Aishite Imasu 1941 (Mahal Kita) --- i love this movie

Title:
Aishite Imasu 1941 {Mahal Kita} (A-)
PH Release Date:
December 25, 2004
Actors:
Judy Ann Satos, Raymart Santiago, Dennis Trillo, Jay Manalo, Jacklyn Jose, Angelu de Leon, TJ Trinidad, Iya
Director:
Joel Lamangan
Story:
Joel Lamangan and Ricardo Lee
Editor:
Marya Iganacio
Photography / Design:
Rolly Manuel / Joey Luna
Producer:
Roselle Monteverde-Teo
Studio:
Bas FIlms

Ninakaw na ang pag-ibig niya sakin, ninakaw ng inang bayan… gaga, libog lang yan…
(His love was stolen from me, taken by the mother country….. bitch, that’s all itch…)

I am so excited. I am so on fire. I am so guts and glory passionate about what I am to share with you… sounds familiar ha? But really, I have never been this psyched about a Filipino movie for the longest time. All it needed was a great writer and brilliant actors. Never mind the director he didn’t really contributed to the success of the film, instead triggered the slight downfall….

San Nicolas is a small common Filipino town where everyone knows everybody and has affected the life of each other one way or another. Inya, Edilberto and Ignacio all grew up in this town, each with a story to tell. But one thing they have in common is their love for one another as friends. Inya and Iganacio both fancies Edilberto, the former openly and the latter otherwise. Their bonds will travel the rough waters when the Japanese took over their city, affecting their lives, killing the ones they love and crushing their friendship perched in the middle of the conflict. Will it survive the war? Or drive them to the edge of their concern for own and national survival, expunging their amity for good?

It was a choice between this period movie and the visual horror treat Sigaw, but I chose the former, and thank your God I did. It was beyond I expected, I knew it has the makings of a good movie, but it was more than that. It was an eye-opening saga. An emotional roller coaster, thought provoking, awe-inspiring but most of all filled with priceless lessons about life, love and friendship.

Joel Lamangan as a director, will always be overrated, I’d say this is his best movie so far, but not the kind of direction people speak of. The good things about this movie was that it was fast. The bad thing though is that, it was way too fast. You can’t blink cuz the minute you do you’ll miss something vital to the storyline. It was that fast that he wasn’t able to capture some of the emotions needed to be conveyed to the audience.

Ricky Lee is probably the best local writer today in the country. He dares to be unorthodox but still manages to emanate the same response. Some of the best movie lines I’ve seen in years are in this movie. It was poetry. He is a genius. He never fails to amaze me and man, I hope he never stops from doing what he does best, taking risks and succeeding…

The characters he presented in this movie were so real. He knows how to develop his characters well. They commit mistakes, he make you sympathize with them but not endorse them. He make them as vulnerable as every one of us. The characters may have lived decades ago, and their situations vary from ours, but still you feel as if they mirror what you have, listen to it as if you’re eavesdropping to your life, watching it as if you’re peeking on your existence and destiny.

Technically speaking, the movie is decent. The production design is commendable, very simple and not too extravagant. The cinematography’s nice, one thing though, the cameo of some of the scenes from Yamashita wasn’t exactly gratifying. If I am not mistaken (which I rarely am, oh c’mon) the same editor from the movie Sabel worked on this film and well, she improved a lot but still failed to impress me. The editing is not that good, it was so obvious that it was rushed. A couple of the transitions were appalling, I don’t know if it’s just because they really have to hasten it for the festival deadline or that’s just what kind of work she does. If it is so, then she better look for a job that does not require her to press the play and pause button.

Besides the great storyline and script, this movie is overflowing with groundbreaking, out of this world performance. Dennis Trillo showed how great of an actor he is, and he’s not just another pretty face. The fact that he accepted and is considering to take another gay role makes him a true actor with full knowledge of his responsibility to his craft and to his audience. I wouldn’t say that it was a flawless performance, but it was way beyond what I expected. Raymart Santiago also featured great acting feat, especially during his combat scenes, this time he’s not throwing petty lines against his enemies, instead showing genuine emotions and real talent. Judy Ann Santos as an actress, I ‘m afraid, will never be able to get out of that telanovela quality acting. I just don’t see her give more than what she gave in this movie. Jay Manalo was astounding in his hara-kiri scene. Jaclyn Jose showed how swearing should be classily channeled. Angelu de Leon was very effective as a sucker. And TJ Trinidad and Iya needs a lot more practice but gave acceptable performances.

A genius of a movie from a genius writer. This movie should have won the Best Picture award. It’s a captivating depiction of the human struggles in life. If you’re the type who appreciates movies of high quality, then see it. Prepare yourself to cry profusely without them trying to make you do so. And make sure you’re not homophobic, you may not be able to handle some of the juicy scenes between Jay and Dennis. But one thing I assure you, seeing this movie is something you won’t regret.