I shall continue with my “themed” film commentaries. This set, obviously, has the word “candidate” in the movies’ titles, and all involve quite reluctant individuals thrown into the election circus and get involved in all the politics and image-building behind it.

THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE (2004). This film is about Gulf War veterans Ben Marco (Denzel Washington) and Raymond Shaw (Liev Schreiber) more than a decade after the war. It is election season, and due to his fame as a war hero and due to his over-supportive domineering senator mother (played by Meryl Streep), Raymond is catapulted from being a congressman to being poised as the US’ next vice-president. Ben, however, starts complaining to his military superiors about recurring nightmares and begins to question what had really happened in Kuwait that prompted him to recommend Raymond to receive the highest military honor. As it turns out, events didn’t actually happen the way they remembered them to have happened, and soon, Ben discovers the covert involvement of a powerful corporation who make profit with war, in their secret effort to install a president that would ensure their corporate success.

This was exhibited in theaters at a time when the US is still at war in Iraq (oh, they still are) and Bush was up for reelection, so this film had some political intrigue with it when it was shown. Manchurian comes from the name Manchurian Global, the powerful corporation (that makes tanks, guns, war equipment, etc.) that was in a covert plan to install Raymond as the next president. It pretty much manifests what most probably happens in real life, with Halliburton and Eron ensuring that the war business will prosper for more years.

The problem with many of the reviews I’ve read about the film is that they all compare it to its predecessor, because this film is actually a remake of a previous 1962 movie. I, however, have seen this ahead, and I particularly found the premise intriguing and the execution, especially the leads’ acting, quite remarkable.

THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE (1962). The earlier Manchurian Candidate film has a preposterous premise. Unlike the later version of the film, the earlier Manchurian Candidate was set during the Cold War, in a time right after the Korean conflict and at a time when US Sen. Joseph McCarthy was spreading paranoia about communism and communist infiltration of the US government. If in the later film, it was a powerful corporation that was manipulating the leads, in the earlier film, it is an international assembly of communists trying to infiltrate the US government and install a communist-sympathizer as president. The Manchuria in this film comes from Manchuria in China itself, the venue where the communist assembly started manipulating the minds of the American war veterans. Its premise is absurd, but I guess it was okay at that time as it really reflected the paranoia of that era.

Many reviews praise this film as one of the best (American) political thrillers of the century. Perhaps it was because of the direction, of the daring premise, of the acting? But I couldn’t remove the thought that the story is really absurd from the rest of the film. I didn’t appreciate this one that much.

THE CANDIDATE (1972). Bill McKay (Robert Redford) is the son of California’s governor and an environmental lawyer of sorts with little interest in politics. He (primarily because of his last name and his good looks) is pressured into running for the Senate to go against the popular and old conservative incumbent, with the assurance from the political image-builders that he will lose anyway, so he can say whatever liberal ideas he wants with nothing to lose. As the campaign progresses, however, he finds himself being told what to do and eventually manipulated into saying moderated versions of his real intentions. Soon enough, opinion polls reveal that he gaining momentum with his packaged answers and is poised to give the popular incumbent a neck and neck fight in the elections. Bill’s backers then decide that they want him to win after all. In the end, Bill comes to a realization that he had become what he didn’t want himself to be in the beginning.

This is a brilliant film showcasing the complexity of image-building of politicians and sometimes the spins, the manipulation and the hypocrisy behind it all, especially in the mainstream. In a way I personally understand how it is, having been a candidate and a candidate manager myself in UP campus politics. Needless to say, I enjoyed the film.

Let me start the year with an attempt to write about all the films I will see throughout the year, again. I tried doing this back in 2008 but I wasn’t able to sustain it, largely because I got too busy with law school and student council activities. This time, I’ll try doing my commentaries with themes and motifs.

MACHUCA (2004). In the early 1970′s, Chile was under leftist President Salvador Allende. Exclusive schools were opened to poor families. The elite were complaining against their socialist leader. This movie is about the experiences of three children in a time of great socio-political upheaval. A rich kid becomes great friends with a slum boy, along with a teenage girl with activist tendencies. Through his two friends from the slums, the boy acquires new experiences that challenges his understanding of himself, his family and the society. This film is ultimately a coming-of-age movie set in a political backdrop integrated in a subtle but strong way. (4/5)

MISSING (1982). This film won the Palme d’Or and a Best Actor Award in Cannes in 1982. Like Machuca, Missing is set in Chile during the political upheaval that saw the military overthrow of the country’s democratically-elected socialist leader. An American expat disappears a few days after the coup d’etat, while the entire country was in martial law. Unlike Machuca, this film exposes political issues more blatantly, particularly the covert involvement of the United States in planning the regime change (which they do all the time in many other countries with leftist leaders). This film was banned in Chile during the term of Augusto Pinochet. Lawsuits were even filed by the American ambassador to Chile at the time and the US State Department even issued disclaimers because of the film’s depictions of American military and intelligence officials.

I found it particularly brilliant how the film framed outdoor and street shots, which always included commercial billboards of American brands and multinationals on the background amidst the sound of gunshots and the sight of bloody corpses lying on the streets, reinforcing the message and the fact that the chaotic social climate had been sustained with the condonation and the support of the US.

Beyond the political tones, this film is a tragic and harrowing story of a father searching for his only son, and a wife yearning to reunite with her husband. The powerful acting of the two main leads almost perfectly captures all the emotions without resorting to the usual hysterical wailing and screaming. This film is based on a true story. (4.5/5)

LA NOCHE DE LOS LAPICES (Night of the Pencils) (1986). Like Missing, La Noche de los Lapices is about people who disappear under oppressive and fascist military dictatorships. This film is particularly about seven high school student activists in Argentina during the coup d’etat which installed the Argentine military junta of the 1970′s. The film starts with the students’ successful campaign for student passes on public buses and moves on with their violent kidnapping and the torture they endured under military captivity. (Thousands of people disappeared in the 1970′s during Argentina’s military dictatorship which brutally suppressed all things leftist, imagined or real.)

Despite its political backdrop, the film was able to focus its genuine depiction of the complex characters of the students, their families, and their relationships among each other, which made the characters more endearing and final scenes more tragic.

The film however, sort of, avoided any deeper political discussion of issues surrounding the political upheaval (the students’ primary campaign was really just on free passes on public buses). Like Missing, La Noche de los Lapices is based on a true story. (3/5)

The film is a docu-drama that highlights different stages in the life of the martyred senator, form his roots as a brash and talented young man, forward to his long and arduous journey as a politician and a private family man, presented as flashbacks weaved together with the last days of his life as he returned to the Philippines from Boston as the narrative spine.

Through known and new records, plus valuable memories and insights from wife and ally, Cory, audiences are shown Ninoy’s truest ideals and deepest struggles, his indomitable spirit and faith, as seen through all his hardships and all the hostilities he faced.

Unlike the many documentaries that have been made and screened about Ninoy Aquino, the EDSA Revolution or the Martial Law era, “The Last Journey of Ninoy” allows audiences to witness the narrative without the intrusion of a third party narrator, hence a more intimate experience, as if we are witness to a conversation between the two revered icons. The film is also punctuated by an inspiring message taken from one of Ninoy’s speeches delivered while on “exile” in the US, addressed to every Filipino. “So long as each one of us should be willing to take on the struggle, even if I am imprisoned, even if I die in prison, so long as you will continue the struggle and carry the torch, then I think we will have a better Philippines. Rather than one carrying the torch, we will have many.”

The film is produced by Benigno S. Aquino Foundation and Unitel. It will have a one-day regular screening in Power Plant Mall on August 21, 2009. ABS-CBN will also air the docu-drama on free TV on August 23, at around 10:30 PM.

Reservation Road (2007, USA, dir. Terry George) is about two dedicated fathers in an intertwined struggle of coping up with loss and guilt. One of them, the character played by Mark Ruffalo, accidentally hits and runs over the son of the other father, played by Joaquin Phoenix. In some twisted turn of fate, Phoenix ends up hiring a firm with Ruffalo as attorney. Frustrated and enraged with the slow developments in the investigation of his son’s death, Joaquin eventually takes justice in his own hands and soon discovers the grave involvement of Ruffalo, among a handful of other contrivances. The film is a fairly convincing family drama with a largely powerful cast. What I found fairly unique about the film is that, as a family drama, it focused largely, without reservations, in exposing the emotional turmoil among fathers, as opposed to relying on the traditional dramatics of wailing female characters.

Cloverfield (2008, USA, dir. Matt Reeves) is an entertaining monster thriller. The title Cloverfield is the code name for a tape found by the US Military among the rubbles of Manhattan after it was obliterated in order to defeat a large monster. The tape is a self-documented film taken by a group of friends trapped in Manhattan as it was taken siege by the creature. The story’s nothing really new, a monster basically attacks Manhattan, with the plot focusing on a group of friends who tries to evade the danger posed by the monster. Cloverfield simply repackages the story into a fairly unique concept of self-documentation, shaky video-camera style, in a fairly suspenseful pace.

Ploning (2008, Philippines, dir. Dante Nico Garcia), shot entirely in picturesque Cuyo, Palawan, is a touching and lovely film about patient love. It’s a subtle film, not very complicated. Judy Anne Santos did a brilliant performance. None of the usual wailing and melodrama, just beautifully powerful but restraint acting. It’s not a perfect film, in fact there came a point when I think I had too much of all unnecessary scenic shots, it felt like the film is turning into a dramatic excuse to sell panoramic views to prospective tourists. The film is highly likeable, however. I came out of the cinema feeling touched, peaceful and serene.

The Abominable Dr. Phibes (1971, USA, dir. Robert Fuest) is about a doctor set on exacting torturous revenge on nine other doctors on whose hands his wife died. His ways and means of executing such murders are based on the Old Testament curses of the Pharaoh and the people of Egypt during the time of Moses. The methods can be quite ingenious, if you ask me, from being eaten to the skull by locusts to being frozen to death inside a car.

The movie makes no pretensions of being an honest-to-goodness straight horror film and as such, is really a campy cult film that is expectedly obnoxious and sick. From the weird art deco sets and costumes to the actual methods of the deaths, it can get quite bothersome. Which I think is exactly what it intends to be.

Lost Horizon (1973, USA, dir. Charles Jarrott), the 1973 motion-picture adaptation of a novel of the same name, is about a group of foreigners who escape a war-torn Asian country who crash and end up in a hidden utopian society in the mountains of Himalayas called Shangrila. Just when the group of English-speaking foreigners get used to and enjoy the utopian life in Shangrila, some of them slowly find out that their being there wasn’t an accident after all, and that the utopia they were lead to believe in may actually be a grand hoax and a conspiracy.

The entire film is filled with philosophical meanderings and musical number ala Sound of Music, which can be entertaining, but can also get quite silly as it piles up. Also, for an attempt at recreating a utopian society on film, the movie is actually very hegemonic and Western in representation!

The film is a apparently notorious for being disastrous at the box office and among critics. Fair enough a judgement if you ask me.

The Boys From Brazil (1978, USA, dir. Franklin J. Schaffner) is about the sinister attempt by a post-war Nazi organization of self-exiled war criminals lead by a death-camp physician hiding in South America, to recreate the glory of the Third Reich by cloning its leader, the Fuhrer, Adolf Hitler himself. Such plans are thwarted through the investigative attempts of a Nazi war criminal-hunter who, in the process, discover more and more about the details of this very evil and sinister plot.

The movie is a worthwhile thriller, but it had the tendency to be quite dragging. It took quite a while before it revealed what the murders were all about and what the sinister plan really is, ad then goes on further after that. The premise is very interesting material, really, however I think it could’ve been shot and told better.

The Orphanage / El Orfanato (2007, Spain, dir. Juan Antonio Bayona) is one dramatic horror movie that really creeps you out with its deep eeriness without the regular visuals of blood and gore and unsightly creatures. The film is about a woman who returns, with her husband and adopted son, to live at the seaside orphanage where she grew up. For a while, as they begin to settle in their new home, she and her husband tolerate their son’s fascination with his new imaginary friends at the house–until things prove themselves to be more than just imaginary when their child disappears. In her search of her missing child, she uncovers secrets behind the orphanage she once lived in. The movie ends with a dramatic sequence that proves to be effectively powerful in both a horrifying and a heart-tugging way. It perfectly punctuates the mystery behind the story. It’s rare that one could say that a horror movie is beautiful. This is definitely a beautiful horror movie.

Dr. No (1962, UK, dir. Terence Young) is the first installment in one of the longest-running film franchises in history, the James Bond franchise. Set in the island of still-British-occupied Jamaica, James Bond investigates the mysterious disappearance of a British secret agent and her secretary and how their disappearance is related to the mysterious radioactive energy waves interfering with US missile launches near the island. The first James Bond film is not, at all, as extravagant as those that came after it. Its strength thus lie with a steady execution of its plot, which basically introduces us to the many recurring motifs that we will eventually get to know James Bond and the franchise for–exotic locations, beautiful women, gadgets, among a handful of others.

From Russia With Love (1963, UK, dir. Terence Young) is about James Bond’s pursuit of a Russian decoding device from a beautiful Russian defector from the Russian consulate in Turkey, and SPECTRE’s evil involvement as an international crime syndicate out to get our famed British secret agent for killing Dr. No. It’s imperative for viewers to know that this was made during the Cold War, and as such, like other Hollywood films then and now, is highly biased towards the West and against the Russians and the Communists. I shall take it for what it is. It can be quite entertaining. Some reinforcements of machismo, and cultural and racial stereotypes can be disturbing, but forgivable. You don’t watch 1960′s James Bond films to critique such reasons anyway. The beautiful women and exotic locations are still there. This is apparently, one of the best James Bond films in the franchise. This is still not as extravagant as other James Bond movies that come after it, but is still highly entertaining as a 1960′s film.

Atonement (2007, UK, dir. Joe Wright) is a period film adapted from a celebrated novel in the UK about Briony and her recollection as a young 13 year-old dramatist, slightly jealous of her sister, who accuses her sister’s lover of a crime he didn’t commit. Her act, destroys not just the romance and breaks the heart of her elder sister and her lover, but their entire lives as well amidst the tragic backdrop of World War II. In a nutshell, for me it’s a nicely shot and narrated melodrama. Notable for me is the film’s musical score (as it of course won the Academy Awards’ Oscar for Original Score), and the use of the sound of the typewriter’s keys that pace up into beautiful musical pieces used in sequence transitions. The film also delivered an excellent recreation of wartime England and France and the English countryside as the movie’s settings.

Gone Baby Gone (2007, USA, dir. Ben Affleck) is also a film adaptation this time of an American novel. It’s a well-told crime drama about a private investigator’s passionate pursuit of a missing-child case in suburban Boston. It follows the standard flow of a crime investigation flick, with enough twists to keep it engaging for its entire duration without the usual action-packed exaggeration of other crime thrillers. The film felt largely honest and straightforward, with genuine performances from the lead actors. In the end, it also poignantly raises some moral and ethical questions about such things as parenting and family life that may interest some viewers into going through that sort of discourse after watching the movie.

Le Grand Chef (2007, South Korea, dir. Jeon Yun-su) is about two chefs, our protagonist and his rival, battling it out for the coveted Royal Chef blade and its title. Nothing pretty exceptional with the movie, but it’s entertaining nonetheless. The film is quite glossy and colorful, with the Korean countryside serving partly as the film’s setting and all and various colorful foods making their presence. Cooking films usually induce viewers’ appetites, but some scenes of cutting and cleaning live blowfish and butchering cows might not exactly induce the appetite of some people. Such cooking processes were quite enjoyable for me, though. The film’s melodramatic and romantic comedy angles were okay.

Bee Movie (2007, USA, dir. Steve Hickner, Simon J. Smith) is a nice animated movie, not too tame or innocent like mainstream Disney or Pixar films nor was it too adult, like say The Simpsons. It was just the right kind of comedy a grade schooler or an adult would both likely enjoy. It pretty much satisfied and made my hour-and-a-half wait at the city hall quite light and less irritating. In a nutshell, the film is about a bee, fresh out of bee college, who sets out to discover the real world outside the hive, strives and pursues to change it, makes mistakes, and comes into a world of life lessons and realizations. The film can get a little educational too.

Eastern Promises (2007, Canada, USA, dir. David Cronenberg) is about a London midwife’s investigation of the story behind the childbirth death of an Eastern European teenage girl whose diary she eventually holds possession of. In the process, she gets herself involved in the dark, dangerous and criminal world of the Russian mafia in Britain. The movie has some great and gory throat-slashing scenes and other such graphic displays you’ll both cringe at and enjoy at the same time. It also has an excellent and convincing performance from Viggo Mortensen as a Russian mobster. Overall, it is insightfully dark, crime drama, that casually displays its revelations and its gore with depth but without much exaggeration.

American Gangster (2007, USA, dir. Ridley Scott) is about a New York’s top drug lord and organized-crime boss, Frank Lucas, and how he works his way to the top; and a detective, Richie Roberts, who tries to bring down Lucas’ drug empire. It’s based on the real life story of the 70′s New York drug kingpin of the same name. (Though, the real Frank Lucas allegedly claims that much of the movie is fabricated). The movie works on a great story which it stretches into a narrative that lasts almost two and half hours. Despite its length, the film is engaging and entertaining. Plus, Denzel Washington has a commanding performance in the film. He wasn’t your usual drug lord, but he made a strong presence on screen nonetheless.

The Kingdom (2007, USA, dir. Peter Berg). I don’t know if it’s just me, but this movie reeks of American arrogance. The American protagonists were quite a bunch of intolerant bullies. In “the kingdom,” (which was Saudi Arabia) they demanded that people adjust to them, not the other way around. They go around, trying to avenge their compatriots’ deaths disobeying protocols and do with little diplomacy. And they are portrayed as heroes with justified causes! It quite ticks me off, really. Production value, however, is excellent, from the gore, to the car chases, to the encounters, to the explosions. It also tries to redeem itself by portraying an Arab as a hero too–well yeah, after saving the lives of the Americans.

Lust, Caution (2007, Taiwan, dir. Ang lee). There was just too much hype about this film’s sex scenes. And true enough, you’d probably come to a point of wondering if they were really doing it. The lovemaking scenes can prove to be a distraction to some (to me, at first). It felt quite real but it didn’t feel pornographic at all. Such scenes proved to be a potent way of portraying the relationship between the protagonists, in an unspoken and in a beautifully choreographed way. In other words, one gets to know the characters better with their very intimate sex scenes. Before we forget though, the film was also rich, but not saturated, in historical and political tones. The film was set during wartime Shanghai and Hong Kong.

I Am Legend (2007, USA, dir. Francis Lawrence). This might seem to some as another one of those virus-destroys-mankind science fiction films. What’s remarkable in this film is that for the most part, Will Smith and his dog were the only characters on screen, and it was a strong, convincing performance (yes, even the dog’s). There was more visual investment in the setting rather than the gore some of us are used to seeing in this sub-genre. The depiction of a totally deserted New York City desolate and overgrown with foliage was highly credible. Still, however, it can prove to be quite your usual virus apocalyptic sci-fi movie in the end.

December Boys (2007, Australia, dir. Rod Hardy) is about three orphaned boys who share the same birth month (hence, they were called the December Boys) who are sent to a small isolated seaside community for a vacation. Since they have no one else but each other, the boys share a strong sense of camaraderie and brotherhood. This, however, is put to the test when they encounter the dilemmas of pursuing their individual needs and desires. The film exhibited excellent performances from the young protagonists. The location of the small community, beautiful and isolated, felt highly appropriate to match the growing detachment among the boys in this coming-of-age film.

The Man in The Gray Flannel Suit (1956, USA, dir. Nunnally Johnson). I’ve always been fascinated at how intricate, mature and complex decades-old Hollywood films are. I guess it’s because, void of advanced filmmaking technologies we know today, films really had to rely on good performances, and strong character and plot development, and of course a rich story. In class, we actually spent more than an hour discussing and debating several points in the film. This one’s about a war-veteran turned advertising executive who struggles to keep up with the demands of his work and his family. It may sound simple enough, but the personal and ethical dilemmas that come in the way make it quite interesting. The film lasts for two and a half hours, however, so it can get quite exhausting.

Desperadas (2008, Philippines, dir. Joel Lamangan) is about four beautiful half-sisters, their personal lives and their relationship with each other. Everything in the film seems so contrived, and sometimes forced. It’s an adult comedy film, so there were a lot of adult jokes. I concede, it can get quite hilarious. You’ll probably enjoy it if you’re in it for a laugh, which I was. I’m surprised, though, that this won a gender sensitive award. All along I thought the movie portrayed men and women (and homosexuals) in pretty much typical traditional gender roles. Hm, the film did have a breast cancer awareness public service ad in the end. That was probably it.