recent floods, there is no better timing to make it into a horror story. Granted some of the scary scenes were copied from asian films, the more "filipino" was the first one.
Folklore, provincial idyllic feel. That might be the only thing worth watching. Crappy acting? check. Soapy dialogue? Check. and zanjoe Marudo just made my list of the worst actor EVER.
Warring mangkukulam? ok. leave it there.

Asiong Salonga
1. Left a bitter taste, more like asking for Aguiluz's original version. I don't even think it deserved the editing award. Some parts were just a bit off.
2. While most of the rants I will be presenting below would be a summation of what is obvious and clear:
a. Male Machismo would always be guns and philandering
b. Glorify tambay sa kanto, because thats how people will be respected- get yourself cocky and bully the bully.
c. Revenge. that's it for most of the time.

3. The bicycle-riding-gun fighting scene was funny!
4. If it wasn't for the black and white cinematography, the whole thing would've been any average action film dated in the 50s. There's no better way to make it stylized for cheesy lines to sound cool, "akin ang Tondo!"
5. Most of the time, I was checking out the whole 40s-50s vibe. How Tondo looked, how the characters talk and how "things were". I even concerned myself to the tiny detail as the money used. Love the outfits and Abellana's hair. Though, I keep on thinking she looks a bit young for ER Ejercito. Im convincing myself that there won't be a rape scene anytime soon. Relax, its his husband btw.

.. If this becomes a hit, Im expecting another era of crappy action films. If the trailer was a sign, lets all welcome, Hitman. starring Cesar Montano.

Paul Theroux; Iron Rooster

I heard many great stories about China. Coming from a country very much influenced by Chinese culture, I am curious and interested in learning more about the country and its people.Theroux's insights, while a bit outdated after publishing it in the late 80s, some still rang true today. Restroom complaints, spitting and the lack of courtesy among people from mainland are laments often heard by friends who have visited the place. While the lack of hygeine bothered me a bit, Theroux's novel painted a gorgeous picture of China's countryside, captured during his trip through a railway tour across China.
Hopefully, I will be able to go to the sites he mentioned and not just the more famous cities- Beijing and Shanghai.
1. First on my list is the Bogda Shan-Tianchi where the Heavenly pool is located.

2. I would also like to try the railroad crossing the Silk Road
3. He mentioned the railway crossing Emei to Kunming with 200 tunnels. A memorial was dedicated to the people who built it as hundreds sacrificed to build a railway across one of the perilous and mountainous area.

4. On the subject of Kunming, it is also home to several minorities. It would be wonderful to see their colorful clothings, as Theroux put it TECHNICOLOR TRIBALISM, which is a big fad these days

5. Theroux mentioned the ride from Guangxi to Guilin, I would personally love to see the landscapes,. As mentioned, the train ride gave him a glimpse of rural China and how the changing landscapes made man co-exist with nature-altering land to suit his needs. He also mentioned that the place resembled that of a Chinese painting.

 

 It was also a place of some exotic foods such as wawa fish (which is actually a salander) and muntjac (deer):

So cute to eat?