DEATH OF TRADITIONAL CINEMA

Photo from Ned's Project FB page. * Official entry, CINEFILIPINO FILM FESTIVAL 2016 “Ned’s Project” is a film that explores the pursuit of happiness. Henedina De Asis, or Ned (Angeli Bayani) is a lesbian tattoo artist who seems content with her life. She has a girlfriend, a paying job and a circle of friends in her own small world. A lot of her time though is devoted to Max (Lui Manansala), a bedridden elderly lesbian who also functions as Ned’s confidante. Despite having a lesbian character in the lead, “Ned’s Project” veers away from the common clichés of queer cinema by portraying the protagonist, Ned as an ordinary person, capable of making mistakes, and for that alone, the film is worth your time. Ned is given a clear goal, which is to find happiness. When clearly her girlfriend Gladys (Dionne Monsanto) isn’t the answer, Ned breaks down. She fears for her own mortality.  So she decides to become a mother, but sex with a man is out of the question. Yet th...

A huge part of why "Spotlight" works as an entertaining procedural can be credited to Tom McCarthy's careful and emphatic direction. The victims of sexual abuse are placed front and center, without going into sensational waters. This is a film that pays a lot of attention to storytelling detail, and takes its time to develop its David vs. Goliath premise.  "Spotlight" is based on the Pulitzer-prize winning investigation of The Boston Globe  Spotlight team into the widespread and systemic child sex abuse within the Boston clergy. While seemingly unfilmable, McCarthy and co-writer Josh Singer focused their script on the investigation process of the Spotlight reporters, and in the process, making a film that does justice to journalism.  "Spotlight" in fact includes the common hardships faced by investigative reporters every day: insistent sources who cannot wait for publication long enough; court battles; getting case studies to open up on se...