from the back seat: Ploning-two years after

When it comes to movies, I admit, I'm outdated. Outdated in a sense that I would rather watch movies years after its release in theaters, I don't watch on its premiere night or during its week-long, or sometimes extended runs in cinemas. Last movie I watched in a sinehan is Astroboy, and those who knew me well would understand. Reason: I prefer watching classics than just flicks.

I'm outdated because I find pleasure in scavenging for old, worn-out and used VCDs in video stores like Video City. There's this fulfilled feeling when you get to buy a CD of a movie you wanted to watch in cinemas but just didn't because of reason I've stated above. So far, I've got a few: Kubrador, American Splendor (voted as one of the top 10 greatest movies of the decade by a movie critic), The West Side Story (1961 Oscar Awards Best Picture), Wall-E, Penguin Penguin Paano Ka Ginawa, and some other local indie films and one foreign indie Kitchen Party. For the purpose of this blog, I'll cover one movie from my "collection", Ploning.

I got the copy about 6 months ago. Quite a number of instances, I attempted to watch it. But I had to cut it because I was not in the mood. So I thought maybe, how you enjoy movies is dependent on your state of mind. If you're too tired, you may not enjoy movies that need mental activity and would prefer rather the light, heartwarming and visually exciting types like romantic comedies and love stories. Also, movie appreciation depends on who you watch it with. If you are with a group, depending on the time of day, you may enjoy horror flicks, especially Asian horrors like Grudge, The Maid (starring Alessandra de Rossi) and my all time favorite Shutter. 

Again there are many other ways to enjoy a movie. And two days ago, I found the time to finally finish Ploning which casts Judy Ann Santos and was the Philippine entry to the Oscars in 2008. Much have been publicized about this movie and there are a bounty of film reviews in the internet. And this is how Radikus saw it:

In a nutshell: its the story of a man/young boy named Digo who found innocent love to Ploning. Ploning, on the other hand, is a woman who lost her love and chose to keep the pain hidden inside her heart. She's mysterious in a way that people in her community knows her as Ploning and nothing else. 

There are a number of twists in the movie: the revelation why she showed no affection to her father and why she chose to wear a white dress in his father's funeral, why she likes killing time in a cemetery, why she dearly adores the little boy Digo, and how is it that she is a friend to everyone but never a friend by anyone. Huh!!!??!

In the end, there was just one answer to all the questions - LOVE. She loved her father dearly that she had to wear the white dress he requested her to wear on his funeral, even if its was seen as taboo to her community. She finds solace in the quietness of a cemetery to connect to her dead lover, Thomas (whose death was kept secret to the islanders) and how she endearingly loves Digo who was born the day Thomas died.

Shot entirely in the island of Cuyo, Palawan, the movie succeeds in transporting its audience into a reverie where life is rural, laid-back, very provincial and very Filipino. The movie making style, alternating the past (Ploning and Digo as a boy) and the present (Digo, all grown-up and searching for Ploning) may confuse viewers but its all there for a purpose-to show how it is to amke a great movie and a well thought plan. The settings, cinematography and even the sounds and music combined too well and blended so great that you'll feel like you're in Cuyo. There's the eerie feeling of nostalgic sadness that I ended up teary-eyed long after all those unsung names have gone up my TV screen.

I've noticed that everytime I finish watching a movie, I say one of these three expressions:

Tapos na? Yun na yun?

Walang kwenta....

Tang ina, ang ganda....

For Ploning, I remember uttering to myself, "tang ina, ang ganda....its a classic". And I'm happy that I lived a day to see one golden moment in Philippine movies.

Also, this is Judy Ann Santos' most notable performance yet, no "gripos" of tears, no fancy acting, just pure emotions and character. Now, she's an actress and I'd compare this performance to Maricel Soriano's Inang Yaya


picture attribute taken here