LouHomey From my favorite movies..

Konterr Brilliant and touching

ChicRawIdol A brilliant film that helped define a genre

Caryl It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties. It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

Marian20 I was in the public library and it led me to this particular DVD called "Ligalig".It was a multi-awarded film in the Philippines.I decided to borrow it to see whether it was really a good film.After viewing it,there is only one thing I could say about it. To put it in words,"Ligalig is definitely High Tension". Not in the sense that the movie is filled with suspense and tension but rather due to the fact that it was an imitation of the French film,"Haute Tension" which is also known as "High Tension",for majority of the movie.The story involves a taxi driver named Junior.He is taking her girlfriend Trixie on his taxi together with their fellow friend.We have Junior and Trixie as the main characters instead of having Marie and Alex.A mysterious killer appears named Damian,who slashes people's head.We have Damian riding an old car instead of having an unknown killer riding a truck.When Junior visits Trixie's family,a number of murders take place.Damian kills all member of Trixie's family just like the killer murders all members of Alex's family. As the story progresses,the viewers will be surprised to see Junior is seen performing the killings and has Trixie in captive just as the viewers were surprised when Marie is seen murdering people and has Alex in captive.Then the conclusion has Junior professing his love of Trixie just as Marie is towards Alex.The final scene is somewhat different with Junior getting killed when Trixie tries to escape while Marie locked up in a psychiatric hospital with Alex looking on a window.This Filipino movie as a complete imitation of the French movie as I have previously stated.Most of the scenes from the latter was added to that former.Unfortunately,it does not match the suspense filled French version.What's worse,the viewer is exposed to poorly handled special effects.Except for the great performance of Cesar Montano,there is nothing really positive that could be said in it except possibly the guts and courage that the filmmakers have in producing another version of the suspense-filled movie that many people are still talking,discussing and debating about until now.

Desertman84 I have been watching Filipino films for this month when the year started being a fan of international films.The good films I have seen are "Manila By Night" a.k.a "City At Dark","Oro, Plata,Mata","Segurista","Heneral Luna","El Presidente" and "Bonifacio:Unang Pangulo". All of them just this month while this review is being written.Then surprisingly,I get to see an awkwardly interesting film "Ligalig"."Ligalig" a.k.a "Anxiety" is starred,written and directed by talented Filipino actor,Cesar Montano.He co-stars with Sunshine Cruz,Celia Rodgriguez,Johnny Delgado and John Regala.No question that the film was a homage to the French Film that starred Cecille De France and directed by Alexandre Aja entitled "Haut Tension" a.k.a "High Tension"To recall the story,murders are taking place in a place in the Philippines.We get to meet a taxi driver named Junior and his girlfriend Trixie.When they visit the family,Junior meets the weird family of his girlfriend.Then a family is murdered by a person named Damian,who is dressed as a Metrocom officer.Junior tries to stop Damian from committing more crimes and tries to save Trixie,who was taken as a hostage.Junior comes close to being successful at taking Damian into custody.Then things in the movie began to become awkward as nothing is what it seems.Familiarly,we are reminded of the French film if you were lucky to have seen it just like in almost all parts of the movie with respect to mood,elements of story and plot twist.What really makes it bad is the comedic and melodramatic elements of some scenes that were included in Ligalig.They were obviously out of place in a homage film like this.The comedic scenes only made some of the characters look impertinent and silly.As for the melodramatics, it only made the viewer get introduced to some unwanted and out-of- place elements.Had this been eliminated,it would have been a better film.More violence and less conversations would have made it better.Unfortunately,the presence of comedic and melodramatic scenes turned it into a parody unnecessarily rather than a purely homage or better yet a Filipino version of the French film.Sad but true.Also worthy of mention is the use of stylish overdrive was very much excessive.Some were definitely far from being subtle as viewers can see these special effects being used.Here's hoping that the filmmakers should learn to use them wisely the next time around.Cesar Montano should learn not to combine these elements in the future should he direct and write another screenplay for a violent and horror film like these mentioned to become a better director.

Marco Mendoza Having received an "A" from the Philippines' Cinema Evaluation Board (CEB) I immediately became excited to see this movie. After 20 minutes or so, I realized that I had been fooled: I have already seen this movie. No, not exactly This Movie, but a French movie called High Tension, directed by the superb Alexandre Aja. For those of you who are aware of the said film's ending, then babing! there is Ligalig's highly confidential climax (news reports revealed that the stars and the crew of Ligalig were required to sign a contract that restricts them from revealing the film's plot twist).Anyway, if I am going to watch a highly effective slasher film's rip-off, then it must be a better version. I should at least get my money's worth.Aside from this, the film also suffers from MTV-style editing and shots and angles that are supposed to be new in Philippine Cinema, but these end up getting tired as they become more repetitive as the film progresses.4 our of 10 stars.

badidosh Ah, it's Christmas once again! And in this festivity-mad country, that means the ubiquitous Christmas lanterns, "noche buena," carolers, and - tada! - the Mother Lily Film Carnival, er, Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF). The Philippines has held onto a long tradition of this year-ender film festival, most of which revolve around mediocre fantasy and horror films, much to the dismay of many local film pundits, although in recent years the burgeoning of alternative indie film festivals has somehow made it easy taking MMFF with a grain of salt. As it is, as far as MMFF is concerned, film-making per se is only a junior-grade objective compared to marketability, lending further credibility that the festival has transformed along with the season it is held as one that succumbed to crass and commercialism. But to be fair, some recent MMFF had seen some fair share of decent, if not remarkably good, movies."Ligalig," by director/co-writer/co-producer/star Cesar Montano (best known in the circuit as the director/co-writer/co-producer/star of 2004 MMFF entry "Panaghoy sa Suba"), falls somewhere in this category. Although experienced movie-goers will probably figure out the ambivalent story's twist from a mile away (which is similar to a number of foreign films, Hollywood and otherwise), and that Montano's camera-work tend to be distracting at a few points (honestly the revolving camera during the car scenes get to you after a while), much of the film is dominated by a morbidly thoughtful and stylish atmospherics.The movie tells the story of Junior (Montano), a taxi driver who goes to the countryside one day with his girlfriend (Montano's real-life wife Sunshine Cruz) and her sister (Katya Santos) amidst news that a serial killer (Johnny Delgado) has been rampaging around Manila. Junior meets the woman who could be his mother-in-law (Celia Rodriguez) and she certainly doesn't like him for her daughter. Soon, for some reasons the killer reaches where Junior is and shortly begins to off the folks in the area.Viewing "Ligalig" gives an apparent sense of the director's eagerness in creating a visually arresting if somewhat pokey topic of discourse. The style is so deviant of mainstream Filipino films that it feels more at home with digital film festivals (the cinematography in some parts reminds me of Ron Bryant's "Rotonda") where the gritty quality of the digital camera aids in giving the film its quasi-noir look. But there are times the film feels dilatory and a pruned script could have provided the attempt in ambiguity with more impact.*STATEMENT OF PLOT TWIST FOLLOWS* It probably doesn't help either that the film's posters give much of the nature of the story as we see Montano wearing the outfit of the serial killer. So from there, if you've seen enough films from Hollywood tackling the same theme, it's easy to deduce the ending. Schizophrenia or possession of an avenging ghost? Take your pick. *STATEMENT OF PLOT TWIST ENDS* Besides the ever-reliable Montano and Delgado, the performances are pretty much competent throughout. Cruz (in her second CEB A-rated film this year after "Inang Yaya") is good as Junior's girlfriend (try as I may, I can't recall her name), as is Rodriguez as a woman with something who may or may not hold something up her sleeve. Santos provides extra pull for the male demography but her presence is mostly on-off where her longest scene involves taking a bath in lingerie with John Regala (don't get any ideas; it's an R-13 movie). Fellow Viva Hot Babe Gwen Garci has a love scene with Montano during the opening credits but it's heavily grained and in black-and-white.Released in a period that has virtually become this country's excuse for creating mainstream movies, I don't think "Ligalig" would be the film most Filipino viewers are willing to give a chance to this season. However, it could find its audience in those who can overlook the movie's weaknesses in favor of Montano's strong and refined narrative style. For that, I'm looking forward to brighter (or darker, for that matter) things from him in the future.