Five great fantasy films Noel Vera With the advent of Peter Jackson's "Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring," I'm reminded of other works of fantasy...
The Quiet Man Noel Vera Ask any critic of Asian cinema to name the great Filipino filmmakers and they will in all probability mention Lino Brocka ("Maynila sa ...
Gandhi as a villain and other snuff Noel Vera "The Legend of Bhagat Singh" Showing from October 27 to 29 at Greenbelt Artfilm is Rajkumar Santoshi's "The...
The other Golden Age of Philippine Cinema Noel Vera When we talk about the Golden Age of Philippine Cinema we often mean the '50s, with artists like Manuel...
Small doses Noel Vera Gil Portes' "Munting Tinig" (Small Voices) is about a teacher (Alessandra de Rossi) who arrives at a backwater town as substitute for the...
Everything old is noir again Noel Vera Just when you thought film noir was tired and over and done with, Brian De Palma's "Femme Fatale" slinks in on its...
Filipino Sex Films 2002 (And Why They Suck So Much) Noel Vera Despite President Macapagal-Arroyo's pledge for a more moral administration compared to her...
Once upon a time in china Noel Vera Zhang Yimou's "Hero" is being touted as the most expensive Chinese film ever made, thirty-one million U.S. dollars--which...
It's a wonderful life Noel Vera Maryo J. delos Reyes' "Magnifico" is something fairly new in recent Philippine cinema: a wholesome, family-oriented picture...
"Cinema Paraiso:" bliss on the big screen Noel Vera The National Committee for Culture and the Arts' (NCCA's) "Cinema Paraiso" is a mixed exhibit of film...
Zen and the art of horror filmmaking Noel Vera The runaway success of Hideo Nakata's "Ringu" (Ring, 1998) in Manila shows there's an audience for stylish...
"Ring" redux Noel Vera When Hideo Nakata's "Ringu" (Ring, 1998) was released by Asmik Ace Entertainment, the sequel was released simultaneously. No, not "Ring...
Two left feet Noel Vera "Chicago," despite all the legs on display, took time to traipse our way--from the 1926 play by Maureen Dallas Watkins to the 1933 ...
Song and dunce Noel Vera Deepa Mehta seems to have courted controversy ever since. Her film "Fire" (1996) drew protests because of scenes of lesbian ...
The Meat Lovers' Special Noel Vera Martin Scorsese's "Gangs of New York" opens with a harsh scraping sound (Metal brush dragged over car hood? Iron filings...
Puss 'n boobs By Noel Vera Robert Quebral's debut effort "Sex Drive" is handsomely photographed by Neil Daza, the same cinematographer who gave Chito Rono's...
"Solaris" lite By Noel Vera You could say Steven Soderbergh's "Solaris" remake is a brave project to undertake. You can imagine this to be his attempt to pay ...
Poetry under fire Noel Vera Once there was an actor-animator named Paul Grimault and a screenwriter-poet named Jacques Prevert who became friends, then ...
Annecy Award Winners The French Embassy was kind enough to lend me the tapes of the Annecy Winners, and they're a wonderful holiday treat--incredibly varied,...
Jan Svankmajer's "Moznosti Dialogu" (Dimensions of Dialogue, Czech Republic, 1982) Considered by some to be his masterpiece, the twelve-minute film is divided...
Bruce unfunny Noel Vera Jim Carrey's latest picture "Bruce Almighty" turns on an ingenious premise: what if Jim Carrey, star of the "Ace Ventura" films and ...
The Matrix O'erloaded (Please note: plot discussed in close detail) I never thought the original "Matrix" was the hottest thing since pancakes; this sequel...
Flower Power Noel Vera Filmmakers Spike Jonze, Charlie Kaufman and Donald Kaufman's "Adaptation" is, to summarize the seemingly unsummarizeable, all about...
Song and dance Noel Vera Gil Portes' "Munting Tinig" (Small Voices) is about a teacher (Alessandra de Rossi) who arrives at a backwater town as substitute for...
"T3" or not "T3?" Noel Vera "Terminator 2" (or "T2" as people liked to call it) was a step up the ladder of Cameron's monumental megalomania. It was his...
Many faces of Eve Noel Vera The tagline of Marc Munden's "Miranda" goes "smartsexydangerous…" which is about as clever as the movie gets. Christina Ricci...
Little girl lost By Noel Vera (Note: plot of film discussed in close detail) Hayao Miyazaki's " Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi" (Spirited Away, 2001), about the...
Baa Boys Noel Vera Okay. The deal went something like this: two movies were opening this week: Hideo Nakata's "Dark Water" and Michael Bay's "Bad Boys 2." For...
Comatose women, non-stop parties, and more Noel Vera From August 7 to 13 it's Cinemanila time again, and again the organizers have come up with a whole...
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