Keith Deligero's newest film is perhaps his most straightforward; while Iskalawags and Lily were both fractured recollections of memories past, this film, this film is, for all intents and purposes, a crime procedural, a Bisaya cop film about dealing with the ghosts of the past. When detective Tarongoy (Victor Neri) investigates a spate of mysterious deaths in Cebu City, he's roped into deeper (and more personal) shit than he expects.
Like Deligero's previous films, it's remarkable in the way it reframes genre in its own flavor, a flavor Manilenos may not be accustomed to: instead of the gritty streets of Makati or the squatter communities of Metro Manila, we get fantastic shots of Mactan Bridge, or a tense car ride through Colon, or sweeping panoramic shots of the Cebu metro.
It goes through the usual motions of cop procedural mystery dramas: the requisite red herrings are there, there's a hardass for a boss, a seemingly naive sidekick, a mysterious female, and there are many fun false leads. Yet Deligero's punk sensibilities are also here: in terms of tone, it's quite similar to his earlier short film, Babylon. There's just enough humor and weirdness that it doesn't come off as too staid or serious.
There's also commentary here about the effects of trauma, and how emotional scars are just as substantial as their physical counterparts, and how guilt and the actions of the past contribute to our collective brokenness. It ends with a film within a film - perhaps the film we were really meant to watch - a film about wrongs righted and oppression avenged.
The film's technical aspects are decent, though some scenes come off as a bit too oversoundtracked - not every scene needs to have an accompanying song. It's an interesting addition to an already impressive body of work.
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