DEATH OF TRADITIONAL CINEMA

I haven't seen many films by Agot Isidro, but if there is that movie which will probably define her acting career, this would be it. MGA ANINO NG KAHAPON (Shadows of the Past) is the new film by filmmaking tandem Alvin Yapan and Alemberg Ang, and for Yapan who again writes and directs, this is a departure from his previous works that bordered on poetry and the supernatural. Here, Yapan mounts a domestic drama that at once plays out like a suspense movie, then a partial horror film, then a full blown character-driven study of the human mind and family relations.  Irene (Agot Isidro) experiences high anxiety that there may be evil men connected with their family's past lurking around their house. She imposes this fear among the other members of her family, including her young son Brian (Carl Acosta), her mother-in-law Flor (Upeng Galang Fernandez), and brother-in-law, Carlo (Carlo Cruz). She also informs her husband Ed (TJ Trinidad) of such concerns via video chat, a...