Mangatyanan (Jerold Tarog/2009/Philippines)
Mangatyanan in simple words, is one of the films that keeps my faith in the unbelievable potentials of Philippine independent film making. The themes such as domestic violence, woman liberation, and patriarchal deconstruction or destruction are age-old themes and probably as old as the endangered ritual which is the titular of the film. But that exactly, the juxtaposition of the issues to a very semi-indigenous, semi-exotic, and raw and inevitably something unknown a cultural rite accompanied by heart pumping score work wonder for this well told piece of outstretched story in art.
Laya (Che Ramos) works with Eric (Neil Ryan Sese) in Isabela to photograph the probably last Mangatyanan ite to be performed, as she escapes from the obligation of visiting her well known father in the world of photography at the hospital. The rite is incompletely done as the supposedly successor ran away from the ritual, the pains of it and more importantly the obligation of heiring the position. As Laya and Eric waits for the bus going back to Manila, Laya learns that her father is already dead. Instead of going back home, she runs to the path of the unfinished Mangatyanan and finishes the whole process including the drinking of the liquid that is believed to enable the person to speak to the tribe's gods.
Producing any film is of course a mixture of a tiring and pleasurable experiences. But in the film, it can be doubled by the fact that they are going to a place that they might never have thought of. Going outside the metro for a shoot is as adrenaline bursting as an action movie. In fact, in terms of excitement, no one between the two has a far cry over the other. A mountainous area in Isabela can't make you bore to death. Producing such film is also fun because the story is about a photographer which is just the forerunner of the whole project you are making—film. I have seen some of the behind the scenes stills of Mangatyanan, and the actual stills of the BTS is essentially just like what the film is all about has got its structure--- a story through the passion in photos. This also calls for a challenging production design. As it is about a tribe with a dying ritual and culture, designing the beauty of the location, of the people, of the instruments is an experience that no lame production designer could ever attain.
I like the film practically because of five reasons and even though I like it I still have three issues about certain parts of the film
I admire the storytelling. As I have pointed out earlier, the subject matter is not something new. Despite the fact that movies about woman liberation and deconstruction tend to have the same take and same look and same resolutions, Mangatyanan finds her way to tell the story of Cinderella who is more passionate and that same passion led her to 'unforgive' her stepmothers and stepsisters. The film has just proved that no subject matter or theme can ever be dried, instead, everything is in any unimaginable way succulent.
I like its form. The functions of the parallelisms, similarities, differences, and variations are engaging enough to keep the viewers focus to the film while slowly absorbing how this element has something to do with a previous element without overdoing it that causes entertainment nausea out of elemental overload.
The narrative provides an excellent turning point, so excellent that I thought the first half of the film would completely be a bore without Laya finishing the Mangatyanan rite. Though the film is purely character driven, it has just been obvious in this part of the film. Escaping her social obligation of visiting her father in the hospital seems to plot driven but escape is also not any less than an objective. It is also her character that drives her away from her father. Her bold predicament to the ritual though clears the driving force of the film.
The cinematography especially and particularly in the scene where Laya is under trance seeing her father is a beauty in phantasmagoria. I love its dusty and yet pacific texture. Even the initial appearance of her father (Pen Medina), his staging and composition (that I want to specify his simple distance from Laya) is severely poignant and beautiful.
I commend that it is entertaining. While many other independent films try to be unentertaining by being self proclaimed as a film highly intellectuals can only draw power from it, Mangatyanan tries to tell a good story with a good appeal. I believe this film has a commercial potential. Which unfortunately reminds me how these beautiful a movie can't be produced commercially without Bea Alonzo or Marian Rivera playing Laya.
From this I would like to point out the actors' contribution to the entirety of the film. Che Ramos, Neil Ryan Sese, Irma Adlawan and other casts have given justifiable performances. Though I would like to comment that no one has really surpassed the 'just' performance which is expected. In other words, no one among them have really stood out. But biting into the bright side, they at least are convincing actors.
The fantasy scene is my favorite part in the film in terms of cinematography but I guess the conversation between the two has been prolonged. I didn't like that Laya's father talked so much. I also didn't like that he has to open his mouth to speak, it decreases the beauty in phantasmagoria I was talking about earlier. Lastly, I wish that the part where Laya and her father hesitantly hug each other was just deleted or at least polished their movements. In understand that the two has to be reconciled and they translated that resolution by the hugging but the movement is rough and so humanly mechanical that is very anti-fantasy where I expected every single movement in that scene be fluid and smooth.
I am also not a fan of the scene where Eric attended Laya in the hospital and said that he is there because she needs him to be there. It is very love team like and the two of them is a good working pair and not so good a love team. I am in anyway actually hoping for the absence of romantic love in the totality in the film because I believe that will cause injury in the feminist consistency of the film.
Over all, I still think that Mangatyanan, self referentially, without reading any intertextualities with its Confessional co-trilogy, is an admirable film. Though it is not flawless for me, it is not an enough to hate it or even lessen what I love about the film. The intensity of the film especially from its turning point that I have identified earlier until the well timed and rhymed fast sequences heading to the end comprised the films goodness with the largest percentage. That actually reminded me of Marc Forster's Finding Neverland where a turning point skyrocketed and never( at least essentially) decreased its acceleration and velocity until the very end leaving the audiences with a still hot sky rocket engine to give the film a round of applause it truly deserves.
