At last, I
was able to watch the movie “Women of the Weeping River.” I had long
wanted to watch this film, not only because it is a critically acclaimed film so to speak but the film is close to my heart simply because the language medium used on this film is my own language, the "Tausug" dialect.
The film premiered at the 2016 QC International
Film Festival and won the best picture award. Ironically
I had no idea that the film was about the Tausug tribe until I attended the
Gawad Urian Awards last year. The film
was nominated in various categories and eventually bagged the best picture award. As the presenters mentioned the
nominees showing clips from the movie, I was a bit flabbergasted to hear the
characters speak in Tausug (though subtitled in English). The
film also won the Best Director award for Sheron Dayoc who is a native of
Zamboanga. After the awarding ceremonies, I attempted to talk to the director
but there was no chance as he was surrounded by the press covering the
event.
The movie
was also screened at last year’s Cinemalaya independent film festival but unfortunately
the scheduled screening for that day was called off due to technical problems so the organizers moved it to another date but again, I wasn’t able to watch
it, but I had the chance to talk to some relatives of the cast. I gathered that the whole cast had no previous acting experience at all, except for the 2 week acting workshop that they underwent before they started filming. The film was finally released for commercial run last week so I made it a point that I get to watch the film.
The film, set
in Jolo, Sulu, with an ensemble cast of-non-actors from Western Mindanao region,
portrayed conflicts of two warring Tausug clans in Sulu with two women as the main protagonists (played by Laila Ulao and Mariam Zimadar-Caranay-Raper). As they confront the escalating blood feud that
claimed lives of their immediate family members (including their own husband and children), the two women found
themselves in a dilemma whether to let go or persevere the blood feud stretching
back from generation to generation. I found myself a bit
sentimental while watching the movie as it reminded me of my childhood days. I've heard similar stories and atrocities about
land grabbing which was prevalent in Sulu during the 60’s and 70’s; in fact our family
was once a victim of this atrocity. But
thank God, our land was returned back to us without resorting to violence.
The film was
beautifully shot against the backdrop of Sulu and Zamboanga's lush forest and beautiful landscape with stellar performances from the cast. It’s
not the typical Filipino film that you see with characters using
unconventional and over-the-top dialogues. Here everything was just natural. The
director just let the cast deliver their lines in their own language which was so realistic that
you feel like you are just watching them speak in real life. I am not going to
talk about the movie in details as I am not a movie critic (LOL) but I found
the film very engaging to the point that I became a bit nostalgic while watching the
movie. The funeral rites and prayer session are so authentic. I’ve seen some Filipino films showing the Muslim culture of Southern Philippines but
more often than not, they weren't accurate and I just laughed while watching.
The film may
not be attractive to ordinary moviegoers as it is presented in somewhat low-key manner and it's not a fast-paced movie either, but what is interesting about the movie is its
pragmatic approach and the actors’ underacting style method which just came out naturally. Laila Ulaw’s performance has earned her at
least three acting awards to-date, namely: from QC Int’l film festival, Young Critics’ Circle
Award and more recently from ASEAN-China film festival.
It is
interesting to note that young filmmakers like Sheron Dayoc reach out to audience using indigenous language as their medium
notwithstanding the commercial viability of their craft but simply to make
movies that they believe in. Dayoc’s directorial style is such a gem and I
can’t wait to watch his next film. I
wish that he’d be given more breaks as well as the actors specially Laila
Ulaw. I’ve seen her interview on CNN
Philippines; she’s not only beautiful but a gifted actress as well. I hope giant networks like ABS-CBN and GMA will give
breaks to non-Tagalog artists and promote diversity. Congratulations to the producers of the film for coming up with a very engaging and visually artistic film.
NOTE: Women of the Weeping River will be shown at '76 Cinema in San Juan, beginning 31 March 2018.
#womenoftheweepingriver
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