Cine Crítico Filipino is envisioned as a growing community of young film critics who take film writing and criticism seriously. As a collective, we imagine a Filipino cinema with a healthy and vibrant dialogue between its filmmakers and critics, and aspire to develop the great Filipino audience.
Covering an International Film Fest for the First Time
When I got accepted as an accredited press for the 50th edition of the International Film Festival Rotterdam, my plan originally entailed writing a conventional
IFFR 2021: Quo Vadis, Aida? (Review)
Quo Vadis, Aida?, the Bosnian entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 93rd Academy Awards, gives light to the events leading up to
IFFR 2021: Night of the Kings (Review)
Ivory Coast’s third submission to the Academy Awards’ Best International Feature Film category is like a fairy tale. But for a film that highlights an
IFFR 2021: Riders of Justice (Review)
Riders of Justice pushes its synthesis that a chain of trivial causes can lead to events happening in the grandest of scales by having its plot
Filmmaker Spotlight: Pom Bunsermvicha
Dagupan City, Philippines — Lemongrass Girl follows a young production assistant tasked to plant lemongrass as part of Thai superstition to ward off the rain.
Lemongrass Girl (2021) and Ritualistic Restrictions
Dagupan City, Philippines — “Has anyone seen Piano?” Lemongrass Girl follows the story of a young production assistant named Piano who is assigned to plant
Two Documentary Styles – In the Claws of Century Wanting and An Elegy to Forgetting
Jewel Maranan’s Sa Palad ng Dantaong Kulang (2017) is a documentary focusing on four separate families living in the port district of Tondo. In Palad, Maranan follows the
Overdue: ‘The Boy Foretold by the Stars’
In its unabashed sweetness and emotional honesty, The Boy Foretold by the Stars is a clear message to queer audiences — fate or not, you deserve to
I – The Filipino Critic Must be a Militant
This is a part of Musings on Film Criticism. It is a series about what is discussed in two film criticism classes the writer sits
The Spectre of Brocka’s Maynila Still Haunts Us with Gasping for Air
Urban diaspora is a symptom of uneven development, especially in a country as archipelagic and disjointed as the Philippines. Fringe margins inaccessible to basic commodities
Charlie Kaufman is probably thinking of something in I’m Thinking of Ending Things. It’s not your fault if you can’t figure out what it is.
Picture this: a renowned filmmaker famous for making confusing films releases their newest work. And upon watching, you expectedly don’t know what the hell is
The Form is the Message: The pitfalls of advocacy filmmaking and the CINEMALAYA 2020 Main Competition Shorts Films
There is a stage in the humble filmmaker’s career when they conflate advocacy and quality. And it’s an understandable situation. The education system, award-giving bodies,
Little Women (2019): Owning Your Story
Note: There are spoilers in this essay about Little Women (2019). In Greta Gerwig’s sophomore feature Little Women (2019), four sisters forge their own way during the
Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019): Love, Art, and Continued Emancipation
NOTE: This article has spoilers. As soon as the Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons stopped playing, I sank into my chair, with tears in my eyes, and
Aswang and A Thousand Cuts: Are documentaries enough?
What is the point of a documentary? Should it provide basic information to those uninformed or should it deepen the understanding of those informed? Should
Sila-Sila (2019): Tackling the Gray in Queer Relationships
Note: This essay has spoilers. We open on Balete Drive. If you’ve ever watched Okatokat or Magandang Gabi, Bayan in your childhood, or read at least one entry of Pinoy Ghost Stories,
Carlo Manatad’s Filmography: What a Girl Wants, What a Girl Needs
“Well-behaved women seldom make history.” Laurel Thatcher Ulrich, Well-Behaved Women Seldom Make History Have you ever wondered what would happen if men weren’t in the
‘Plano (2004) and Salingpusa (2006): A Little Girl’s Plight
Is it lifting off or landing? The short film ‘Plano (2004) opens with the familiar sight and sound of an airplane overhead – untouchable in a cloudless
Covering an International Film Fest for the First Time
IFFR 2021: Quo Vadis, Aida? (Review)
IFFR 2021: Night of the Kings (Review)
IFFR 2021: Riders of Justice (Review)
Filmmaker Spotlight: Pom Bunsermvicha
Lemongrass Girl (2021) and Ritualistic Restrictions
Two Documentary Styles – In the Claws of Century Wanting and An Elegy to Forgetting
Overdue: ‘The Boy Foretold by the Stars’
I – The Filipino Critic Must be a Militant
The Spectre of Brocka’s Maynila Still Haunts Us with Gasping for Air
Little Women (2019): Owning Your Story
Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019): Love, Art, and Continued Emancipation
Aswang and A Thousand Cuts: Are documentaries enough?
Sila-Sila (2019): Tackling the Gray in Queer Relationships
Carlo Manatad’s Filmography: What a Girl Wants, What a Girl Needs