When I saw The Write Moment back during last year's QCinema film festival, I liked it on a conceptual level but found the execution to be a bit rough. In particular, I liked the way it laid bare the folly of both hugot and its sibling kilig, highlighting the fact that relationships are a two way street - and hugot stories often end up being one sided.
In the interest of fairness I decided to watch it again today, the first day of its commercial run in cinemas, and I was pleasantly surprised. I'm glad I gave this a second chance, because I enjoyed my rewatch of The Write Moment more than I expected. It felt smoother than I remember, and I could follow it more easily. The film is still imperfect, and that's fine. The second act still sticks out like a sore thumb to me: it still feels like a detour, although its ending scene does hammer home a particular point. That said, it didn't bother me as much as it did the last time.
Ultimately, the film's central message still rings true: that there is no value in forcing something that doesn't need to be forced. Sometimes love just doesn't work out, and we have to live with that whether we like it or not, even if, on the face of it, it makes absolutely no sense. There's a scene near the end of the movie where Dave, our main character, is unable to let go of his relationship. His soon-to-be ex's last words repeat again and again, as if there is a singular focus on it. But that focus breaks for just one moment, and that gives Dave the clarity to make his decision. In that short moment, he realizes that the woman he loves is not a character in a movie, but a living, breathing person.
They say love can be better the second time around, and this film won me over. Of all people, even the security guard who was patrolling the cinema laughed at the jokes. It's an interesting concept, it's enjoyable and it's funny, thanks to the comedic talents of Jerald Napoles. For a light 81 minutes, I think it's worth looking into.
Jose Javier Reyes' Walwal follows the lives of four young men as they go through various challenges in life. This is not the first time Reyes has made a film about the youth - back in the mid nineties, he made Pare Ko, which starred Claudine Barretto, Jao Mapa and Mark Anthony Fernandez, among others. Pare Ko had its protagonists go through their character arcs while drinking together and having fun. Walwal (meaning to get wasted and/or drunk) feels like a spiritual successor to that film in that regard, though the results are decidedly mixed.
The four young men in question are Marco (Kiko Estrada), Dondi (Elmo Magalona), Intoy (Jerome Ponce) and Bobby (Donny Pangilinan.) Marco is a playboy who impregnates a girl by accident, Dondi is a law student who gets dumped by his girlfriend, Intoy grapples with the identity of his long lost father, and Bobby wants to make films, but his dad isn't on board with that plan.
Dondi's storyline doesn't really have a lot of heft to it; he pines after his girlfriend until he realizes that that isn't the healthiest thing to do, and moves on. The end. Like Bobby, he has issues with his father regarding his choice of career, but like an afterthought, that isn't really explored until the last minute. Bobby's storyline is also rather aimless, and any major conflict disappears by the end. His character gets tangled up in some shady shenanigans but nothing of consequence really happens to him afterwards. He's paired up with Ruby (Kisses Delavin), and listening to their dialogue is by far the cringiest, most awkward experience I've ever had in the cinema this year.
On to the decent stuff. Intoy's story is a bit broader, as it is as much about his mother (Angeli Bayani), than it is about him. There's a major dramatic conflict that sets off the third act, and Jerome Ponce tries to make the best of it. It resolves itself a little too quickly at the end, but it's fine for what it's worth.
It's Marco's story arc that ends up being the most substantial. He's paired with Trina (Devon Seron) and the two have genuine chemistry together, and Marco's character undergoes the most change from beginning to end. It feels like it could be its own film, with Marco coming to terms with his attitude and his actions, and this particular story delves into real life issues more than the other narrative threads. If anything else, this particular pairing shows promise.
For a movie about youth, there isn't anything particularly youthful about the way the film was made. It's all calculated and safe, and there's no experimentation with the form. It's not bad per se, just unremarkable. The film doesn't properly function as a snapshot of contemporary culture either; other than inserting a few phrases of contemporary slang into the dialogue, the film could have taken place in any relatively recent time period.
Walwal is a hit and miss affair, but I didn't dislike it. It's fine for fans, but it doesn't necessarily tread any new ground.
The gist is: an American reporter (Annicka Dolonius) challenges the leader of a vigilante group (Sid Lucero) to a contest in exchange for a scoop.
It's wild, wacky, fun and frenetic. The movie is bathed in blood red tones (I totally dig the aesthetic) and it all seems like a bit of crazy fun until the end, when the film reminds us exactly who these people are. It's a bit of a tonal shift, but I found the overall effect quite potent.
At twelve minutes long, it doesn't overstay its welcome, and it's free. I mean, what more could you ask for?
No comments:
Post a Comment