Because it’s true, the movie became so muddled that it starts with Alamat ni China Doll and ends up with someone narrating the Alamat ng Agila. It poses so many questions but fails to come up with satisfying answers or explanations. In the end, you get the feeling that it’s not complete, that so many scenes intended to tie up the so many loose ends in the plot were not shot at all. And we viewers are being asked to connect the dots.
For instance, it fails to explain why China Doll (Angelica) has become legendary? Bakit siya itinuturing na alamat, aber? Is she really a terrorist? And who is Carlo Aquino? Is he Angelica’s missing brother Antonio? Why does he have so many fake scars on his face? Why is he going on a bombing spree? And who is Cherry Pie Picache? Why is she crying silently? Is she demented? You can feel there must be a good story hidden somewhere in this movie, in these characters. But sorry, we viewers are not prescient mind-readers.
We were told that the script, written by Lav Diaz, is not what came out on the screen. So what is Ronald Arguelles, head of Cinema One, doing about this? They’re very strict about the scripts. What happens when it’s not followed. We also heard that the director started filming the movie only some weeks before the start of the Cinema One filmfest. Maybe that’s the reason why it comes out as incomplete and appears like there are still many scenes waiting to be shot? Whatever the answer maybe, let this be a valuable lesson for Mr. Arguelles for his next festivals. We hope from now on he’ll always take into consideration the track record of the filmmakers who’ve already done movies for him.
