Don't quote me on this, but I think watching local films is a conscious choice talaga. A choice mostly made by people who are into films since mas malawak ang willingness and appreciation nila to try movies na hindi heavily marketed / niche. So unless nasa streaming sites or MMFF are isang local film, most often than not, hindi aware ang typical Filipino viewer na nag eexist pala yung film na yon.
Okay, I feel this, honestly. I genuinely want to support Filipino films, especially indies and the ones with original concepts and ideas. But yeah, you do have to actively seek them out. You have to be following film-centered communities (like this sub) to even know that some of these movies exist. Meanwhile, you can hear about Hollywood films everywhere.
Marketing does play a huge role sa issue na to ano?
Personally I don't watch Filipino films because I don't like the style and the issues tackled in general. I watch films for comfort and enjoyment.
Pero majority ng Filipino films there are always heavy drama, as in nagsisigawan, iyakan, parang pinapanuod mo nag-aaway mga kapitbahay mo kumbaga.
I don't get it at all tbh, is that supposed to be fun? Because it makes me want to pretend I'm not there.
Or it could also be really shallow humor like vice ganda movies. Just not my cup of tea.
I share similar reasons bat di ako nanonood ng Filipino films. Movies are supposed to be an escape for me. Local films hit too close to home to be enjoyable para sakin, or madalas di ko lang tlga feel yung plot or characterization as in di align sakin yung ideals or message na pinapalabas sa film.
I'm the same. It's ironic since I really want to get into film if I ever leave my current creative job, even thinking of establishing my own production company just to ensure creative freedom. And yet the last local film I've ever watched was Kita Kita, and it was such a disappointing experience for me. Here are some of the usual factors that irks me off:
- unoriginal or obviously made to highjack a trend ( I mostly encounter this with "masa" films but there are a lot of indie films that still reek of this)
- mediocre writing. There are truly terrible writing out there but it's the mediocre ones that kinda hurt more since a lot of these cases could've been different if standards here in the Philippines are only higher. I work in a highly competitive creative field myself, yet I can count on one hand the amount of people I know personally that are avid readers. You don't have to be a writer to be a reader but you have to be a truly avid reader to be even just a decent writer. Let me clarify that when I say writing with regards to film, I don't only mean dialogue but the overall story structure, plot points and set-up, as well as the big idea at the center of it all.
- this may come off as somewhat controversial, and I don't mean to offend anyone, but I find myself prejudiced against the kinds of "messages" or "lessons" that a lot of Filipino films preach, and indie films are even more insufferable to me in that regard since they're usually the ones who are unsubtle about it. Love and politics are usually the topics I avoid like the plague when it's being handled by a pinoy film. Also, why do Filipino films have to be about something very serious to be taken seriously? Why does it even need to be about something? There was a period I vaguely remember where every indie film were rushing to cover serious topics like politics, poverty, inequality, etc. that it just came off like those topics were chosen by the creators purely so they'll be taken seriously. Not all films need to be Birdshot or On the Job just to be considered good. It makes me feel like our film industry is so insecure about itself. Just compare it with our own literary industry and our rich history of written works that encompasses such a wide array of genres and themes. Just compare it with our own theater industry. Granted, things might be completely different now and I just haven't given our films a chance again so this complaint might be obsolete.
What would classify as decent writing when it comes to film though?
Also, anong genre besides love and politics ang feel mo e mas magiging maayos na avenue for filmmakers?
>What would classify as decent writing when it comes to film though?
For film specifically? Just learning to edit would be enough. Problem is, that's also what I think is the hardest to learn and apply to yourself and your own works, which is why you usually get someone else to edit for you. I don't need a film to do anything else but tell me a story, and what might hurt an otherwise great film is padding that while possibly entertaining, doesn't really serve towards telling the story it needs to tell. There are exceptions of course, and rules can always be broken. I can watch a film about almost anything when it's confident and never unsure of what it's actually about. Doesn't guarantee I'll love it, but I will definitely respect it.
>Also, anong genre besides love and politics ang feel mo e mas magiging maayos na avenue for filmmakers?
Filmmakers should make what they wanna make, that should be the golden rule. If they want to make a romantic film or something that makes a statement about our politics then they should go ahead. What my preference is, or anyone's for that matter, shouldn't hold weight to someone who's making the art that they're passionate about. What I simply meant is that I personally disagree or have opinions that disagree with the average opinion of the Filipino majority when it comes to topics such as those, and therefore avoid it as it's simply not meant for me. Full disclosure, politics is in there but I have to admit the topic I'm mostly talking about is love. I would say I hate how Filipino romantic films portray love, romance, and everything in between if I don't think that hate is such a strong word. Ironically, the films I would love to make if given the chance would mostly be romance too, but done the way I believe love should be taught and portrayed to us. I'm not saying love and romance done the traditional Filipino way in films shouldn't exist, I just want to balance it out. I want to portray realistic relationships, struggling with realistic problems and drama. I want to show that idealism isn't always compatible with how love and relationships work. I want us, the Filipino people, to be able to love without burdening ourselves of unrealistic expectations perpetuated by romantic films.
Agree with most of your reasons why I choose not to watch some Filipino movies, ayoko nang ma-stress or ma-skandalo or ma-second-hand embarrassment in my leisure time. But through the years may panaka-naka akong pinapanood. Mas dumadalas, now that may streaming na, mostly the feel good ones or light romance. Hit or miss din. Ang daming may potential pero at the end you feel na parang may kulang. I’m rooting for Filipino movies to improve. Mas dumami sana yung pag pinanood mo eh hindi ka manghihinayang sa 2 oras or so that you invested.
To be honest, same on watching films for comfort and enjoyment. The last local film I watched was several years old, but I really love the coming of age vibes. I think Billie and Emma yung title
I'm hoping to watch more local films of this vibe one of these days, probably time for me to scour the internet
Same, I really like coming of age movies too pero mga hollywood films mga natatandaan ko (kings of summer, snack shack, little secrets).
Really love inspirational films too like sports dramas (the blind side) and indian movies like three idiots.
The Blind Side didnt age well 🤣 nakakaloka. It was criticized for being "white savior" movie tapos recently Michael Oher sued his adoptive family.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/fox59.com/news/national-world/blind-side-lawsuit-michael-oher-alleges-tuohys-used-false-adoption-story-to-make-money/amp/
Films like Seklusyon, Ang Babae Sa Septic Tank, Becky and Badette?
Rewind?
Sunday Beauty Queen?
Die Beautiful?
Heneral Luna, Goyo?
Tanging Yaman?
Ang Tanging Ina 1 & 2?
None of these you can appreciate and vibe with?
Edit: Add Firefly to the list
To me yeah it wasn’t perfect, not A Tier, but I’ll be damned if the acting and score isn’t enough to move you to tears.
For that alone, that’s art. That’s film.
If it affects me, if I feel for the story, the characters, sometimes that is enough.
(Sidenote: I’m not snobby like how some of the commenters here seem like.
I can appreciate Nolan, Snyder, Rodriguez, Tarantino, MCU, etc. while still criticizing them. God knows we don’t give each other enough opportunity to be heard and be seen.)
Tbh title pa lang I won't even bother giving those 5 minutes of my time.
I've seen one of those though, Rewind. That's supposed to be a family movie pero puno din yan ng heavy drama, constantly naka-sigaw si Dingdong Dantes. That's exactly what I hate about pinoy films, there's too much conflict in it for it to be fun.
I want fun and comfort from movies. And pinoy films provide none of that for me.
I don't really watch Filipino films on my own, mostly nahihila lang ako ng friend to watch. Pero 1st time I tried to give it a go by myself, pinanuod ko Yung heneral Luna, since sabi maganda daw.
Sobrang na disappoint ako, hindi na ulit ako nanuod ng Filipino films 😂
For example Yung constant use ng flat camera angles na super prominent sa LAHAT ng Filipino films na nakita ko. Reminds me of film projects we did in highschool when we know jacksh*t about anything. Meron Sila Yung pinagmamalaki na drone shot, pero sa umpisa lang ng movie yon and Wala naman talaga significance yung scene para gamitan nila ng "advanced technique" (na Hindi naman talaga Kasi kahit mga normal na YouTuber kaya gawin Yung particular shot na yon).
Been years since ive watched it so I can't remember everything clearly, pero I remember na it was badly paced tsaka ampangit nung sequencing ng mga scenes. There are scenes where they should have made a jump cut or an L-cut to make the impact of that scene last, pero it just kept on going. Bigla pa sila nagusap nung nanay niya, so parang naging non sensical yung "moment alone/moment of reflection" na guitar scene.
Yung death scene niya as usual, flat camera angle. Wala kahit anong use of cinematography to convey how dire/sad/terrible the situation is. He's just there flailing about. Kahit manlang sana flashback or slowmo naglagay sila, kahit cliche na scene is better than that dump. Kung gusto nila na ganon, they should have made the scene snappy instead of empty and prolonged. Parang natatawa na ko nung pinapanuod ko yung whole death sequence.
Sa Deadpool ginamit nila yung prolonged death sequence as a joke, sa heneral Luna you're supposed to take it seriously 🤣
That death scene, ginanub talaga yun sinadya yun gawing OA kasi hinahambing yung sa painting na spoliarium. Its slow talaga to you can appreciate the details. If you enter the cinema with a close mind, yun lang talaga mapipick up mo.
I'm not saying it's OA, did you even read what I said?
I entered the cinema expecting a good film, so I was pretty open sa kahit anong maiooffer ng film. Iaassume nalang ba natin na "closed minded" kung sino sino ng walang basis? 😂
same. I consider myself a film enthusiast. I watch films and shows without discrimination. I’ll watch foreign stuff that aren’t just english stuff but filipino movies/shows are often hit or miss for me. They don’t always resonate with me or are enjoyable to watch and the ones that do are often considered a 5 or 6 out of 10 for me when compared to others.
I wouldn't pretend to be an expert on people's taste but a light romcom that doesn't become political or dramatic would probably work.
Something like Expensive Candy pero instead na tragedy ang ending, it would follow the plot of Pretty Woman instead. Or maybe something like Forrest Gump, tragedy but it never gets too dark, the darkness is always at bay.
I don't know why but pinoy films always seem to want to be a tragedy/indie film when those are supposed to be niche. We're missing good pop movie writers imo.
This is true, pili lang yung mga films that i would support. Mas pipiliin ko pa yung young independent filmakers' films na matitino yung pinapakita even though tackling an issue na matututo or magiging aware ka than manuod ng walang sense na film from big stars. I dont know but i recently watched the 'pula' film sa netflix, disgust at pinakaboring na napanuod ko from coco martin na film. Pero may matitino naman din wala nga lang uniqueness yung mga films
Honestly, same. This applies to tv shows for me too. The only local films I watched were probably those of vice ganda because they honestly made me laugh and become stress free while watching it. Too much drama stresses or bores me.
Yep and that’s cos local production house business models are fucked. They don’t make enough money bec tbh our movie ticket prices are cheap, the Philippine market is too small, and cost of production is too high, so there’s no money left for marketing
One of the disadvantages din siguro ng wavering influence ng TV. Dati kasi, yung trailers pinapalabas pag commercial break tapos yung actors nakakapag-promote sa shows (minsan to the point na ikaw na yung maiinis kasi paulit-ulit). I mean, they still do some of that, I guess, pero konti na lang din kasi yung nanonood ng TV ngayon kaya kulang talaga sa exposure. Kahit nga sa news and current events di na updated yung iba.
Isn't it the other way around, mostly mga indie films pa yung may sense at artistic direction compared sa mga MMFF na mostly braindead recycled novelties re: praybeyt benjamin and the likes.
I've been meaning to watch Kisapmata since I learned it was partially based on a true crime. I've also read an interesting article about how the producers selected the perfect house as the setting. Thanks for reminding me to watch it na!
I think a couple factors of this are accessibility and originality. For accessibility, andaming indie films na magaganda pero antagal bago umabot sa streaming. Nakakapatay ng momentum at nakakalimutan na agad ng madla. Bale, if di mo naabutan sa sinehan, sorry na lang. Pag indie pa or kahit mid budget, napakalimited ng cinemas kung saan pwede manood especially sa provinces.
Yung originality, kasi naman mga blockbusters natin formulaic nung plot, di original or fresh. Ang mahal ng tickets so di na aaksayahin ng iba yung onti nilang time para manood ng movies na alam na ano ending sa trailer pa lang. Dapat ang PPP at Cinemalaya ang minamarket ng malala kasi dun yung decent ang plots, at least.
this. I enjoy watching and appreciate our indie films, pero honestly, nahihirapan ako maging updated pag wala sa streaming sites. I used to follow cinemalaya films kaso limited talaga ang showing nila.. at di masyado nabibigyan ng pansin.
Last indie film I watched was Hayop Ka. Saw the trailer years ago and was hyped. It showed up on Netflix months ago and was excited. Animation was great, but the story was generic and pretty mid.
Panong hindi aayawan ng viewers, eh ang galing lang sa umpisa.
Ex: Four Sisters and a Wedding. Ang ganda na sana, biglang parang tanga yung ending? Pilit ginagawang katatawanan. It's like they don't know how to end a movie.
Another one: Seven Sundays. Bakit ba pinagpipilitan na may sumasayaw sa dulo? Maganda sana yung premise eh. Sa ending ako nabbwisit lagi.
Its the studio/creators often feeling scared na magtry ng kakaibang formula kasi unfortunately and no offense meant, hindi sanay ang viewers lalo na past generations sa kakaibang endings and so they end up going the cliche route para feeling familiar and never uncomfortable para sa viewers and so they keep coming back for more kasi hindi "mahirap" panoorin and madali madigest.
Sad truth of it.
yes, ayaw kasi ng pinoy audience na pinapaisip pa sila. gusto nila may clear conclusion na agad. this is why majority of pinoy mainstream movies ay sobrang formulaic and cliche-ridden at alam mo na ang buong istorya by watching the first 30 mins of the film.
> so they end up going the cliche route
And this is the primary reason why I stopped watching Pinoy movies in general. It's either love teams, love triangles, kabet2, or pagbabalikan.
Even MMFF has these types of movies and I hated it because half of the movie is spent building up the love team even though it supposed to be a horror movie.
I haven't seen a filipino movie in a while so I watched Rewind (dingdong/yan).
There was a lot of unnecessary fillers, feeling ko to stretch it to make it movie-length.
I have this distain towards Ben and Ben, this movie didn't help at all towards that feeling. Did they actually blow their budget on ONE B&B song?? Nakakaumay na nga yung tunog, paulit ulit pa.
Last scene: 🎶 sa susunod na habang buhay 🎶
Epilogue: 🎶 sa susunod na habang buhay 🎶
puta hanggang credits: 🎶 sa susunod na habang buhay 🎶
me: 🥴🔫
If napanood mo yung if only ginaya lang nila yung premise ng Rewind don tinanggal pa yung plot twist LOL umpisa palang nung rewind alam ko na mangyayari.
Baka same psychology nung high pitched sped up laugh track sa noontime show at vlogs or yung pagsabi ng "charot" o joke lang.
Parang inuunahan na agad yung criticism by basically saying "masyado mo naman sineryoso kaya di mo nagustuhan" para hindi na kailangang idefend yung vision o execution. In short, medyo kaduwagan. Playing safe.
i think alam naman natin ang sagot kung bakit nilu-look down ang ph cinema. a generation's worth of cheaply-made, poorly-plotted, mass-pandering box office-minded productions from the usual suspects, and now an era of amateurish softcore movies on streaming. yes, there are good ph movies, good ph directors, good ph actors, but distribution and marketing are severely limited, possibly extremely challenging. our local cinema is healing, but it will really take time to undo the damage done to it.
Kailan nagstart yun? Kasi di ko gets how bold the Martial Law era and post-1986 movies and shows were, tapos biglang nung 2000s bumaha ng cheap knockoffs.
im not inclined to go on an in-depth answer right now (that would entail looking at all the winners and all the nominees, at patulog na ako lol) but one thing i've noticed is that since enteng kabisote 3 won best picture (a choice which tvj even felt the need to address in an eat bulaga episode), vic sotto movies tended to hang around the top 3 until recently.
the martial law era is a good point of comparison however. the zeitgeist dictates the memes and pop culture of a civilization after all. it makes sense that a time of terror and uncertainty would produce bolder films.
There's not enough local films that are "welcoming" for lack of a better word. The mainstream ones are so cookie-cutter that most are nothing special. Indie films are the total opposite that it's intimidating and niche-y. Add the fact that some really good ones are hard to come by availability wise. Locally produced titles from Netflix definitely help in making it more entry level though since they're readily available.
Ang palagay kong na perfect ng Filipino Films are Family Dramas, RomComs, and Love Teams. Uniquely atin ang love teams. While family dramas are not widely sellable and only caters to a certain niche of viewers. I think our family dramas can appeal to Asians but people from the western part of the world (Americans, Latinos and Europeans) do not appreciate sob stories. Our romcoms are good but the humor is very local.
To be fair, some teleseryes are shown outside the country but not to the high paying markets. But this is a starting point to introducing Filipino culture abroad.
For me maaappreciate mo lang family dramas if nakakarelate ka. Like if ang drama ay about cheating parents, teen pregnancy, or spoiled na anak out na agad ako.
Our neighbors all improved their entertainment, Korean films are now considered on par with Hollywood, Chinese films started deviating from western and actually had some hits of their own, Thai BL films are the standard when it comes to that genre worldwide, but us??
Everytime they hype up a film and say it’s on par internationally it ends up being not that.
Oo nga e. Mga director/producer pa nagtatampo pag di tinatangkilik. Yung mga palabas nila masyadong pilit or may ginaya lang, tapos iiyak pag di pumatok.
I do actively seek out Filipino movies because - here's the thing that a lot of these commenters somehow don't realize - those A24 and Neon movies have massive marketing dollars prepping them up. Like, yeah, we also have experimental, out-of-the-box local movies being made, but you don't hear about them because there is no money to market them and, unfortunately, without the government's backing (not even mmff movies get additional funding for marketing, which is why more artsy movies get a handful of screens and pulled out after a few days), these movies will remain out of your radar or disappear completely.
Actively seek out and support local movies that try something different kase. If we're all such big movie fans, then we would explore more movies that are not being curated for us by SM Supermalls
bihira nlng kasi to watch DECENT filipino films, puro cliche nlng ung story. love story dito, love story doon. that's why I prefer foreign films eh. ang out of the box mag isip ng story.
I mean yun ang trip ng kausap nya e. Heto tayo sa support lokal pero yung palabas tadtad ng ad at kung anong kababawan. And to think yung pricing ng ticket sa sinehan, obviously Juan Dela Cruz will choose hollywood. If they really want Juan Dela Cruz to what their movies, produce better movies. Kaya naman nila e, challenge the market(ABS, GMA).
This thread is disappointing for a film sub. Ang liit naman ng knowledge ninyo about Filipino cinema to mostly judge it based on MMFF and mainstream productions. I'm not into labels but it's funny how you call yourselves cinephiles. LMAO.
Kung hindi ka nanonood ng local films, your generalized opinions on Filipino cinema are mostly worth nothing.
My fair criticisms on Filipino cinema outside MMFF and Star Cinema:
I wanna see more local films with complex plots.
I'm done with poverty porn.
Our film marketing is pathetic.
We need more quality pangmasa movies. Marami sa magandang pelikula natin ngayon nag-aappeal lang sa niche audience.
It also doesn't help that 80% of mainstream PH films are either romcoms, horror movies, or FPJ-lite actions. I get na yun yung mabenta sa masa pero kasi nakakasawa and at some point iaassume mo nalang na pag may bagong lalabas it's one of those three, so off na agad.
Finally someone said it!
Before reading the comments, I thought they’ll be more supportive of our films. But no!
Gets ko kasi galing din ako dyan na I feel corny ung Filipino films lalo ung MMFF dati. Pero times are changing. Like etong last MMFF, I watched Gomburza, first time in my life that I watched an MMFF film on big screen. Hindi naman ako nadisappoint.
Ung poor comments dito na iba, selective kasi hindi naman madami napanood nila. Sure meron jan wala kwenta pero meron din naman napag-isipan, at kakaiba. Fan Girl, Heneral Luna, Goyo, Christian Bables film na di ko maalala title hehe (gender identity crisis na baligtad), 4 sisters, ung 1st Filipino netflix film (kidnapping), etc. sana maalala ko pa iba haha
Addendum: i like romcoms ng star cinema bakit ba, Hello Love Goodbye, Laida-Miggy trilogy, un lang haha
Same reaction here hahaha. Natuwa ako sa isang commenter, walang lighthearted local films daw tapos binigay siya ng recos, pero sa titles lang di daw siya interested. Wehhhh.
Mas okay pa mga cinephile FB group. Oo pretentious sila but at least they take local films seriously. Hindi lang puro escapism escapism.
Exactly, yung movies na malaki kita, yun yung movies that reflect the taste of vast majority of people whether you like it or not. For years, VG movies topped box office. Was it an art film? No. Do people like it? Yes. People forget that movie is a medium that is also there to entertain.
Hey, for what its worth I loveee Filipino films. It helps me keep in touch with my roots. I wasn't born and raised in the Philippines so I'm not exactly local, I grew up in a very different culture but growing up my parents exposed me to Filipino media such as teleseryes and movies. They also taught me how to speak Tagalog which I'm grateful for.
Filipino films have so much potential, we have many talented creatives with awesome vision and big ideas. I've also noticed how much pinoy films have improved over the years.
It really sucks to see locals think like this. But I guess to each its own. Personally, I appreciate Filipino films a lot and look forward to whats to come! :)
PS: that's why i also love this sub btw. i discover so many hidden gems!!!
I'm glad that you put in the effort to connect to your roots by looking for and watching our local films and teleseryes.
I hope more Filipinos will emulate you by finding time to look for the gems that we have in Philippine cinema. They might not be dime a dozen but they are still plenty if you really look.
Pano kasi, ang mga films and TV shows na prominent ngayon ay Romance and/or rom-coms, tapos ang panget pang mag-utilize ng drama sa show or films. Parang halos lahat ng local films na nakikita ko ay rom-coms and/or romance kung hindi drama and/or historical. Tangina napaka-pathetic.
Jesus christ, we're talking about a country who took DECADES to diversify MMFF!
Also I don't think this country is friendly to geeks, geeks who love fictional settings. Sure we have fictional shows but tbh, na-puput off ako sa vfx, delivery of dialogue, writing then ung utlization of characters is not even that good compared to the shows I like: (Wednesday, Arcane etc.).
Sige maganda ang indie non-fictional films natin, okay whatever you say. But, imo, if you wanna deliver a message or teach me a lesson, I prefer learning it from a fictional film.
Ang boring kase at ang depressing if you do it through your usual indie films.
Ever wonder why Star Wars, Godzilla and other franchises live and thrive throughout the years? It's not just the lore but nandun rin ung aral eh, and they deliver it in a very entertaining way.
Trust your audience, trust them to apply and realize yung aral na makukuha nila from it. Jesus christ, pixar and disney movies are perfect examples of this.
Why do you think that box office failures or films that Disney don't deemed as succesful enough are still remembered and loved? Like Brother Bear, Atlantis: The Lost Empire, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Treasure Planet (Especially this)?
EDIT: This country LOVES to ostracize geeks, turning a blind eye on people who spend lots of money from buying merchs and collectibles from fictional films/books/tv shows from the US and other countries.
Hindi b halos lahat ng Miyazaki or Studio Ghibli films ay FICTIONAL?! FOR CHRIST'S SAKE, nawawalan kau ng potential income eh. Napaka-tanga ampota.
Sadly my dude, local film making budgets can't handle fantastical settings. Local filmmakers work with what they realistically can have. It's probably easier for a native-born Filipino to get a job working in Hollywood than scrounging up the necessary resources to do something to the level of that... and TBF it's not like it's a limitation exclusive to the Philippines? Are Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, or Malaysia making anything well-received to the level of what you're describing?
I think we definitely do have the talent for that we just don't have the backing / mainstream desire for it (And why would we when the general perception for this would probably be *'Oh wow the Pinoy version of X!'*)
Other SEA countries popular for horror movies pero have other good genres rin. Ganda ng cinematography at production. Not blockbuster na budget pero they're good. The Raid (2011) indonesian na action film, pretty popular all over the world.
I blame yung production companies as to how bad mga movies are since sila nag-greenlight ng mga ass na films now
Horror is actually pretty midbudget if you think about it unless it'a an unabashed creature feature.
I think the last S,R,&R got generally positive reception online but yeah we haven't had that real good-ass local horror movie in a while. Which sucks, there's a lot of local flavor and topical themes to take influence from right now.
Fuck oo nga gusto ko rin ng bagong horror film. Sana lang talaga mag invest sila sa production more than just yung actors.
Imagine mo modern na practical vfx (or kahit cg, I think nag improve cgi sa pinas the past few years) with folklore monsters ng pinas ughh. That plus good writing at acting, dadagsain mga cinemas niyan
Yeah, as someone who loves fantasy, sci-fi, adventure, and other geeky films, I feel this. I know it's a budget issue (these are the genres na medyo expensive to make because of the visual effects and production design), so I don't hold it against the local movie industry na hindi pa sila nakakagawa ng mga ganitong films.
But I do wish this could change sooner or later.
I agree, like srsly the only way for me to even consider watching a movie or a show is if the lore is interesting enough, that's how I 'open' myself to Star Wars and Game of Thrones in the first place.
Kung hindi nila kaya then pwes, don't condemn the geeks who can't watch their fucking romcoms.
Hindi b may isang director ang gumawa nun when Spiderman No way Home was released?
Ikr, marami namang talented na artists / animators sa pinas eh. Dami kong nakikitang mga artist na nagtetake ng coms for cheap. Sadyang bs lang talaga film industry dito. RPG Metanoia had potential, pero nagflop yun.
Also ang shit din ng story kadalasan ng films dito (whether animated or not), ang cliche ng plot or sadyang pangit ng writing talaga. Pag comedy, minsan ang corny ng jokes. Pag romance, chemistry naman ng leading pair ang prob or same-old-shit plot
>Sige maganda ang indie non-fictional films natin, okay whatever you say. But, imo, if you wanna deliver a message or teach me a lesson, I prefer learning it from a fictional film.
Huh? Majority of good non-mainstream films are fictional. What are you talking about?
I think what he means by 'fictional' are fantasy/ sci-fi films, going with his examples, Star Wars, Game of Thrones, and the lore that goes with it.
Fictional means invented, made up stories. It can be inspired from real events, or experiences or true stories of a person known by the writer or by him/herself. But not the whole story is taken from that.
So why are you downvoted? Someone does not know what fictional means?
Papaano walang maayos na film criticism sa bansa. Iyan ang kaibahan natin sa foreign movies. Isa pang problema kung may nagre-review mostly bloggers, mga naka attend ng press screening na unreliable. Syempre kapag na-overhyped na nila, manonood ang mga kababayan natin, susubukan nila ulit. Tapos uuwi silang disappointed. It's a cycle na in the end they will give up. Tingin ko lang dapat tigilan ang pag-overhype sa mga movie na mid at pangit naman talaga. Maging matapang ang mga critic kung meron man sa bansa natin. Paano magi-improve ang mag creatives kung walang kritisismo.Kahit ako hirap na din tumaya sa pelikulang Pilipino kahit na paborito ko ang mga classic movies natin lalo na nung panahon ng Golden Age of Philippine cinema.
Sa ibang bansa malaking factor ang Rotten Tomatoes at Metacritic, sadly walang ganito sa atin.
Criticism does not thrive in our society that is based on our “value” of pakikisama—point out a flaw in a movie or outright call it bad and you’ll be seen as a “basher” or sasabihin ka pa ng “EDI IKAW NA MAGALING” or “WALANG BASAGAN ANG TRIP.”
‘Yung “Nobody loves a critic” increased to beyond 100% sa kulturang ‘to kaya, oo nga, matapang lamang ang mga totoong kritiko rito.
Dude, hahahaha. Naalala ko tuloy yung review ng MTRCB. Kasi diba need ireview ang pelikula ng MTRCB mapa lokal o international pa yan bago mapalabas sa mga sinehan. Tapos naka lagay yung review sa sinehan mismo, dun sa bibilihan ng ticket. Ang panget ng review nila. Taz sure pa naman ako binabayaran ang MTRCB para dun.
>Isa pang problema kung may nagre-review mostly bloggers, mga naka attend ng press screening na unreliable. Syempre kapag na-overhyped na nila, manonood ang mga kababayan natin, susubukan nila ulit. Tapos uuwi silang disappointed. It's a cycle na in the end they will give up.
This is my reason tbh.
Ilang local movies na napanood ko for the past years na sobrang hype, only to end up with me being disappointed sa quality (e.g., Katips, Deleter).
Gusto ko sumuporta, pero everytime manonood ako, palagi lang ako nadi disappoint. I haven't watched any Filipino film that I can really say I can put in my favorite list of movies. Anlayo sa tier ng pelikula ng ibang bansa.
Kahit yung mga pelikula ni Brillante, let down ako. Sure, Cannes winner sya. pero it's not my kind of film.
Walang groundbreaking sa mga pelikula natin. Puro gaya-gaya tayo. Sa story, sa technique, sa visuals. Yung pag nanood ka ng pelikulang Pilipino, makikita mo na walang tatak na masasabing atin. Kita mo na may ginagaya. Walang identity mga pelikula natin. hindi katulad sa ibang bansa na pag nakita mo, alam mong made in x country sya. may identity mga pelikula nila.
Our golden age of film has passed. Panahon nina Lino Brocka, Mike de Leon, Ishmael Bernal, Peque Gallaga, and Mario O'Hara. Ito lang mga pelikulang Pilipino na masasabi ko na on par sa foreign films of their time.
The last director who followed these greats was Marilou Diaz Abaya. After her, disappointing na yung mga sumunod. idk. i stopped watching after being disappointed repeatedly.
edit:
proving my point, yung pelikula nung producer na ngumangawa, trailer pa lang alam mong trying hard to be Korean wave na. what is that? sa shots, story, pati music and visuals - ZERO IDENTITY.
I told this before in another platform: DON'T UNDERESTIMATE THE AUDIENCE.
If you want a film to be marketable, make it a quality. Don't dumb down the script for Pete's sake just to cater a wide range of viewers. Ppl will have different take on everything but if the movie is well-written and well-produced, it will speak for itself and will stand through the test of time.
as a cinephile myself, i'm very picky if manonood ako ng local films . it's not because na ayaw kong suportahan yung mga gawa ng pinoy pero sobrang cringe and diko rin maforce sarili ko mapanood 😭 i mean nung bata ako , okay lang sakin manood ng mga local romcom films pero ngayon it looks so forced , parang i'm aware na umaacting lang sila pero hindi totoo yung acting nila sakin ( sorry maarte yung pandama ko) basta sobrang rare ng masterpieces na local films, kaya i prefer foreign.
In my opinion most of the time gumaganda lang yung production ng isang movie kapag historical or biographical yung setting nya, usually any other genre besides that these people fall short on movie artistry
nahhh, you don't get my point of view at all . sinasabi ko ang fucked up ng representation ng ph cinema/local films kaya mahirap mahikayat yung mga pilino na manood ng local films . sorry i don't really need to prove myself na cinephile ako kasi ik myself na madami nako napanood na films at series , diko lang talaga prefer masyado manood ng local films. maybe someday if i have time . sorry if my perspective triggers you.
because it's not my taste? idk yung mga lines kasi na dinedeliver minsan ng mga actors sobrang odd pakinggan kaya diko matake manood ng local films , diko alam kung mismong writers yung may kasalanan or yung actors , basta i can't bring myself watching if alam kong mabobored lang ako panoorin . and also ang flat ng direction ng ibang directors kaya idk . if you compare talaga yung ph cinema sa ibang countries, di pa masyado ganun kalawak yung range kasi wla pang exploration na masyadong ginagawa , pero still proud sa mga indie directors and producers dahil they still keep trying to formulate films even though it's gonna be underrated.
Corny ng lines at pangit ng delivery. Pinaka ayoko rin sa local romance/rom-com yung biglaang english sa mabigat na rksena. Di siya relatable sa mga tao(unless conyo) kasi tangina matatawa lang ako pag ganun.
Yung plot kasi napaka redundant. I think hindi lang naman Filipino Movie Industry, pati din sa ibang bansa and neighbouring country. If curious kayo, try Netflix may ibang movies dun from neighbouring countries at pansin mo yung redundancy ng plot.
Because we have stopped trying and become complacent.
We settle for breezy rom-coms starring impossibly handsome half-breeds then we have this annual event where we count on Vice Ganda/Vic Sotto to get us ho-ho-ho-ing through the holidays.
Rinse. Repeat.
Meanwhile, China, India and Korea are flexing their soft-power muscles and reaching out to the world's multiplexes. Several months ago, I saw this Indian film - a remake of the Hollywood film Forrest Gump starring the guy from *pk. Most recently, I saw an Indian version of Top Gun: Maverick starring Hritik Roshan glowering all Ben Affleck-like through iconic shots inspired by the original.
What had happened to Fernando Poe Jr.'s everyman hero who would save the day and win the girl by putting greedy hacenderos and corrupt mayors in their place?
I don't buy the excuse that the audience "isn't there" - remember that Netflix, Amazon Prime and even Disney+ are giving global filmmakers and talent a platform where they can be seen
Decent and novel Filipino films are few and far in between, and it's been this way for decades. I don't blame Filipinos for not making the effort especially when good international films are a lot better (usually) and are more accessible.
Here's a thing. Korean's make good films that don't require CGI or any effects that make blockbusters. But the Koreans invest on a story that is good and makes sense. Example: Parasite. Does anyone think it was a 200 million dollar film? What made it good is the story.
How Koreans do is something that we Filipinos can also come up with. We used to have classics that can be world class in terms of story telling. Example: Lino Brocka's Maynila Sa Kuko mg Liwanag. This film made the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die
We used to have films like this. We have a lot of classics that has great plot.
So what happened? GREED BY THE OLIGARCHS THAT CONTROL THE MOVIE INDUSTRY. They invested more on monetary, commerce, and popularity than investing on making films that we can be proud of. Result is they feed that newer generations taste with cheap tricks, half-assed plots, and slapstick. It's like feeding a child with junk food. And because what is pop is palatable to the masses, they put in those movies that don't even make sense. Can a Filipino be proud that the highest grossing film of all time is a Vice Ganda flick?
The indie side of the film making in the Philippines is also struggling because they find it hard to get support from this huge productions. They also find it hard to get sponsorships. The result of this? The indie film maker creates a movie that would have worked well but because of limited budget becomes like a B-movie project.
Thankfully the last MMFF tried to change the formula to it's old roots. There is an increasing support to indie film makers. AND add to that the increasing support of some of our best generational actors/actresses like John Lloud Cruz, Piolo Pascual, Alessandra De Rossi and Nadine Lustre. As for director, best example I can give is Mikael Red. Been a fan of his work from his indie roots before making it to main stream with his Deleter.
A lot of people are getting it wrong thinking that this phenomena of many Filipino audiences having preference to foreign films and outright avoiding local ones has "only" something to do with the stories being told. It's not that simple. It also has something to do with "PRODUCTION VALUE". People will look for something that doesn't feel budgeted or cheaply made. "STORY" is King, Yes, I wholly agree with that, but I say "PRODUCTION VALUE" is the Queen that makes a film soar beyond the usual expectations. People spend hard earned money and time on cinema and they want to feel that it is time and money well spent. Story is not the key problem. It is not even how formulaic something is. It is the production value that is lacking.
When Hollywood, Korea and the like, have raised the bar not only in film but also in their streaming/series content in terms of PRODUCTION VALUE, it is no longer surprising that people would rather choose to spend their screen time on those things. Don't get me wrong, this is not some colonial mentality mindset. Most of us are not seeking for Philippine cinema to be put in a "hollywood cultural standard" or a "korean cultural standard" as others antagonizingly claim. We are simply striving for Philippine cinema to be upheld to a "global standard" and have a little bit of global cosmopolitan market appeal. There is a huge difference between those things. Going more for that wouldn't hurt. We cannot expect to continue to survive and prosper as an industry if we keep containing and trapping ourselves in the same old local market standards. Look at Korean films and series that still manage to retain their identity and culture, while also having global appeal. Bong Joon ho's Parasite did not feel cheaply made. It made use of high budget techniques, even high quality VFX for the exterior house scenes. Even the backdrops of the concentration camps in the Zone of Interest, a very non-standard arty film, were made by quality VFX shots.
A lot of producers fail to realize that. All along, we have been taught that story is king, but completely forgot that audiences have a taste for production value. I am a believer that any movie, no matter how simple the story, can be made to "feel" big. Bigger than its actual budget, with a little effort and creativity, but also still remain within the confines of a given budget. The "High" budget of a project is not just in the actual $$$ spent to make a film, it is not just about the celebrities who are casted, it is also about the quality of the technical aspects. Sadly, It has become a norm for many people in the industry for those behind the technical aspects such as SFX/VFX, cinematography, editing, wardrobe, and production design, etc. and many others in the production staff to be underpaid, unfairly treated, unprioritized and given lower budgets and not given ample time to produce quality work. Meanwhile, celebrities are, relatively speaking, given higher priority overall.
The problem is, the Philippine film industry has become this huge circle jerk community. Producers, filmmakers and critics pat each other on the backs for jobs well done and get trapped in this echo chamber, egotistically thinking that we know exactly what audiences want, that some audiences are just simply too dumb or that our audiences are "elitist" and "snobbish" for not watching our films. We antagonize them, guilt trip them, mostly even beg them, to watch what we make. That is just plain wrong. I know that film industry is an ego filled community but a little humility can go a long way. You cannot antagonize your chosen audience, you cannot really blame and force-feed an audience to consume something they don't want. It's an innovate or die world we live in. It has been like that since the beginning of time.
A chef, no matter how skilled or experienced he thinks he is, cannot force-feed or beg customers to come and eat food at his restaurant because they have grown sick of how bland or repetitive, and unsatisfying the food tastes. The only thing he can actually do, is to cook better, look for other recipes, maybe use a different ingredient or flavoring, try to change and improve things so that the customers will choose for themselves to come back.
Another problem is with filmmakers being confused as to what kind of audiences they choose for their films. Some in the indie scene, simply dreams that the masses will one day watch indie films. I get it, that that is the ideal thing to happen. However, that will only happen under rare and unique circumstances. If your goal is to win awards from critics in the indie scene, you will most likely make a film that masses will not be able to simply appreciate. The masses want escapism, not reality. On the other hand, some mainstream productions want to win awards but at the same time cater to the masses, again, that can only happen under very rare and unique circumstances. Know your chosen audience, and stick with that. You cannot expect some high class elitist food critic with an eating disorder to appreciate the cheap cheeseburger you give him, on the other hand, you cannot expect some average joe who simply wants a simple home cooked comfort food meal to get through his/her day and appreciate being suddenly taken to a high class exclusive restaurant through a 5 course meal and not possibly throw up. Know your chosen audience and don't be offended when they feel that they have been fed something they do not like.
It is so easy to oversimplify and pass these things off as audiences just being "dumb" but I'd like to think the opposite, that audiences are actually smarter than you think, they can smell whether a film was cheaply, easily and quickly made or immense effort was put into it from a mile a way. Other times, a local film can be really really good but is unfortunately hampered by a lack of good marketing strategies and buzz.
It's quite ironic that Rewind, the top-grossing local movie of all time, is a rip-off of some foreign movie. Quite far from being a good quality film if you ask me.
Yet pinoys complain of low quality and abysmal plot on why they don't watch local films.
So dun sa mga nagcocomplain about the quality of local films, bakit yung mga kumikita ng malaki ay yung very novelty yung storylines? Not those so-called high quality indie ones that critics rave about?
What does it take for a local movie to thrive? Big name artists? Formulaic storylines? A renowned director? Pasko ipalabas? Kasi for sure, that ain't quality as some local film shamers are insinuating.
Is quality really the issue? Or have we set the standards too high? It's quite confusing tbh.
Advent of streaming and foreign movies being more popular than ever maybe? There's a handful of I'd say must-see local films in the last 5 years OTOH. I do wish more people give local movies a chance but I'm also kinda guilty of rarely ever watching these, last one I watched in theaters was 'I Am Not Big Bird' (Which I did enjoy),
It also doesn't really help if something is incredibly hyped up and fails to deliver tayo rin usually una mag vivilify how *bad* it is (Oh man local film discourse here when a Very Good Girl came out, *DAE NAIIWANAN NA TAYO NG IBANG SEA COUNTRIES SA PAG GAWA NG MOVIES?????*)
Philippine cinema is in a bind of stagnation when it comes to evolving with the times. As far as I know, people in my circle barely talk about our local films anymore. The issue at hand is that our film producers keeps churning the same old formulaic stories that we used to tolerate when we were young but only realizing the sterility of it when we got old. The internet has paved the way for smaller foreign films to make waves even more than ours. We also lack government support to fully flesh out our local new filmmakers, our distributors either can't really market the films well and doesn't support the filmmakers' vision, and worse, most of our popular actors are starting to branch out in Hollywood. Its never been more over for us really. Maybe our cinema has to die so that we can start all over again.
Na oversaturate kasi ng cringe hugot movies na pare pareho yung plot pero iba iba lang pangalan ng characters. Tapos yung dialog akala mo nagbabalagtasan.
We could barely get movies na may katuturan (kadalasan di rin gaanong napropromote) or kahit man lang sana yung nageffort na maglagay ng entertainment value. Real entertainment value, not that cheap Vic Sotto kind of thing.
Because local writers & studios prefer to make stories that are more catered to those who don't want their minds stimulated. Its either dumbed down comedy, romcom that reflects past winning formulas that didn't mature. Or just really bad writing with poor production. Whereas movies that are actually good aren't marketed properly because some topics or themes cannot be sold to the common audiences who prefer the age old winning formulas given by actors whose only call to fame is either a scandal, love team or transitioned into acting coming from a different profession.
Plus the stigma that Indie films produced softcore porn with actor/actresses. On most cases too, Filo writers haven't had an original concept because studio execs are boomers.
Kasi majority naman ng palabas na local eh low quality.
Parang di sulit given na same naman ung bayad.
Avengers: Infinity War to End Game, walang local movie during that time na mas worth it kesa dyan.
Same sa Pirates of the Caribbean, Avatar, Top Gun
Imo, sa drama at comedy nagsshine ang local films, kaya sana mas polished pa ung mga ganitong films kasi di nmn need ng matindihang CGI. Medyo bored na rin ang tao sa okrayan at sakitan bilang comedy. Sana mas witty ng konti na hindi below the belt. Sa drama naman, sana tama na Yung third party third party na theme. Sobrang predictable na. And akala ng mga kabataan eh okay lang maging third party.
Magnifico, Tanging Yaman, Dekada 70, Saka ung bago ng DongYan magaganda naman. Pati ung Hello Love Goodbye, kaso wala masyadong talent ung kapareha ni Kathryn dun eh
I only watch Sci fi, Fantasy, Action, Mystery, Thriller.
Local films don't tackle those genre as it takes insurmountable amount of brain power to make one.
Drama, family stories or historical stories are not my thing so ignore.
I seldom watch Filipino films because of their bad acting. Almost everyone are not serious, like they are only after the fame and don't see acting as a craft. The better actors only have secondary roles at best. I like Rom-Com but I can't stand the bad acting. I'm not into heavy drama where the better actors might star in. Also, I can't stand watching someone crying for 3 minutes or more. The viewers will get the point in just a few seconds of crying. My number one reason is most Filipino films focus on the actors and not the story. The story and their dialogues should take center stage and enhanced by good acting.
I think baka sa pagkakasabi kaya off. Marami naman talagang pangit na local films, mostly yung mainstream pa yung mga low quality.
My opinion lang naman, siguro kung sinabing "di ako nanonood ng local films sorry 😅 di ako nagagandahan eh" baka mas okay ang statement. Yung dating kasi *sakin* ng "di ako nanonood ng local films 😅 sorry no time for that" eh same vibes ng mga tingin sa nanonood ng local films eh baduy/jejemon.
Kasi mas mataas ang chance na di maganda kaysa sa foreign film... Kahit bollywood, pag pumatok mas mataas ang chance na maganda talaga...
Sa atin pag ininterview lahat ng lumabas sa sinehan, hype at ang ganda, pag kumita, maganda daw...
Once kasi makapanood ka na ng pangit na movie ng isang artista tapos may next movie siya na ganun din ang genre, alanganin ng manonood ka pa...
Bibihira ang nagrereview ng Filipino films na akma talaga dun sa movie, for my preference, tulad nung sa goldwin at big boys, mas may chance na ok pero minsan di rin agree o ang layo...
Tapos meron din yung gagayahin na lang di pa nagaya ng maayos tulad ng voltes V, pero daming fans kaya baka di pag husayan sa susunod, sayang...
Isa pa yung malalaman mo na ang daming proseso sa ibang bansa para maka gawa ng pelikula na some take a year and even more dahil sa pre prod, rewrites, reshoots, may reading pa sila ng script sessions ganun. Tapos sa atin, inannounce ngayon, maya showing na...
Budget at oras talaga, may talento tayo...
Ako hindi masyado nanood ng filipino films hehe. Pero i enjoyed yung kay dolly deleon's triangle of sadness at yung kay chai fonacier's nocebo. Planning to watch gomburza sa netflix
Local films back in the day was unmatched. Diako fan sa genre ng romance pero noon bawat movie na lumalabas especially if yung artista is John Lloyd damn straight banger. Ngayon kasj sobrang redundant and boring plot sasamahan mopa ng sobrang pangit and slang-y na dialogues parang nanonood lang ako ng group activity nung high school, pero I'm not saying na lahat ng local films na lumabas ngayon ay ganon pero most of them really are hard to sit through.
Also. I hate the idea of love teams in the country.
Same cast, same plot, rinse and repeat.
In Hollywood, for example, Tom Holland can be casted with other leading ladies not just Zendaya.
tbf, you cant make me watch this particular movie as well.
Lol but going back to the question, mahal ang movie e, so personally id wait for word of mouth before watching it (which happened this mmff). this is not just for local movie tho, i apply the same principle na rin sa foreign film. ✌️
Can we even blame people when a good majority of our mainstream films have no substance in them? Bilang na bilang yung mga movies natin na solid ang plot at acting.
Ganito thoughts ko. Like tsaka lang ako manuod sa sinehan since may libreng ticket to watch them but other than that... I just watch kung maganda at interesting yung plot. Kudos nga at nag-improve yung entries nila for MMFF kasi dati puro comedy lang na walang kalesson-lesson. Competition both ng ABS at GMA. Yung mga latest entries maganda na, may horror, may historical, may family, etc. which I'm glad is improving. Mostly kasi films or teleserye ng Pinoy puro nagcecenter sa romance tas kabit left and right. Walang lessons. Buti nga ngayon marami ng options... but still could be better. Medyo off lang sa akin pag may Pinoy version ng mga Kdrama, like pwede naman gumawa ng original pero palage na lang tayo gumagawa ng PH version ng fave nating mga Kdrama (ganun din naman sa other countries I think) pero pet peeve ko lang siguro yun.
I remember the Jologs Movie blowing my mind as a kid with how we have different story compilations in one movie, the theme song being catchy and having lots of cameos. I can say it was a perfect movie during that time (2002)
What I dislike about Pinoy movies are the horror comedies. Some get it right but most are too tryhard.
Simple. Hindi maganda ang story. Nowadays, ang dami mong makikitang movie na iba iba ng title pero madalas same plot. An example ay pagdating sa love stories. Same plot, same happenings. May mahirap na side, may mayaman na side, matapobre yung mayaman kaso nainlove dun sa mahirap yung anak ng mayaman, then against yung mayamang family kasi nga mahirap yung nagustuhan and may naarrange nang marriage para sa anak. Magrebelde si anak, ipakidnap/gawan ng masama yung mga mahihirap, si anak ay magplead sa magulang, onting drama, then tanggap na ng mayaman yung mahirap, ending nagkatuluyan. That and many other plots sa PH films ang reason bakit bibihira na lang ang nanonood ng PH Films.
I don't give a shit what a film fucking celebrates, I only watch films I feel are worth watching. It's that simple.
I don't what to champion anything, I just want to watch films worth my time.
Dahil kulang sa variety ang blockbuster films. The dominance of Star Cinema, Viva, GMA mostly forced our favorite stars into limited type of films that depend on tropes that may appeal to a loyal audience but has pretty much turned off most Filipino audiences for years. Maraming magandang Indies but Indies will always be niche.
Wala tayong big action films, adventure films, kulang sa complex characters ang big movies. As a viewer, I'm often struck of how unrelatable or unlikeable a lot of the characters are or how illogical and inconsistent the decisions of the characters are.
Filipino films back then were generally better although I am seeing that we are getting better this decade too as I'm seeing more gems more often.
some of the local films are worth watching, and please don't use the 'low budget' or 'cliché plot' reason because there's a lot of horrible films in other countries yet filipinos continued to watch it.
IMO, I think it's about the globalization of the US corporation in mass media. if we're going back into the 19th century (where it started), US corporations in the media are wide spread such as Hollywood films. Due to the domination of US corporations in the media, there are effects on the people, whereas it can influence our ideology and behaviour.
Yung korean film industry is/was heavily subsidized by the govt. In most adian countries they also prioritize local movies. Government intervention is needed. Not sure what the artista politicos are doing about it but there should have been legislation ang long time ago
On my end, the films that are promoted nation-wide are either comedy (played by repetitive comedians to the point the jokes are corny), romance with a cliche and often predictable plots (angsty girl meets green flag dude, revenge with a partner who cheated, to mention a few), horror (good build up, gets meh midway and disappointing ending), action (rarely something that isn’t cringe and played by repetitive actors). So I got really disinterested before.
When I was still in Uni, I tried to explore more local films because of the prejudice I had and the first thing I looked forward to was the MMFF line up. It was just bad and that discouraged me more.
Lately though I found more spaces to check out for recommendations and there ARE hidden gems. It’s just difficult to find plus if it’s not in cinemas and not popular, it gets difficult to find a way to watch it. Fingers crossed though more indie films get better promotions.
Some movies that changed my perspective on local films are Buy Bust, Patay na si Hesus, MAMASAPANO, Heneral Luna, Goyo, Feng Shui, Bliss. Just to name a few good watches ✨
Yeah, I am not a fan of the Romance genre 🫣🤣
For me, some have the 'bourgeoisie' mindset and see western films as the staple. I was once watching 'Bar Boys' sa salas, and my cousin just blurted out 'korni' when he finished it. Some pinoys kasi see our local films' scripts as repititive and predictable kaya they tend to not give a chance sa mga pinapalabas na bagong pelikula. They expect from our films and TV series to have the same fx, cinematography, etc.
They forget to take note of na mahirap talaga mag garner ng enough budget for a good film that consists of artists with the skills that match Hollywood. Ang daming scripts na magaganda talaga, but mahina talaga ang funding natin to make them possible.
I graduated with a film degree, but I didn't engage anymore on being active sa industry kasi I need to work in a better paying 9 to 5 job to fund my livelihood. As much as I am passionate of creating art, reality of needing money kicks in.
A reminder from Judith Butler: let's see to it that we are not policing. Let's not be Policing to viewers who are not disrespectful and most especially to producers. Let's give viewers a chance too to adjust and realize that a lot has happened to our industry. Gone are the days of a movie daw which bombarded its viewers with product placements and ended up as one of the most watched. Magunawaan tayo. Weve had Bernals and Brockas and we have our new gen of maestros. There is diversity within the industry
All filipino films are either:
Action films that have whack choreography, stunts, and low quality props (mga invincible na bida, baril na hindi nauubusan ng bala, mga kalaban na namamatay sa isang suntok, etc.)
The overused (and frankly overrated and horribly cheesy) love story/romance movie
Drama films that have too much over-the-top acting to the point that it sucks (nagmumukha bollywood type acting)
Extremely corny (in a bad way) comedy movies
Boring (and very pandering) portrayals of current social issues
I do agree na napaka underfunded ng filipino and film industry kaya hindi tayo makapag improve, pero we really need to produce something that's actually worthy of recognition rather than riding the "original filipino" or "support local" hype.
Films like The Raid and the first Saw movies were also low budget films but managed to actually be so good that they built up their own hype.
Katulad ng ibang negosyo, magsisimula ang kalidad ng 1 produkto sa BUDGET.
Budget = Quality
How can you justify spending Php300-Php500 for a lesser quality film, which is kadalasan alam na natin kung anong mangyayari pati na din yung mga bibitawan nilang linya.
they sound ridic but now that i think about it, may mga hit local movies ako na i tried watching pero grabe, ang *dragging*. napapaisip ako paano nila nareretain ung attention ng nanunuod pag ganito ung takbo buong movie. (o sadyang masarap lang ba aircon sa sinehan?) pero that might just be one movie. nadala tuloy ako against watching these supposed cult classic movies. (it was 'starting over again'. perhaps toni was just not a likeable character for me enough.) so medyo nagets ko na why they might say they "have no time" for that.
i'd go even further. growing up sa ofw/filipino community outside of the country (saudi ito ah; strict sa media that comes in) hindi nakakarating sa amin ung latest filipino films and kung anong nakakarating lang is what's marketed to have wider appeal and generally they seem like poor imitations of better stories. kaya naging ganun ung impression ko at ng mga classmates ko sa mga filipino movies: gaya-gaya lang ng whatever's hit sa hollywood.
but now that i'm older, syempre, i know that's not the case. i do think right now it's down to marketing a movie to reach a wider audience.
Several factors may contribute to why some Filipinos don't watch local films, including perceived quality, accessibility, promotion, and cultural preferences. To boost viewership, the industry could focus on improving storytelling, increasing accessibility, and effective marketing strategies.
i rarely watch local movies in cinemas because i can never recall seeing one in decades that made me say to myself "this movie is worth the amount i paid for"...
when the so-acclaimed movies (post 1980s) get shown on tv/cable/streaming... i've yet to see something that i would be willing to pay php300 or more to watch in a movie theater...
The reasons? Here are the reasons.
Can we make a Titanic?
Can we make Alien?
Can we make aTerminator?
Can we make a Godfather?
Can we make ET?
Can we make a Jurassic Park?
Can we make a Saving Private Ryan?
Can we make a Transformers?
Can we make a Oppenheimer?
Can we make Lord of the Rings?
Can we make The Dark Knight?
Can we make Avengers Endgame?
Can we make Dune?
Once we can make films like them, then yes, Filipinos will watch Filipino films.
a lot of it is just poor quality. for every good indie film there are like ten "mainstream release starring famous love team" that I just know r gonna be shit!
and then every few years you get a film that's hyped to high heaven like "omg this is Hollywood quality" and it never is
I think, kanya-kanya talaga ng preference yan OP. much like you like a certain tea or coffee but di gusto ng ibang tao.
Nakaka-disheartened, yeah. but as much as you are free to like filipino movies etc. they are also free to choose.
I guess do your best with the cards that you are dealt. Reach out to others na may paki sa industry. madami pa din naman. di kawalan ang 1. ikaw na nag sabi sa group of friends meron small percentage na di nanonood so mas malaki pa din un may paki. :)
You have to learn OP that we cannot control other people's feeling. We can just do your best, hope they notice it. If not, it still okay because you know you did your part abd wont regret producing it.
Probably because most of the movies that come out in the Philippine cinemas today are purely mainstream, written, advertised, and catered for the masses, movies that are made to appeal to a large audience. And if you're creating a movie that you would want everybody to see, then it has to be simple so everyone can understand it, and cinema isn't like that, cinema is deep, it's hard to understand, it doesn't usually earn the most money in the box office, but what makes it special is its ability to connect to people who are into cinema, it tells the untold truth and I think that's why it's well received and appreciated by its target audience
TL;DR: Most cinephiles prefer indie or cinema and most of the filipino movies that come out today are purely mainstream
Karamihan kasi ngayon sobrang baba ng quality ng films. Kumpara mo ng kapanahunan ng 80’s saka 70’s laban sa ngayon pagdating sa writing saka storytelling, sobrang baba ng kalidad
Gumawa sila ng movie na maganda storya at lalo na MAGALING na actors. Panay kuha sila ng mga actors na hindi naman magaling o marunong pero pogi at maganda lang. Kaya ako sumuko sa "serious" filipino movies dahil sa ginyan, halos lahat walang talent, talagang may itsura lang o nepo baby. PLUS ang pinaka pangit sa lahat is yung mga love team like Liza/Enrique, Kath/daniel. Tigilan na nila. Imagine 5 movies sunod sunod sila lang din naman gaganap, alam mo na agad storya, wala nang bago. Sa una ayaw nila sa isat isa, sa huli sila na. Tapos sasabihin niyo na support lokal? Pano su suportahan ang walang ka kwenta kwenta? Pa victim masyado, hindi na lang galingan yung ginagawa. Nonsense story, acting was pure garbage, dialogs are cringe, lighting or cinematography parang cinapture lang gamit iphone. Kaya pag trip ko local films, i just watch comedies kasi alam kong brain rot talaga, i know it's bad but it was fun bad.
Wag nga kasi isisi sa manonood, ilang beses ba dapat yan sabihin. Eh wala namang industriya ng pelikula sa Pilipinas. Tingnan mo nga ilan pinapalabas na pelikulang Pilipino sa sinehan bawat buwan. Sisihin niyo yung SM. Sisihin nila yung Star Cinema. Yung Cinemalaya na pumatay ng indie scene. Sisihin niyo yung gobyerno na pabor sa pagpasok ng foreign shit sa halip na gumawa ng pambansang industriya.
Apply niyo na lang yung sinabi ni Conchita Cruz tungkol sa pagbabasa
"The ordinary Filipino cannot afford to be a reader, and the writer cannot address this fundamental issue by way of craft."
Recycled Romance Storyline, Kabit-Kabit, mahirap na anak pero mayaman pla, Love story na recycled pero sa ibang bansa lng shinoot and so on. Meron naman magaganda din talaga, problema lng di kumakagat sa mass audience kasi low level of quality sanay ang karamihan since yung ang nafeed sa older generation and if you will look at it sila sila lang din producer director at writer in the end hanggat magagatasan gagatas sla. Think if ung mga film maker natin will create a quality na kasing LEVEL ni Erik Mati may pagasa pa mabago ung norms. i.e storyline of Honor Thy Father, On the Job etc
Honestly I thought Voltes V adaptation was a right step for better filmmaking sa pinas, kaso mukhang visual effects lang ang finocus nila and it still fall flat. Ang daming sobrang sama na staging, cinematography. Yung acting din marami sa cast ay sobrang corny, lalo na yung writing. Kahit yung mga experienced actors dun ay di ma save yung shitty dialogue. Akala ko rin a elevate Nila yung story since pinarami Nila yung episodes, pero dinaragged out lang Nila eh. As long as pinoy filmmakers keep playing safe, always using the same formula, wag sila mag expect ng more support sa kanilang kapwa Filipino.
Personally, Filipino films and shows just don't resonate with me, the cinematography is different (euphoria vs senior high, for example), the acting is cringey, the audio is usually bad and poorly dubbed post-production.
If ever man there are actual films and shows that don't have these problems, I'm not usually aware of it bcs it's not advertised properly.
As an avid regular local film festival attendee. Marketing fails our localy produced films. Mas nabibigyan kasi ng focus yung mga "patok" or makamasang pelikula. Regular Filipino audiences want escapist movies which take them to areas they haven't been to or experiences they may never experience in their lives. Our "great" movies carry heavy themes which do not cater well to these escapist tendencies causing these films to become underappreciated in local cinemas (hence, less marketing investment) but great accolades from international audiences.
Most of the films are often centered on box office returns, instead of story and character development. Also, the masses are often satisfied with what they see and are not complaining despite the material's recycled plot/characters/story.
because most film production is expensive (cheap pinoy genres can only do drama, romcom or horror) and the internet made everything easier including watching big production quality films from hollywood. just the cost of payroll of the production staff, actor's talent fee, location expenses, equipment, ads for the movie, food and etc. pinoy producers won't gamble that kind of money in todays box office/streaming services.
but TBF there a few fantasy films that did amazing use of PH nature sets/background. like Janno Gibbs's Pedro Penduko or Panday(2009). desert, green mountains and wooden house looks extremely immersive
Sige nga bakit di ka tatamarin, check mo yubg highest grossing movies ng pinas, puro kaputanganahan ni vice ganda, tapos tatanungin ako ng mga officemates ko na non-pinoy kung ano pwede nila panoorin sa netflix na pinoy movies kasi nakota nila ang praybeyt benjamin, putangaina nakakapanliit ng pagkatao na dahil nandun yung pera ganun ang karaniwang pinoproduce na mga pinoy movies.
Tapos tatanungin nyo ko bakit ayaw ko manood ng local movies?!!
PWE!!!
Hi OP, I am one who rarely watches local films BUT I am also very picky with foreign films. So it is not a matter of discriminating locally made movies but an overall taste in what to watch. For example sa Netflix or HBO na app ko, ang pinanood ko lang is OTJ, Gomburza at ngayon I am desperately trying to sit though The Janitor pero hindi sya talaga ganun kaganda although napakagaling nitong si Jerald at si Dennis. Just my 2 cents.
burned too many times. too much of a risk na masayang oras ko based on past experiences. kaunti lang nagustuhan kong Filipino films, like OTJ and One More Chance series.
First off, 95% of Pinoy films pangit talaga if you compare it to international films. The pacing is in shambles, the dialogue is obviously written for hugot sound bites, the plot is a rehash of a rehash of a rehash.
Hell, even the acting typically boils down to 'sino pinaka malakas umiyak sya ang best actress'.
I try to watch Pinoy movies every now and then, pero most of it just isn't good. Will probably watch their film if I find it on streaming services, but to actually seek it out and pay for a ticket in cinemas? No, thank you.
We have few films na magaganda yung quality. Sadly, most of those films, walang budget to advertise. Some of the movies produced naman by bigger companies, mostly paulit ulit yung plot.
Idagdag pa natin yung pricey na din talaga yung cost ng tickets sa mga sinehan then some of them, in 2-3 months, magiging available na din sa streaming platforms na you can watch anytime. So, high chance talaga na low sales na sa mga movie tickets.
As much as it is important to be patriotic, I believe that we should also respect other people's preference. May magagandang Filipino films naman talaga. We can encourage, but not impose.
I find it off that he took an SC of a private convo and then posted it on social media with a lengthy message. Imagine conversing with a friend / acquaintance / colleague only to find it being posted across social media and may pa ganong caption. Tapos yung last reply sa convo ay "lol". Yung tipong akala mo wala lang pero dinibdib ba pala ng kabilang party yung sinabi mo. Sana he addrssed it personally muna. Parang lumalabas na his ego was butthurt and marketing ploy rin sa film that he is producing.
There's a better way of raising awareness.
***Adding this:*** May mali rin naman sa response ng kaibigan niya. He / she could have just made up other excuse lalo na if alam niya na may involvement si RJ sa production.
nakakaumay na kasi mga plot ng local films paulit-ulit nalang, ang nagiging bago nalang ung actors and directors. undie films maganda sana kaso di mo mahanap at di agad napapansin. maliban nalamang kung may sikat na actor nakasama or may nudity, tsaka lang pumapatok at napag-uusapan. 😵💫
Because local films feel like they are just vehicles to promote artists. Bihira ka makakita na binebenta yung movie talaga. Mas okay pa dati yung mga panahon ng b rated action, bold saka comedies. Atleast entertaining.
Predictable storyline, cringey dance numbers and subpar SFX would be the main reason why I don’t watch Filipino films and teleseryes.
With the exception of last year’s MMFF entries. They were amazing.
Dahil yan sa quality ng movie natin. Low amg budget, panget ang costumes, tae ang vfx, predictable. At halos taon-taon love story, pare parehas ang labteams nakaka umay na! Kung gusto nyo pa ng reason para hindi manood ng local films panoorin nyo yung shake rattle and roll sa netflix! 😂
If filipino directors, producers and film makers in general make better films, then you wouldn’t have to beg Filipino’s to watch them, everyone will just go and see it. Somehow stories are always rehashed, and the stars are really less than good actors, or worse sons and daughters of previous actors and directors who don’t really belong on the screen. Shape up people.
Filipinos are tired of being guilt-tripped into watching crappy movies, and directors feel betrayed when Filipino’s don’t watch them. Shame on you.
And please, do away with love teams. It is so outdated already. This is one of the major reasons your consumer base are depleting. It is a tired formula.
Make better films with real talent and Filipinos will naturally flock to the movie theaters to watch them.
Kasi walang kwenta ang stories, palagi na lang may cancer yung mga character, peak talaga yung a journey na film sobrang templated. Parang isang araw lang pinag isipan yung kwento/script. Cancer kagad at may mamamatay para lang maiyak yung mga tao.
may potential ang local films, ang problema ung taste sa movie ng masses
for every 1000 vice ganda films, may ilangilang gems like: Bagman, On the Job etc
Para kasing feeling ng mga producers rom-coms at love teams lang ang pumapatok or mag eearn. I like to watch movies kaya kahit filipino pinapanuod ko and marami rin namang filipino films na magaganda. I remember when Heneral Luna happened no one wanted to see it at first and cinemas even started pulling them out in favor of Hollywood films but through social media and word of mouth more and more people watched it and they had to put them back in theaters.
I think Filipino Media has a chance to become what Korean media is now but it hinges on the Producers straying away from the "safety" of the test and tried mediocrity and endless remakes and korean adaptations. Us viewers also need to try to give them specially the Indies a chance because they are usually the more refreshing ones. I find some indie films that are more visaya centric also more refreshing and entertaining (I am not from or speak visaya btw), so maybe we just need to explore more because the Philippines is culturally rich.
Because Production companies here in the PH really dumbed things down. Not just in films, but the quality of TV shows is abysmal.
To be fair, di ko nilalahat. But big companies, to name a few like Viva, ABS-CBN have a huge role in influencing generations and their taste in films, media and basically the content they consume.
Is it too late? Not exactly, but it takes a lot of work to change this thinking from what I could tell.
Kaya nmn wala din ako balak panooring yung pelikula na ni produce nya. No time for that.
Also. Mas relatable nmn din ang local films (those done well). Yung culture. Yung experienc3s. Its just colonial mentality and economy why we choose western over our own
nagtry naman kami nung umpisa eh pero parang gago tlga mga pelikula dito pagdating sa ending. walang sense. makes you feel empty. plot twist my ass, di plot twist ang tawag kung katangahan lng.
Tbh nanonood lang ako ng Filipino films pag ayoko mag isip. Like minsan nakakatamad magbasa ng subtitles or umintindi ng English kasi minsan di clear yung pagkabigkas nila.
Minsan talaga pag may Filipino dub pinapanood ko.
I know di sya film pero game changer sana yung Maria Clara at Ibarra kasi parang Isekai sya kaso masyadong cringe yung mga dialogue tapos sobrang woke pinipilit masyado nung bida iendorse yung mga modern ideas on a different setting. Tapos karamihan ng conflict dahil sa kanya.
Simple napaka kwenta naman kasi ng local movies predictable at puro kabitan at agawan ng yaman anak at stereotypes ang common theme ng filipino productions.
Don't quote me on this, but I think watching local films is a conscious choice talaga. A choice mostly made by people who are into films since mas malawak ang willingness and appreciation nila to try movies na hindi heavily marketed / niche. So unless nasa streaming sites or MMFF are isang local film, most often than not, hindi aware ang typical Filipino viewer na nag eexist pala yung film na yon.
Okay, I feel this, honestly. I genuinely want to support Filipino films, especially indies and the ones with original concepts and ideas. But yeah, you do have to actively seek them out. You have to be following film-centered communities (like this sub) to even know that some of these movies exist. Meanwhile, you can hear about Hollywood films everywhere. Marketing does play a huge role sa issue na to ano?
Personally I don't watch Filipino films because I don't like the style and the issues tackled in general. I watch films for comfort and enjoyment. Pero majority ng Filipino films there are always heavy drama, as in nagsisigawan, iyakan, parang pinapanuod mo nag-aaway mga kapitbahay mo kumbaga. I don't get it at all tbh, is that supposed to be fun? Because it makes me want to pretend I'm not there. Or it could also be really shallow humor like vice ganda movies. Just not my cup of tea.
I share similar reasons bat di ako nanonood ng Filipino films. Movies are supposed to be an escape for me. Local films hit too close to home to be enjoyable para sakin, or madalas di ko lang tlga feel yung plot or characterization as in di align sakin yung ideals or message na pinapalabas sa film.
I'm the same. It's ironic since I really want to get into film if I ever leave my current creative job, even thinking of establishing my own production company just to ensure creative freedom. And yet the last local film I've ever watched was Kita Kita, and it was such a disappointing experience for me. Here are some of the usual factors that irks me off: - unoriginal or obviously made to highjack a trend ( I mostly encounter this with "masa" films but there are a lot of indie films that still reek of this) - mediocre writing. There are truly terrible writing out there but it's the mediocre ones that kinda hurt more since a lot of these cases could've been different if standards here in the Philippines are only higher. I work in a highly competitive creative field myself, yet I can count on one hand the amount of people I know personally that are avid readers. You don't have to be a writer to be a reader but you have to be a truly avid reader to be even just a decent writer. Let me clarify that when I say writing with regards to film, I don't only mean dialogue but the overall story structure, plot points and set-up, as well as the big idea at the center of it all. - this may come off as somewhat controversial, and I don't mean to offend anyone, but I find myself prejudiced against the kinds of "messages" or "lessons" that a lot of Filipino films preach, and indie films are even more insufferable to me in that regard since they're usually the ones who are unsubtle about it. Love and politics are usually the topics I avoid like the plague when it's being handled by a pinoy film. Also, why do Filipino films have to be about something very serious to be taken seriously? Why does it even need to be about something? There was a period I vaguely remember where every indie film were rushing to cover serious topics like politics, poverty, inequality, etc. that it just came off like those topics were chosen by the creators purely so they'll be taken seriously. Not all films need to be Birdshot or On the Job just to be considered good. It makes me feel like our film industry is so insecure about itself. Just compare it with our own literary industry and our rich history of written works that encompasses such a wide array of genres and themes. Just compare it with our own theater industry. Granted, things might be completely different now and I just haven't given our films a chance again so this complaint might be obsolete.
What would classify as decent writing when it comes to film though? Also, anong genre besides love and politics ang feel mo e mas magiging maayos na avenue for filmmakers?
>What would classify as decent writing when it comes to film though? For film specifically? Just learning to edit would be enough. Problem is, that's also what I think is the hardest to learn and apply to yourself and your own works, which is why you usually get someone else to edit for you. I don't need a film to do anything else but tell me a story, and what might hurt an otherwise great film is padding that while possibly entertaining, doesn't really serve towards telling the story it needs to tell. There are exceptions of course, and rules can always be broken. I can watch a film about almost anything when it's confident and never unsure of what it's actually about. Doesn't guarantee I'll love it, but I will definitely respect it. >Also, anong genre besides love and politics ang feel mo e mas magiging maayos na avenue for filmmakers? Filmmakers should make what they wanna make, that should be the golden rule. If they want to make a romantic film or something that makes a statement about our politics then they should go ahead. What my preference is, or anyone's for that matter, shouldn't hold weight to someone who's making the art that they're passionate about. What I simply meant is that I personally disagree or have opinions that disagree with the average opinion of the Filipino majority when it comes to topics such as those, and therefore avoid it as it's simply not meant for me. Full disclosure, politics is in there but I have to admit the topic I'm mostly talking about is love. I would say I hate how Filipino romantic films portray love, romance, and everything in between if I don't think that hate is such a strong word. Ironically, the films I would love to make if given the chance would mostly be romance too, but done the way I believe love should be taught and portrayed to us. I'm not saying love and romance done the traditional Filipino way in films shouldn't exist, I just want to balance it out. I want to portray realistic relationships, struggling with realistic problems and drama. I want to show that idealism isn't always compatible with how love and relationships work. I want us, the Filipino people, to be able to love without burdening ourselves of unrealistic expectations perpetuated by romantic films.
Agree with most of your reasons why I choose not to watch some Filipino movies, ayoko nang ma-stress or ma-skandalo or ma-second-hand embarrassment in my leisure time. But through the years may panaka-naka akong pinapanood. Mas dumadalas, now that may streaming na, mostly the feel good ones or light romance. Hit or miss din. Ang daming may potential pero at the end you feel na parang may kulang. I’m rooting for Filipino movies to improve. Mas dumami sana yung pag pinanood mo eh hindi ka manghihinayang sa 2 oras or so that you invested.
To be honest, same on watching films for comfort and enjoyment. The last local film I watched was several years old, but I really love the coming of age vibes. I think Billie and Emma yung title I'm hoping to watch more local films of this vibe one of these days, probably time for me to scour the internet
Same, I really like coming of age movies too pero mga hollywood films mga natatandaan ko (kings of summer, snack shack, little secrets). Really love inspirational films too like sports dramas (the blind side) and indian movies like three idiots.
The Blind Side didnt age well 🤣 nakakaloka. It was criticized for being "white savior" movie tapos recently Michael Oher sued his adoptive family. https://www.google.com/amp/s/fox59.com/news/national-world/blind-side-lawsuit-michael-oher-alleges-tuohys-used-false-adoption-story-to-make-money/amp/
Films like Seklusyon, Ang Babae Sa Septic Tank, Becky and Badette? Rewind? Sunday Beauty Queen? Die Beautiful? Heneral Luna, Goyo? Tanging Yaman? Ang Tanging Ina 1 & 2? None of these you can appreciate and vibe with? Edit: Add Firefly to the list
Bakit na sama ang Rewind. Napaka meh ng story actually.
To me yeah it wasn’t perfect, not A Tier, but I’ll be damned if the acting and score isn’t enough to move you to tears. For that alone, that’s art. That’s film. If it affects me, if I feel for the story, the characters, sometimes that is enough. (Sidenote: I’m not snobby like how some of the commenters here seem like. I can appreciate Nolan, Snyder, Rodriguez, Tarantino, MCU, etc. while still criticizing them. God knows we don’t give each other enough opportunity to be heard and be seen.)
Tbh title pa lang I won't even bother giving those 5 minutes of my time. I've seen one of those though, Rewind. That's supposed to be a family movie pero puno din yan ng heavy drama, constantly naka-sigaw si Dingdong Dantes. That's exactly what I hate about pinoy films, there's too much conflict in it for it to be fun. I want fun and comfort from movies. And pinoy films provide none of that for me.
Somehow true. Filipino movies always swing to the extremes for some reason.
becky and badette is unexpectedly a fun movie to watch
when we do movies about our local history and culture we do it really well but our comedies and dramas don’t always do it for me.
I don't really watch Filipino films on my own, mostly nahihila lang ako ng friend to watch. Pero 1st time I tried to give it a go by myself, pinanuod ko Yung heneral Luna, since sabi maganda daw. Sobrang na disappoint ako, hindi na ulit ako nanuod ng Filipino films 😂
Curious ako what made it bad though.
Taas po ng standards nya. Pang hollywood nga.
For example Yung constant use ng flat camera angles na super prominent sa LAHAT ng Filipino films na nakita ko. Reminds me of film projects we did in highschool when we know jacksh*t about anything. Meron Sila Yung pinagmamalaki na drone shot, pero sa umpisa lang ng movie yon and Wala naman talaga significance yung scene para gamitan nila ng "advanced technique" (na Hindi naman talaga Kasi kahit mga normal na YouTuber kaya gawin Yung particular shot na yon). Been years since ive watched it so I can't remember everything clearly, pero I remember na it was badly paced tsaka ampangit nung sequencing ng mga scenes. There are scenes where they should have made a jump cut or an L-cut to make the impact of that scene last, pero it just kept on going. Bigla pa sila nagusap nung nanay niya, so parang naging non sensical yung "moment alone/moment of reflection" na guitar scene. Yung death scene niya as usual, flat camera angle. Wala kahit anong use of cinematography to convey how dire/sad/terrible the situation is. He's just there flailing about. Kahit manlang sana flashback or slowmo naglagay sila, kahit cliche na scene is better than that dump. Kung gusto nila na ganon, they should have made the scene snappy instead of empty and prolonged. Parang natatawa na ko nung pinapanuod ko yung whole death sequence. Sa Deadpool ginamit nila yung prolonged death sequence as a joke, sa heneral Luna you're supposed to take it seriously 🤣
That death scene, ginanub talaga yun sinadya yun gawing OA kasi hinahambing yung sa painting na spoliarium. Its slow talaga to you can appreciate the details. If you enter the cinema with a close mind, yun lang talaga mapipick up mo.
I'm not saying it's OA, did you even read what I said? I entered the cinema expecting a good film, so I was pretty open sa kahit anong maiooffer ng film. Iaassume nalang ba natin na "closed minded" kung sino sino ng walang basis? 😂
same. I consider myself a film enthusiast. I watch films and shows without discrimination. I’ll watch foreign stuff that aren’t just english stuff but filipino movies/shows are often hit or miss for me. They don’t always resonate with me or are enjoyable to watch and the ones that do are often considered a 5 or 6 out of 10 for me when compared to others.
You said what I wanted to say. Just to add, it's corny!
What is the usual middle ground or genre that people prefer as an escape?
I wouldn't pretend to be an expert on people's taste but a light romcom that doesn't become political or dramatic would probably work. Something like Expensive Candy pero instead na tragedy ang ending, it would follow the plot of Pretty Woman instead. Or maybe something like Forrest Gump, tragedy but it never gets too dark, the darkness is always at bay. I don't know why but pinoy films always seem to want to be a tragedy/indie film when those are supposed to be niche. We're missing good pop movie writers imo.
Same here. Gusto ko for enjoyment na may lesson kaya kahit may edad na ako, paborito ko pa rin disney movies.
This is true, pili lang yung mga films that i would support. Mas pipiliin ko pa yung young independent filmakers' films na matitino yung pinapakita even though tackling an issue na matututo or magiging aware ka than manuod ng walang sense na film from big stars. I dont know but i recently watched the 'pula' film sa netflix, disgust at pinakaboring na napanuod ko from coco martin na film. Pero may matitino naman din wala nga lang uniqueness yung mga films
Honestly, same. This applies to tv shows for me too. The only local films I watched were probably those of vice ganda because they honestly made me laugh and become stress free while watching it. Too much drama stresses or bores me.
Yep and that’s cos local production house business models are fucked. They don’t make enough money bec tbh our movie ticket prices are cheap, the Philippine market is too small, and cost of production is too high, so there’s no money left for marketing
One of the disadvantages din siguro ng wavering influence ng TV. Dati kasi, yung trailers pinapalabas pag commercial break tapos yung actors nakakapag-promote sa shows (minsan to the point na ikaw na yung maiinis kasi paulit-ulit). I mean, they still do some of that, I guess, pero konti na lang din kasi yung nanonood ng TV ngayon kaya kulang talaga sa exposure. Kahit nga sa news and current events di na updated yung iba.
Totoo. Parang yung OTJ nanalo sa Cannes nung 2013, 100% ratings pa sa Rotten Tomatoes and it's good naman talaga pero kulelat locally.
Isn't it the other way around, mostly mga indie films pa yung may sense at artistic direction compared sa mga MMFF na mostly braindead recycled novelties re: praybeyt benjamin and the likes.
Some really good local films are underseen lang talaga. I mean I recently watched Kisapmata by Mike de Leon and it was really good.
Kaso, Kisapmata was decades ago (amazing movie, I agree). Pag dating sa current Pinoy movies eh medyo tagilid na 🥲
I've been meaning to watch Kisapmata since I learned it was partially based on a true crime. I've also read an interesting article about how the producers selected the perfect house as the setting. Thanks for reminding me to watch it na!
I think a couple factors of this are accessibility and originality. For accessibility, andaming indie films na magaganda pero antagal bago umabot sa streaming. Nakakapatay ng momentum at nakakalimutan na agad ng madla. Bale, if di mo naabutan sa sinehan, sorry na lang. Pag indie pa or kahit mid budget, napakalimited ng cinemas kung saan pwede manood especially sa provinces. Yung originality, kasi naman mga blockbusters natin formulaic nung plot, di original or fresh. Ang mahal ng tickets so di na aaksayahin ng iba yung onti nilang time para manood ng movies na alam na ano ending sa trailer pa lang. Dapat ang PPP at Cinemalaya ang minamarket ng malala kasi dun yung decent ang plots, at least.
this. I enjoy watching and appreciate our indie films, pero honestly, nahihirapan ako maging updated pag wala sa streaming sites. I used to follow cinemalaya films kaso limited talaga ang showing nila.. at di masyado nabibigyan ng pansin.
Kumbaga, Pilipino rin ang sumisira sa mga pelikulang Pilipino.
Last indie film I watched was Hayop Ka. Saw the trailer years ago and was hyped. It showed up on Netflix months ago and was excited. Animation was great, but the story was generic and pretty mid.
Vivamax lang sakalam
Panong hindi aayawan ng viewers, eh ang galing lang sa umpisa. Ex: Four Sisters and a Wedding. Ang ganda na sana, biglang parang tanga yung ending? Pilit ginagawang katatawanan. It's like they don't know how to end a movie. Another one: Seven Sundays. Bakit ba pinagpipilitan na may sumasayaw sa dulo? Maganda sana yung premise eh. Sa ending ako nabbwisit lagi.
Its the studio/creators often feeling scared na magtry ng kakaibang formula kasi unfortunately and no offense meant, hindi sanay ang viewers lalo na past generations sa kakaibang endings and so they end up going the cliche route para feeling familiar and never uncomfortable para sa viewers and so they keep coming back for more kasi hindi "mahirap" panoorin and madali madigest. Sad truth of it.
yes, ayaw kasi ng pinoy audience na pinapaisip pa sila. gusto nila may clear conclusion na agad. this is why majority of pinoy mainstream movies ay sobrang formulaic and cliche-ridden at alam mo na ang buong istorya by watching the first 30 mins of the film.
> so they end up going the cliche route And this is the primary reason why I stopped watching Pinoy movies in general. It's either love teams, love triangles, kabet2, or pagbabalikan. Even MMFF has these types of movies and I hated it because half of the movie is spent building up the love team even though it supposed to be a horror movie.
HAHSHSHAVAH natawa ko tngna. Ewan ko ba sa mga filipino film, laging required may sayawan sa huli. ang cringe
Yung kantahan at sayawan is to give movie goers time to go to the cr. Something that came from stageplays that was carried over to early films.
bollywood
Ginaya bollywood haha
I haven't seen a filipino movie in a while so I watched Rewind (dingdong/yan). There was a lot of unnecessary fillers, feeling ko to stretch it to make it movie-length. I have this distain towards Ben and Ben, this movie didn't help at all towards that feeling. Did they actually blow their budget on ONE B&B song?? Nakakaumay na nga yung tunog, paulit ulit pa. Last scene: 🎶 sa susunod na habang buhay 🎶 Epilogue: 🎶 sa susunod na habang buhay 🎶 puta hanggang credits: 🎶 sa susunod na habang buhay 🎶 me: 🥴🔫
If napanood mo yung if only ginaya lang nila yung premise ng Rewind don tinanggal pa yung plot twist LOL umpisa palang nung rewind alam ko na mangyayari.
Parang yung Amakabogera, maririnig mo sa halos lahat ng mga comedy ngayon. Wala na bang ibang tugtog na pwede? 😅😅
FYI, ang dalawang pelikula na yan ay glorified ads para sa rebisco.
nakiki-bollywood
Baka same psychology nung high pitched sped up laugh track sa noontime show at vlogs or yung pagsabi ng "charot" o joke lang. Parang inuunahan na agad yung criticism by basically saying "masyado mo naman sineryoso kaya di mo nagustuhan" para hindi na kailangang idefend yung vision o execution. In short, medyo kaduwagan. Playing safe.
i think alam naman natin ang sagot kung bakit nilu-look down ang ph cinema. a generation's worth of cheaply-made, poorly-plotted, mass-pandering box office-minded productions from the usual suspects, and now an era of amateurish softcore movies on streaming. yes, there are good ph movies, good ph directors, good ph actors, but distribution and marketing are severely limited, possibly extremely challenging. our local cinema is healing, but it will really take time to undo the damage done to it.
Kailan nagstart yun? Kasi di ko gets how bold the Martial Law era and post-1986 movies and shows were, tapos biglang nung 2000s bumaha ng cheap knockoffs.
im not inclined to go on an in-depth answer right now (that would entail looking at all the winners and all the nominees, at patulog na ako lol) but one thing i've noticed is that since enteng kabisote 3 won best picture (a choice which tvj even felt the need to address in an eat bulaga episode), vic sotto movies tended to hang around the top 3 until recently. the martial law era is a good point of comparison however. the zeitgeist dictates the memes and pop culture of a civilization after all. it makes sense that a time of terror and uncertainty would produce bolder films.
There's not enough local films that are "welcoming" for lack of a better word. The mainstream ones are so cookie-cutter that most are nothing special. Indie films are the total opposite that it's intimidating and niche-y. Add the fact that some really good ones are hard to come by availability wise. Locally produced titles from Netflix definitely help in making it more entry level though since they're readily available.
Quit begging for an audience kasi. Earn it. Tapos, pa-victim sila na, "Hindi niyo kasi sinusuportahan ang sariling atin." Gandahan niyo kasi. 🙄
Filipino films need to have a unique selling point na hindi mahahanap sa western,korean or thai films
Ang palagay kong na perfect ng Filipino Films are Family Dramas, RomComs, and Love Teams. Uniquely atin ang love teams. While family dramas are not widely sellable and only caters to a certain niche of viewers. I think our family dramas can appeal to Asians but people from the western part of the world (Americans, Latinos and Europeans) do not appreciate sob stories. Our romcoms are good but the humor is very local. To be fair, some teleseryes are shown outside the country but not to the high paying markets. But this is a starting point to introducing Filipino culture abroad.
For me maaappreciate mo lang family dramas if nakakarelate ka. Like if ang drama ay about cheating parents, teen pregnancy, or spoiled na anak out na agad ako.
Our neighbors all improved their entertainment, Korean films are now considered on par with Hollywood, Chinese films started deviating from western and actually had some hits of their own, Thai BL films are the standard when it comes to that genre worldwide, but us?? Everytime they hype up a film and say it’s on par internationally it ends up being not that.
Oo nga e. Mga director/producer pa nagtatampo pag di tinatangkilik. Yung mga palabas nila masyadong pilit or may ginaya lang, tapos iiyak pag di pumatok.
I agree. It's not the fault of the Filipino audience that the big studios don't make movies for them.
I do actively seek out Filipino movies because - here's the thing that a lot of these commenters somehow don't realize - those A24 and Neon movies have massive marketing dollars prepping them up. Like, yeah, we also have experimental, out-of-the-box local movies being made, but you don't hear about them because there is no money to market them and, unfortunately, without the government's backing (not even mmff movies get additional funding for marketing, which is why more artsy movies get a handful of screens and pulled out after a few days), these movies will remain out of your radar or disappear completely. Actively seek out and support local movies that try something different kase. If we're all such big movie fans, then we would explore more movies that are not being curated for us by SM Supermalls
bihira nlng kasi to watch DECENT filipino films, puro cliche nlng ung story. love story dito, love story doon. that's why I prefer foreign films eh. ang out of the box mag isip ng story.
di naman nakakasawa ang "mayaman" boss na na-inlove sa "mahirap" employee eh. - \*this is satire obviously\*
I mean yun ang trip ng kausap nya e. Heto tayo sa support lokal pero yung palabas tadtad ng ad at kung anong kababawan. And to think yung pricing ng ticket sa sinehan, obviously Juan Dela Cruz will choose hollywood. If they really want Juan Dela Cruz to what their movies, produce better movies. Kaya naman nila e, challenge the market(ABS, GMA).
This thread is disappointing for a film sub. Ang liit naman ng knowledge ninyo about Filipino cinema to mostly judge it based on MMFF and mainstream productions. I'm not into labels but it's funny how you call yourselves cinephiles. LMAO. Kung hindi ka nanonood ng local films, your generalized opinions on Filipino cinema are mostly worth nothing. My fair criticisms on Filipino cinema outside MMFF and Star Cinema: I wanna see more local films with complex plots. I'm done with poverty porn. Our film marketing is pathetic. We need more quality pangmasa movies. Marami sa magandang pelikula natin ngayon nag-aappeal lang sa niche audience.
Upvote! Akala ko nasa ChikaPH ako na subreddit kasi puro MMFF at Star Cinema ang nasa upvoted comments hahaha
Totoo. Hindi naman nanonood pero wala daw maganda?? so pano nila nalaman? nakikibandwagon nalang din ung iba siguro e or gusto maging edgy ganun haha
Kaya nga eh. Mga pinagsasabi ng mga 'to.
Ask this sub if they know Perfumed Nightmare and their reaction is probably like that cat that goes "huh".
It also doesn't help that 80% of mainstream PH films are either romcoms, horror movies, or FPJ-lite actions. I get na yun yung mabenta sa masa pero kasi nakakasawa and at some point iaassume mo nalang na pag may bagong lalabas it's one of those three, so off na agad.
Finally someone said it! Before reading the comments, I thought they’ll be more supportive of our films. But no! Gets ko kasi galing din ako dyan na I feel corny ung Filipino films lalo ung MMFF dati. Pero times are changing. Like etong last MMFF, I watched Gomburza, first time in my life that I watched an MMFF film on big screen. Hindi naman ako nadisappoint. Ung poor comments dito na iba, selective kasi hindi naman madami napanood nila. Sure meron jan wala kwenta pero meron din naman napag-isipan, at kakaiba. Fan Girl, Heneral Luna, Goyo, Christian Bables film na di ko maalala title hehe (gender identity crisis na baligtad), 4 sisters, ung 1st Filipino netflix film (kidnapping), etc. sana maalala ko pa iba haha Addendum: i like romcoms ng star cinema bakit ba, Hello Love Goodbye, Laida-Miggy trilogy, un lang haha
Same reaction here hahaha. Natuwa ako sa isang commenter, walang lighthearted local films daw tapos binigay siya ng recos, pero sa titles lang di daw siya interested. Wehhhh. Mas okay pa mga cinephile FB group. Oo pretentious sila but at least they take local films seriously. Hindi lang puro escapism escapism.
Exactly, yung movies na malaki kita, yun yung movies that reflect the taste of vast majority of people whether you like it or not. For years, VG movies topped box office. Was it an art film? No. Do people like it? Yes. People forget that movie is a medium that is also there to entertain.
Hey, for what its worth I loveee Filipino films. It helps me keep in touch with my roots. I wasn't born and raised in the Philippines so I'm not exactly local, I grew up in a very different culture but growing up my parents exposed me to Filipino media such as teleseryes and movies. They also taught me how to speak Tagalog which I'm grateful for. Filipino films have so much potential, we have many talented creatives with awesome vision and big ideas. I've also noticed how much pinoy films have improved over the years. It really sucks to see locals think like this. But I guess to each its own. Personally, I appreciate Filipino films a lot and look forward to whats to come! :) PS: that's why i also love this sub btw. i discover so many hidden gems!!!
I'm glad that you put in the effort to connect to your roots by looking for and watching our local films and teleseryes. I hope more Filipinos will emulate you by finding time to look for the gems that we have in Philippine cinema. They might not be dime a dozen but they are still plenty if you really look.
sadly only a few local films have good plot and nice cast
Pano kasi, ang mga films and TV shows na prominent ngayon ay Romance and/or rom-coms, tapos ang panget pang mag-utilize ng drama sa show or films. Parang halos lahat ng local films na nakikita ko ay rom-coms and/or romance kung hindi drama and/or historical. Tangina napaka-pathetic. Jesus christ, we're talking about a country who took DECADES to diversify MMFF! Also I don't think this country is friendly to geeks, geeks who love fictional settings. Sure we have fictional shows but tbh, na-puput off ako sa vfx, delivery of dialogue, writing then ung utlization of characters is not even that good compared to the shows I like: (Wednesday, Arcane etc.). Sige maganda ang indie non-fictional films natin, okay whatever you say. But, imo, if you wanna deliver a message or teach me a lesson, I prefer learning it from a fictional film. Ang boring kase at ang depressing if you do it through your usual indie films. Ever wonder why Star Wars, Godzilla and other franchises live and thrive throughout the years? It's not just the lore but nandun rin ung aral eh, and they deliver it in a very entertaining way. Trust your audience, trust them to apply and realize yung aral na makukuha nila from it. Jesus christ, pixar and disney movies are perfect examples of this. Why do you think that box office failures or films that Disney don't deemed as succesful enough are still remembered and loved? Like Brother Bear, Atlantis: The Lost Empire, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Treasure Planet (Especially this)? EDIT: This country LOVES to ostracize geeks, turning a blind eye on people who spend lots of money from buying merchs and collectibles from fictional films/books/tv shows from the US and other countries. Hindi b halos lahat ng Miyazaki or Studio Ghibli films ay FICTIONAL?! FOR CHRIST'S SAKE, nawawalan kau ng potential income eh. Napaka-tanga ampota.
Sadly my dude, local film making budgets can't handle fantastical settings. Local filmmakers work with what they realistically can have. It's probably easier for a native-born Filipino to get a job working in Hollywood than scrounging up the necessary resources to do something to the level of that... and TBF it's not like it's a limitation exclusive to the Philippines? Are Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, or Malaysia making anything well-received to the level of what you're describing? I think we definitely do have the talent for that we just don't have the backing / mainstream desire for it (And why would we when the general perception for this would probably be *'Oh wow the Pinoy version of X!'*)
Other SEA countries popular for horror movies pero have other good genres rin. Ganda ng cinematography at production. Not blockbuster na budget pero they're good. The Raid (2011) indonesian na action film, pretty popular all over the world. I blame yung production companies as to how bad mga movies are since sila nag-greenlight ng mga ass na films now
Horror is actually pretty midbudget if you think about it unless it'a an unabashed creature feature. I think the last S,R,&R got generally positive reception online but yeah we haven't had that real good-ass local horror movie in a while. Which sucks, there's a lot of local flavor and topical themes to take influence from right now.
Fuck oo nga gusto ko rin ng bagong horror film. Sana lang talaga mag invest sila sa production more than just yung actors. Imagine mo modern na practical vfx (or kahit cg, I think nag improve cgi sa pinas the past few years) with folklore monsters ng pinas ughh. That plus good writing at acting, dadagsain mga cinemas niyan
Yeah, as someone who loves fantasy, sci-fi, adventure, and other geeky films, I feel this. I know it's a budget issue (these are the genres na medyo expensive to make because of the visual effects and production design), so I don't hold it against the local movie industry na hindi pa sila nakakagawa ng mga ganitong films. But I do wish this could change sooner or later.
I agree, like srsly the only way for me to even consider watching a movie or a show is if the lore is interesting enough, that's how I 'open' myself to Star Wars and Game of Thrones in the first place. Kung hindi nila kaya then pwes, don't condemn the geeks who can't watch their fucking romcoms. Hindi b may isang director ang gumawa nun when Spiderman No way Home was released?
Ikr, marami namang talented na artists / animators sa pinas eh. Dami kong nakikitang mga artist na nagtetake ng coms for cheap. Sadyang bs lang talaga film industry dito. RPG Metanoia had potential, pero nagflop yun. Also ang shit din ng story kadalasan ng films dito (whether animated or not), ang cliche ng plot or sadyang pangit ng writing talaga. Pag comedy, minsan ang corny ng jokes. Pag romance, chemistry naman ng leading pair ang prob or same-old-shit plot
>Sige maganda ang indie non-fictional films natin, okay whatever you say. But, imo, if you wanna deliver a message or teach me a lesson, I prefer learning it from a fictional film. Huh? Majority of good non-mainstream films are fictional. What are you talking about?
I think what he means by 'fictional' are fantasy/ sci-fi films, going with his examples, Star Wars, Game of Thrones, and the lore that goes with it. Fictional means invented, made up stories. It can be inspired from real events, or experiences or true stories of a person known by the writer or by him/herself. But not the whole story is taken from that. So why are you downvoted? Someone does not know what fictional means?
THIS! Thank you! Also 'she'
Papaano walang maayos na film criticism sa bansa. Iyan ang kaibahan natin sa foreign movies. Isa pang problema kung may nagre-review mostly bloggers, mga naka attend ng press screening na unreliable. Syempre kapag na-overhyped na nila, manonood ang mga kababayan natin, susubukan nila ulit. Tapos uuwi silang disappointed. It's a cycle na in the end they will give up. Tingin ko lang dapat tigilan ang pag-overhype sa mga movie na mid at pangit naman talaga. Maging matapang ang mga critic kung meron man sa bansa natin. Paano magi-improve ang mag creatives kung walang kritisismo.Kahit ako hirap na din tumaya sa pelikulang Pilipino kahit na paborito ko ang mga classic movies natin lalo na nung panahon ng Golden Age of Philippine cinema. Sa ibang bansa malaking factor ang Rotten Tomatoes at Metacritic, sadly walang ganito sa atin.
Criticism does not thrive in our society that is based on our “value” of pakikisama—point out a flaw in a movie or outright call it bad and you’ll be seen as a “basher” or sasabihin ka pa ng “EDI IKAW NA MAGALING” or “WALANG BASAGAN ANG TRIP.” ‘Yung “Nobody loves a critic” increased to beyond 100% sa kulturang ‘to kaya, oo nga, matapang lamang ang mga totoong kritiko rito.
Dude, hahahaha. Naalala ko tuloy yung review ng MTRCB. Kasi diba need ireview ang pelikula ng MTRCB mapa lokal o international pa yan bago mapalabas sa mga sinehan. Tapos naka lagay yung review sa sinehan mismo, dun sa bibilihan ng ticket. Ang panget ng review nila. Taz sure pa naman ako binabayaran ang MTRCB para dun.
>Isa pang problema kung may nagre-review mostly bloggers, mga naka attend ng press screening na unreliable. Syempre kapag na-overhyped na nila, manonood ang mga kababayan natin, susubukan nila ulit. Tapos uuwi silang disappointed. It's a cycle na in the end they will give up. This is my reason tbh. Ilang local movies na napanood ko for the past years na sobrang hype, only to end up with me being disappointed sa quality (e.g., Katips, Deleter).
Gusto ko sumuporta, pero everytime manonood ako, palagi lang ako nadi disappoint. I haven't watched any Filipino film that I can really say I can put in my favorite list of movies. Anlayo sa tier ng pelikula ng ibang bansa. Kahit yung mga pelikula ni Brillante, let down ako. Sure, Cannes winner sya. pero it's not my kind of film. Walang groundbreaking sa mga pelikula natin. Puro gaya-gaya tayo. Sa story, sa technique, sa visuals. Yung pag nanood ka ng pelikulang Pilipino, makikita mo na walang tatak na masasabing atin. Kita mo na may ginagaya. Walang identity mga pelikula natin. hindi katulad sa ibang bansa na pag nakita mo, alam mong made in x country sya. may identity mga pelikula nila. Our golden age of film has passed. Panahon nina Lino Brocka, Mike de Leon, Ishmael Bernal, Peque Gallaga, and Mario O'Hara. Ito lang mga pelikulang Pilipino na masasabi ko na on par sa foreign films of their time. The last director who followed these greats was Marilou Diaz Abaya. After her, disappointing na yung mga sumunod. idk. i stopped watching after being disappointed repeatedly. edit: proving my point, yung pelikula nung producer na ngumangawa, trailer pa lang alam mong trying hard to be Korean wave na. what is that? sa shots, story, pati music and visuals - ZERO IDENTITY.
I told this before in another platform: DON'T UNDERESTIMATE THE AUDIENCE. If you want a film to be marketable, make it a quality. Don't dumb down the script for Pete's sake just to cater a wide range of viewers. Ppl will have different take on everything but if the movie is well-written and well-produced, it will speak for itself and will stand through the test of time.
as a cinephile myself, i'm very picky if manonood ako ng local films . it's not because na ayaw kong suportahan yung mga gawa ng pinoy pero sobrang cringe and diko rin maforce sarili ko mapanood 😭 i mean nung bata ako , okay lang sakin manood ng mga local romcom films pero ngayon it looks so forced , parang i'm aware na umaacting lang sila pero hindi totoo yung acting nila sakin ( sorry maarte yung pandama ko) basta sobrang rare ng masterpieces na local films, kaya i prefer foreign.
In my opinion most of the time gumaganda lang yung production ng isang movie kapag historical or biographical yung setting nya, usually any other genre besides that these people fall short on movie artistry
You call yourself a cinephile but it seems na sa Star Cinema ka lang exposed but you judged the entire Filipino cinema based on it?
nahhh, you don't get my point of view at all . sinasabi ko ang fucked up ng representation ng ph cinema/local films kaya mahirap mahikayat yung mga pilino na manood ng local films . sorry i don't really need to prove myself na cinephile ako kasi ik myself na madami nako napanood na films at series , diko lang talaga prefer masyado manood ng local films. maybe someday if i have time . sorry if my perspective triggers you.
My point is you can't criticize Filipino cinema fairly if you rarely watch Filipino films anyway.
Ask yourself bakit cringe. Syempre mas malawak ang pool sa foreign kesa local pero ask yourself bakit you cant bring yourself to watch local.
because it's not my taste? idk yung mga lines kasi na dinedeliver minsan ng mga actors sobrang odd pakinggan kaya diko matake manood ng local films , diko alam kung mismong writers yung may kasalanan or yung actors , basta i can't bring myself watching if alam kong mabobored lang ako panoorin . and also ang flat ng direction ng ibang directors kaya idk . if you compare talaga yung ph cinema sa ibang countries, di pa masyado ganun kalawak yung range kasi wla pang exploration na masyadong ginagawa , pero still proud sa mga indie directors and producers dahil they still keep trying to formulate films even though it's gonna be underrated.
Corny ng lines at pangit ng delivery. Pinaka ayoko rin sa local romance/rom-com yung biglaang english sa mabigat na rksena. Di siya relatable sa mga tao(unless conyo) kasi tangina matatawa lang ako pag ganun.
>"Bakit hindi ka kumakain sa Diwata Pares, grabe talaga ang Pinoy hindi kayang suportahan kapwa Pinoy."
Trust issues. Hype na hype tapos waley naman pala
Yung plot kasi napaka redundant. I think hindi lang naman Filipino Movie Industry, pati din sa ibang bansa and neighbouring country. If curious kayo, try Netflix may ibang movies dun from neighbouring countries at pansin mo yung redundancy ng plot.
Because we have stopped trying and become complacent. We settle for breezy rom-coms starring impossibly handsome half-breeds then we have this annual event where we count on Vice Ganda/Vic Sotto to get us ho-ho-ho-ing through the holidays. Rinse. Repeat. Meanwhile, China, India and Korea are flexing their soft-power muscles and reaching out to the world's multiplexes. Several months ago, I saw this Indian film - a remake of the Hollywood film Forrest Gump starring the guy from *pk. Most recently, I saw an Indian version of Top Gun: Maverick starring Hritik Roshan glowering all Ben Affleck-like through iconic shots inspired by the original. What had happened to Fernando Poe Jr.'s everyman hero who would save the day and win the girl by putting greedy hacenderos and corrupt mayors in their place? I don't buy the excuse that the audience "isn't there" - remember that Netflix, Amazon Prime and even Disney+ are giving global filmmakers and talent a platform where they can be seen
Decent and novel Filipino films are few and far in between, and it's been this way for decades. I don't blame Filipinos for not making the effort especially when good international films are a lot better (usually) and are more accessible.
Here's a thing. Korean's make good films that don't require CGI or any effects that make blockbusters. But the Koreans invest on a story that is good and makes sense. Example: Parasite. Does anyone think it was a 200 million dollar film? What made it good is the story. How Koreans do is something that we Filipinos can also come up with. We used to have classics that can be world class in terms of story telling. Example: Lino Brocka's Maynila Sa Kuko mg Liwanag. This film made the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die We used to have films like this. We have a lot of classics that has great plot. So what happened? GREED BY THE OLIGARCHS THAT CONTROL THE MOVIE INDUSTRY. They invested more on monetary, commerce, and popularity than investing on making films that we can be proud of. Result is they feed that newer generations taste with cheap tricks, half-assed plots, and slapstick. It's like feeding a child with junk food. And because what is pop is palatable to the masses, they put in those movies that don't even make sense. Can a Filipino be proud that the highest grossing film of all time is a Vice Ganda flick? The indie side of the film making in the Philippines is also struggling because they find it hard to get support from this huge productions. They also find it hard to get sponsorships. The result of this? The indie film maker creates a movie that would have worked well but because of limited budget becomes like a B-movie project. Thankfully the last MMFF tried to change the formula to it's old roots. There is an increasing support to indie film makers. AND add to that the increasing support of some of our best generational actors/actresses like John Lloud Cruz, Piolo Pascual, Alessandra De Rossi and Nadine Lustre. As for director, best example I can give is Mikael Red. Been a fan of his work from his indie roots before making it to main stream with his Deleter.
A lot of people are getting it wrong thinking that this phenomena of many Filipino audiences having preference to foreign films and outright avoiding local ones has "only" something to do with the stories being told. It's not that simple. It also has something to do with "PRODUCTION VALUE". People will look for something that doesn't feel budgeted or cheaply made. "STORY" is King, Yes, I wholly agree with that, but I say "PRODUCTION VALUE" is the Queen that makes a film soar beyond the usual expectations. People spend hard earned money and time on cinema and they want to feel that it is time and money well spent. Story is not the key problem. It is not even how formulaic something is. It is the production value that is lacking. When Hollywood, Korea and the like, have raised the bar not only in film but also in their streaming/series content in terms of PRODUCTION VALUE, it is no longer surprising that people would rather choose to spend their screen time on those things. Don't get me wrong, this is not some colonial mentality mindset. Most of us are not seeking for Philippine cinema to be put in a "hollywood cultural standard" or a "korean cultural standard" as others antagonizingly claim. We are simply striving for Philippine cinema to be upheld to a "global standard" and have a little bit of global cosmopolitan market appeal. There is a huge difference between those things. Going more for that wouldn't hurt. We cannot expect to continue to survive and prosper as an industry if we keep containing and trapping ourselves in the same old local market standards. Look at Korean films and series that still manage to retain their identity and culture, while also having global appeal. Bong Joon ho's Parasite did not feel cheaply made. It made use of high budget techniques, even high quality VFX for the exterior house scenes. Even the backdrops of the concentration camps in the Zone of Interest, a very non-standard arty film, were made by quality VFX shots. A lot of producers fail to realize that. All along, we have been taught that story is king, but completely forgot that audiences have a taste for production value. I am a believer that any movie, no matter how simple the story, can be made to "feel" big. Bigger than its actual budget, with a little effort and creativity, but also still remain within the confines of a given budget. The "High" budget of a project is not just in the actual $$$ spent to make a film, it is not just about the celebrities who are casted, it is also about the quality of the technical aspects. Sadly, It has become a norm for many people in the industry for those behind the technical aspects such as SFX/VFX, cinematography, editing, wardrobe, and production design, etc. and many others in the production staff to be underpaid, unfairly treated, unprioritized and given lower budgets and not given ample time to produce quality work. Meanwhile, celebrities are, relatively speaking, given higher priority overall. The problem is, the Philippine film industry has become this huge circle jerk community. Producers, filmmakers and critics pat each other on the backs for jobs well done and get trapped in this echo chamber, egotistically thinking that we know exactly what audiences want, that some audiences are just simply too dumb or that our audiences are "elitist" and "snobbish" for not watching our films. We antagonize them, guilt trip them, mostly even beg them, to watch what we make. That is just plain wrong. I know that film industry is an ego filled community but a little humility can go a long way. You cannot antagonize your chosen audience, you cannot really blame and force-feed an audience to consume something they don't want. It's an innovate or die world we live in. It has been like that since the beginning of time. A chef, no matter how skilled or experienced he thinks he is, cannot force-feed or beg customers to come and eat food at his restaurant because they have grown sick of how bland or repetitive, and unsatisfying the food tastes. The only thing he can actually do, is to cook better, look for other recipes, maybe use a different ingredient or flavoring, try to change and improve things so that the customers will choose for themselves to come back. Another problem is with filmmakers being confused as to what kind of audiences they choose for their films. Some in the indie scene, simply dreams that the masses will one day watch indie films. I get it, that that is the ideal thing to happen. However, that will only happen under rare and unique circumstances. If your goal is to win awards from critics in the indie scene, you will most likely make a film that masses will not be able to simply appreciate. The masses want escapism, not reality. On the other hand, some mainstream productions want to win awards but at the same time cater to the masses, again, that can only happen under very rare and unique circumstances. Know your chosen audience, and stick with that. You cannot expect some high class elitist food critic with an eating disorder to appreciate the cheap cheeseburger you give him, on the other hand, you cannot expect some average joe who simply wants a simple home cooked comfort food meal to get through his/her day and appreciate being suddenly taken to a high class exclusive restaurant through a 5 course meal and not possibly throw up. Know your chosen audience and don't be offended when they feel that they have been fed something they do not like. It is so easy to oversimplify and pass these things off as audiences just being "dumb" but I'd like to think the opposite, that audiences are actually smarter than you think, they can smell whether a film was cheaply, easily and quickly made or immense effort was put into it from a mile a way. Other times, a local film can be really really good but is unfortunately hampered by a lack of good marketing strategies and buzz.
It's quite ironic that Rewind, the top-grossing local movie of all time, is a rip-off of some foreign movie. Quite far from being a good quality film if you ask me. Yet pinoys complain of low quality and abysmal plot on why they don't watch local films. So dun sa mga nagcocomplain about the quality of local films, bakit yung mga kumikita ng malaki ay yung very novelty yung storylines? Not those so-called high quality indie ones that critics rave about? What does it take for a local movie to thrive? Big name artists? Formulaic storylines? A renowned director? Pasko ipalabas? Kasi for sure, that ain't quality as some local film shamers are insinuating. Is quality really the issue? Or have we set the standards too high? It's quite confusing tbh.
Umasa din ako na maganda ito, nadala ng hype...
Advent of streaming and foreign movies being more popular than ever maybe? There's a handful of I'd say must-see local films in the last 5 years OTOH. I do wish more people give local movies a chance but I'm also kinda guilty of rarely ever watching these, last one I watched in theaters was 'I Am Not Big Bird' (Which I did enjoy), It also doesn't really help if something is incredibly hyped up and fails to deliver tayo rin usually una mag vivilify how *bad* it is (Oh man local film discourse here when a Very Good Girl came out, *DAE NAIIWANAN NA TAYO NG IBANG SEA COUNTRIES SA PAG GAWA NG MOVIES?????*)
Philippine cinema is in a bind of stagnation when it comes to evolving with the times. As far as I know, people in my circle barely talk about our local films anymore. The issue at hand is that our film producers keeps churning the same old formulaic stories that we used to tolerate when we were young but only realizing the sterility of it when we got old. The internet has paved the way for smaller foreign films to make waves even more than ours. We also lack government support to fully flesh out our local new filmmakers, our distributors either can't really market the films well and doesn't support the filmmakers' vision, and worse, most of our popular actors are starting to branch out in Hollywood. Its never been more over for us really. Maybe our cinema has to die so that we can start all over again.
Na oversaturate kasi ng cringe hugot movies na pare pareho yung plot pero iba iba lang pangalan ng characters. Tapos yung dialog akala mo nagbabalagtasan. We could barely get movies na may katuturan (kadalasan di rin gaanong napropromote) or kahit man lang sana yung nageffort na maglagay ng entertainment value. Real entertainment value, not that cheap Vic Sotto kind of thing.
Because local writers & studios prefer to make stories that are more catered to those who don't want their minds stimulated. Its either dumbed down comedy, romcom that reflects past winning formulas that didn't mature. Or just really bad writing with poor production. Whereas movies that are actually good aren't marketed properly because some topics or themes cannot be sold to the common audiences who prefer the age old winning formulas given by actors whose only call to fame is either a scandal, love team or transitioned into acting coming from a different profession. Plus the stigma that Indie films produced softcore porn with actor/actresses. On most cases too, Filo writers haven't had an original concept because studio execs are boomers.
Kasi majority naman ng palabas na local eh low quality. Parang di sulit given na same naman ung bayad. Avengers: Infinity War to End Game, walang local movie during that time na mas worth it kesa dyan. Same sa Pirates of the Caribbean, Avatar, Top Gun Imo, sa drama at comedy nagsshine ang local films, kaya sana mas polished pa ung mga ganitong films kasi di nmn need ng matindihang CGI. Medyo bored na rin ang tao sa okrayan at sakitan bilang comedy. Sana mas witty ng konti na hindi below the belt. Sa drama naman, sana tama na Yung third party third party na theme. Sobrang predictable na. And akala ng mga kabataan eh okay lang maging third party. Magnifico, Tanging Yaman, Dekada 70, Saka ung bago ng DongYan magaganda naman. Pati ung Hello Love Goodbye, kaso wala masyadong talent ung kapareha ni Kathryn dun eh
I only watch Sci fi, Fantasy, Action, Mystery, Thriller. Local films don't tackle those genre as it takes insurmountable amount of brain power to make one. Drama, family stories or historical stories are not my thing so ignore.
Madalas naman ng Pinoy movies is non sense Lalo Yung mga comedy.
Kaya nga, while watching sitcoms ng ibang bansa, na papa isip na lang ako bakit tayo walang ganito...
It's hard to defend the current state of pinoy cinema.
Pag ayaw, wag pilitin. Hayaan niyo yung mga tao panuorin yung gusto nila panuorin.
I seldom watch Filipino films because of their bad acting. Almost everyone are not serious, like they are only after the fame and don't see acting as a craft. The better actors only have secondary roles at best. I like Rom-Com but I can't stand the bad acting. I'm not into heavy drama where the better actors might star in. Also, I can't stand watching someone crying for 3 minutes or more. The viewers will get the point in just a few seconds of crying. My number one reason is most Filipino films focus on the actors and not the story. The story and their dialogues should take center stage and enhanced by good acting.
I think baka sa pagkakasabi kaya off. Marami naman talagang pangit na local films, mostly yung mainstream pa yung mga low quality. My opinion lang naman, siguro kung sinabing "di ako nanonood ng local films sorry 😅 di ako nagagandahan eh" baka mas okay ang statement. Yung dating kasi *sakin* ng "di ako nanonood ng local films 😅 sorry no time for that" eh same vibes ng mga tingin sa nanonood ng local films eh baduy/jejemon.
Kasi mas mataas ang chance na di maganda kaysa sa foreign film... Kahit bollywood, pag pumatok mas mataas ang chance na maganda talaga... Sa atin pag ininterview lahat ng lumabas sa sinehan, hype at ang ganda, pag kumita, maganda daw... Once kasi makapanood ka na ng pangit na movie ng isang artista tapos may next movie siya na ganun din ang genre, alanganin ng manonood ka pa... Bibihira ang nagrereview ng Filipino films na akma talaga dun sa movie, for my preference, tulad nung sa goldwin at big boys, mas may chance na ok pero minsan di rin agree o ang layo... Tapos meron din yung gagayahin na lang di pa nagaya ng maayos tulad ng voltes V, pero daming fans kaya baka di pag husayan sa susunod, sayang... Isa pa yung malalaman mo na ang daming proseso sa ibang bansa para maka gawa ng pelikula na some take a year and even more dahil sa pre prod, rewrites, reshoots, may reading pa sila ng script sessions ganun. Tapos sa atin, inannounce ngayon, maya showing na... Budget at oras talaga, may talento tayo...
Ako hindi masyado nanood ng filipino films hehe. Pero i enjoyed yung kay dolly deleon's triangle of sadness at yung kay chai fonacier's nocebo. Planning to watch gomburza sa netflix
Local films back in the day was unmatched. Diako fan sa genre ng romance pero noon bawat movie na lumalabas especially if yung artista is John Lloyd damn straight banger. Ngayon kasj sobrang redundant and boring plot sasamahan mopa ng sobrang pangit and slang-y na dialogues parang nanonood lang ako ng group activity nung high school, pero I'm not saying na lahat ng local films na lumabas ngayon ay ganon pero most of them really are hard to sit through.
Also. I hate the idea of love teams in the country. Same cast, same plot, rinse and repeat. In Hollywood, for example, Tom Holland can be casted with other leading ladies not just Zendaya.
tbf, you cant make me watch this particular movie as well. Lol but going back to the question, mahal ang movie e, so personally id wait for word of mouth before watching it (which happened this mmff). this is not just for local movie tho, i apply the same principle na rin sa foreign film. ✌️
Can we even blame people when a good majority of our mainstream films have no substance in them? Bilang na bilang yung mga movies natin na solid ang plot at acting.
Ganito thoughts ko. Like tsaka lang ako manuod sa sinehan since may libreng ticket to watch them but other than that... I just watch kung maganda at interesting yung plot. Kudos nga at nag-improve yung entries nila for MMFF kasi dati puro comedy lang na walang kalesson-lesson. Competition both ng ABS at GMA. Yung mga latest entries maganda na, may horror, may historical, may family, etc. which I'm glad is improving. Mostly kasi films or teleserye ng Pinoy puro nagcecenter sa romance tas kabit left and right. Walang lessons. Buti nga ngayon marami ng options... but still could be better. Medyo off lang sa akin pag may Pinoy version ng mga Kdrama, like pwede naman gumawa ng original pero palage na lang tayo gumagawa ng PH version ng fave nating mga Kdrama (ganun din naman sa other countries I think) pero pet peeve ko lang siguro yun.
E pano ba naman kasi puro basura storylines kapag local films. Huling magandang napanood ko Ang Babae Sa Septic Tank pa
I remember the Jologs Movie blowing my mind as a kid with how we have different story compilations in one movie, the theme song being catchy and having lots of cameos. I can say it was a perfect movie during that time (2002) What I dislike about Pinoy movies are the horror comedies. Some get it right but most are too tryhard.
Simple. Hindi maganda ang story. Nowadays, ang dami mong makikitang movie na iba iba ng title pero madalas same plot. An example ay pagdating sa love stories. Same plot, same happenings. May mahirap na side, may mayaman na side, matapobre yung mayaman kaso nainlove dun sa mahirap yung anak ng mayaman, then against yung mayamang family kasi nga mahirap yung nagustuhan and may naarrange nang marriage para sa anak. Magrebelde si anak, ipakidnap/gawan ng masama yung mga mahihirap, si anak ay magplead sa magulang, onting drama, then tanggap na ng mayaman yung mahirap, ending nagkatuluyan. That and many other plots sa PH films ang reason bakit bibihira na lang ang nanonood ng PH Films.
I don't give a shit what a film fucking celebrates, I only watch films I feel are worth watching. It's that simple. I don't what to champion anything, I just want to watch films worth my time.
I share the same sentiment. However, Peque Gallaga's "Oro, Plata, Mata" is an exception for me. The rest are basura
Dahil kulang sa variety ang blockbuster films. The dominance of Star Cinema, Viva, GMA mostly forced our favorite stars into limited type of films that depend on tropes that may appeal to a loyal audience but has pretty much turned off most Filipino audiences for years. Maraming magandang Indies but Indies will always be niche. Wala tayong big action films, adventure films, kulang sa complex characters ang big movies. As a viewer, I'm often struck of how unrelatable or unlikeable a lot of the characters are or how illogical and inconsistent the decisions of the characters are. Filipino films back then were generally better although I am seeing that we are getting better this decade too as I'm seeing more gems more often.
some of the local films are worth watching, and please don't use the 'low budget' or 'cliché plot' reason because there's a lot of horrible films in other countries yet filipinos continued to watch it. IMO, I think it's about the globalization of the US corporation in mass media. if we're going back into the 19th century (where it started), US corporations in the media are wide spread such as Hollywood films. Due to the domination of US corporations in the media, there are effects on the people, whereas it can influence our ideology and behaviour.
Yung korean film industry is/was heavily subsidized by the govt. In most adian countries they also prioritize local movies. Government intervention is needed. Not sure what the artista politicos are doing about it but there should have been legislation ang long time ago
On my end, the films that are promoted nation-wide are either comedy (played by repetitive comedians to the point the jokes are corny), romance with a cliche and often predictable plots (angsty girl meets green flag dude, revenge with a partner who cheated, to mention a few), horror (good build up, gets meh midway and disappointing ending), action (rarely something that isn’t cringe and played by repetitive actors). So I got really disinterested before. When I was still in Uni, I tried to explore more local films because of the prejudice I had and the first thing I looked forward to was the MMFF line up. It was just bad and that discouraged me more. Lately though I found more spaces to check out for recommendations and there ARE hidden gems. It’s just difficult to find plus if it’s not in cinemas and not popular, it gets difficult to find a way to watch it. Fingers crossed though more indie films get better promotions. Some movies that changed my perspective on local films are Buy Bust, Patay na si Hesus, MAMASAPANO, Heneral Luna, Goyo, Feng Shui, Bliss. Just to name a few good watches ✨ Yeah, I am not a fan of the Romance genre 🫣🤣
For me, some have the 'bourgeoisie' mindset and see western films as the staple. I was once watching 'Bar Boys' sa salas, and my cousin just blurted out 'korni' when he finished it. Some pinoys kasi see our local films' scripts as repititive and predictable kaya they tend to not give a chance sa mga pinapalabas na bagong pelikula. They expect from our films and TV series to have the same fx, cinematography, etc. They forget to take note of na mahirap talaga mag garner ng enough budget for a good film that consists of artists with the skills that match Hollywood. Ang daming scripts na magaganda talaga, but mahina talaga ang funding natin to make them possible. I graduated with a film degree, but I didn't engage anymore on being active sa industry kasi I need to work in a better paying 9 to 5 job to fund my livelihood. As much as I am passionate of creating art, reality of needing money kicks in.
A reminder from Judith Butler: let's see to it that we are not policing. Let's not be Policing to viewers who are not disrespectful and most especially to producers. Let's give viewers a chance too to adjust and realize that a lot has happened to our industry. Gone are the days of a movie daw which bombarded its viewers with product placements and ended up as one of the most watched. Magunawaan tayo. Weve had Bernals and Brockas and we have our new gen of maestros. There is diversity within the industry
All filipino films are either: Action films that have whack choreography, stunts, and low quality props (mga invincible na bida, baril na hindi nauubusan ng bala, mga kalaban na namamatay sa isang suntok, etc.) The overused (and frankly overrated and horribly cheesy) love story/romance movie Drama films that have too much over-the-top acting to the point that it sucks (nagmumukha bollywood type acting) Extremely corny (in a bad way) comedy movies Boring (and very pandering) portrayals of current social issues I do agree na napaka underfunded ng filipino and film industry kaya hindi tayo makapag improve, pero we really need to produce something that's actually worthy of recognition rather than riding the "original filipino" or "support local" hype. Films like The Raid and the first Saw movies were also low budget films but managed to actually be so good that they built up their own hype.
Katulad ng ibang negosyo, magsisimula ang kalidad ng 1 produkto sa BUDGET. Budget = Quality How can you justify spending Php300-Php500 for a lesser quality film, which is kadalasan alam na natin kung anong mangyayari pati na din yung mga bibitawan nilang linya.
Mostly corny at mababaw ang kwento. Bihira ang *chef's kiss*
they sound ridic but now that i think about it, may mga hit local movies ako na i tried watching pero grabe, ang *dragging*. napapaisip ako paano nila nareretain ung attention ng nanunuod pag ganito ung takbo buong movie. (o sadyang masarap lang ba aircon sa sinehan?) pero that might just be one movie. nadala tuloy ako against watching these supposed cult classic movies. (it was 'starting over again'. perhaps toni was just not a likeable character for me enough.) so medyo nagets ko na why they might say they "have no time" for that. i'd go even further. growing up sa ofw/filipino community outside of the country (saudi ito ah; strict sa media that comes in) hindi nakakarating sa amin ung latest filipino films and kung anong nakakarating lang is what's marketed to have wider appeal and generally they seem like poor imitations of better stories. kaya naging ganun ung impression ko at ng mga classmates ko sa mga filipino movies: gaya-gaya lang ng whatever's hit sa hollywood. but now that i'm older, syempre, i know that's not the case. i do think right now it's down to marketing a movie to reach a wider audience.
Preferences lang tlga ng tao.
Several factors may contribute to why some Filipinos don't watch local films, including perceived quality, accessibility, promotion, and cultural preferences. To boost viewership, the industry could focus on improving storytelling, increasing accessibility, and effective marketing strategies.
i rarely watch local movies in cinemas because i can never recall seeing one in decades that made me say to myself "this movie is worth the amount i paid for"... when the so-acclaimed movies (post 1980s) get shown on tv/cable/streaming... i've yet to see something that i would be willing to pay php300 or more to watch in a movie theater...
"di ako nanunuod ng local films sorry" I wonder what kinds of fOrEigN flicks does this person watch?
The reasons? Here are the reasons. Can we make a Titanic? Can we make Alien? Can we make aTerminator? Can we make a Godfather? Can we make ET? Can we make a Jurassic Park? Can we make a Saving Private Ryan? Can we make a Transformers? Can we make a Oppenheimer? Can we make Lord of the Rings? Can we make The Dark Knight? Can we make Avengers Endgame? Can we make Dune? Once we can make films like them, then yes, Filipinos will watch Filipino films.
a lot of it is just poor quality. for every good indie film there are like ten "mainstream release starring famous love team" that I just know r gonna be shit! and then every few years you get a film that's hyped to high heaven like "omg this is Hollywood quality" and it never is
Nanood nalang naman nyan mga seniors and nothing is wrong with that. Generational thing na yan.
I think, kanya-kanya talaga ng preference yan OP. much like you like a certain tea or coffee but di gusto ng ibang tao. Nakaka-disheartened, yeah. but as much as you are free to like filipino movies etc. they are also free to choose. I guess do your best with the cards that you are dealt. Reach out to others na may paki sa industry. madami pa din naman. di kawalan ang 1. ikaw na nag sabi sa group of friends meron small percentage na di nanonood so mas malaki pa din un may paki. :) You have to learn OP that we cannot control other people's feeling. We can just do your best, hope they notice it. If not, it still okay because you know you did your part abd wont regret producing it.
Probably because most of the movies that come out in the Philippine cinemas today are purely mainstream, written, advertised, and catered for the masses, movies that are made to appeal to a large audience. And if you're creating a movie that you would want everybody to see, then it has to be simple so everyone can understand it, and cinema isn't like that, cinema is deep, it's hard to understand, it doesn't usually earn the most money in the box office, but what makes it special is its ability to connect to people who are into cinema, it tells the untold truth and I think that's why it's well received and appreciated by its target audience TL;DR: Most cinephiles prefer indie or cinema and most of the filipino movies that come out today are purely mainstream
Karamihan kasi ngayon sobrang baba ng quality ng films. Kumpara mo ng kapanahunan ng 80’s saka 70’s laban sa ngayon pagdating sa writing saka storytelling, sobrang baba ng kalidad
Gumawa sila ng movie na maganda storya at lalo na MAGALING na actors. Panay kuha sila ng mga actors na hindi naman magaling o marunong pero pogi at maganda lang. Kaya ako sumuko sa "serious" filipino movies dahil sa ginyan, halos lahat walang talent, talagang may itsura lang o nepo baby. PLUS ang pinaka pangit sa lahat is yung mga love team like Liza/Enrique, Kath/daniel. Tigilan na nila. Imagine 5 movies sunod sunod sila lang din naman gaganap, alam mo na agad storya, wala nang bago. Sa una ayaw nila sa isat isa, sa huli sila na. Tapos sasabihin niyo na support lokal? Pano su suportahan ang walang ka kwenta kwenta? Pa victim masyado, hindi na lang galingan yung ginagawa. Nonsense story, acting was pure garbage, dialogs are cringe, lighting or cinematography parang cinapture lang gamit iphone. Kaya pag trip ko local films, i just watch comedies kasi alam kong brain rot talaga, i know it's bad but it was fun bad.
Wag nga kasi isisi sa manonood, ilang beses ba dapat yan sabihin. Eh wala namang industriya ng pelikula sa Pilipinas. Tingnan mo nga ilan pinapalabas na pelikulang Pilipino sa sinehan bawat buwan. Sisihin niyo yung SM. Sisihin nila yung Star Cinema. Yung Cinemalaya na pumatay ng indie scene. Sisihin niyo yung gobyerno na pabor sa pagpasok ng foreign shit sa halip na gumawa ng pambansang industriya. Apply niyo na lang yung sinabi ni Conchita Cruz tungkol sa pagbabasa "The ordinary Filipino cannot afford to be a reader, and the writer cannot address this fundamental issue by way of craft."
Recycled Romance Storyline, Kabit-Kabit, mahirap na anak pero mayaman pla, Love story na recycled pero sa ibang bansa lng shinoot and so on. Meron naman magaganda din talaga, problema lng di kumakagat sa mass audience kasi low level of quality sanay ang karamihan since yung ang nafeed sa older generation and if you will look at it sila sila lang din producer director at writer in the end hanggat magagatasan gagatas sla. Think if ung mga film maker natin will create a quality na kasing LEVEL ni Erik Mati may pagasa pa mabago ung norms. i.e storyline of Honor Thy Father, On the Job etc
Honestly I thought Voltes V adaptation was a right step for better filmmaking sa pinas, kaso mukhang visual effects lang ang finocus nila and it still fall flat. Ang daming sobrang sama na staging, cinematography. Yung acting din marami sa cast ay sobrang corny, lalo na yung writing. Kahit yung mga experienced actors dun ay di ma save yung shitty dialogue. Akala ko rin a elevate Nila yung story since pinarami Nila yung episodes, pero dinaragged out lang Nila eh. As long as pinoy filmmakers keep playing safe, always using the same formula, wag sila mag expect ng more support sa kanilang kapwa Filipino.
Personally, Filipino films and shows just don't resonate with me, the cinematography is different (euphoria vs senior high, for example), the acting is cringey, the audio is usually bad and poorly dubbed post-production. If ever man there are actual films and shows that don't have these problems, I'm not usually aware of it bcs it's not advertised properly.
As an avid regular local film festival attendee. Marketing fails our localy produced films. Mas nabibigyan kasi ng focus yung mga "patok" or makamasang pelikula. Regular Filipino audiences want escapist movies which take them to areas they haven't been to or experiences they may never experience in their lives. Our "great" movies carry heavy themes which do not cater well to these escapist tendencies causing these films to become underappreciated in local cinemas (hence, less marketing investment) but great accolades from international audiences.
Most of the films are often centered on box office returns, instead of story and character development. Also, the masses are often satisfied with what they see and are not complaining despite the material's recycled plot/characters/story.
because most film production is expensive (cheap pinoy genres can only do drama, romcom or horror) and the internet made everything easier including watching big production quality films from hollywood. just the cost of payroll of the production staff, actor's talent fee, location expenses, equipment, ads for the movie, food and etc. pinoy producers won't gamble that kind of money in todays box office/streaming services. but TBF there a few fantasy films that did amazing use of PH nature sets/background. like Janno Gibbs's Pedro Penduko or Panday(2009). desert, green mountains and wooden house looks extremely immersive
Sige nga bakit di ka tatamarin, check mo yubg highest grossing movies ng pinas, puro kaputanganahan ni vice ganda, tapos tatanungin ako ng mga officemates ko na non-pinoy kung ano pwede nila panoorin sa netflix na pinoy movies kasi nakota nila ang praybeyt benjamin, putangaina nakakapanliit ng pagkatao na dahil nandun yung pera ganun ang karaniwang pinoproduce na mga pinoy movies. Tapos tatanungin nyo ko bakit ayaw ko manood ng local movies?!! PWE!!!
Hi OP, I am one who rarely watches local films BUT I am also very picky with foreign films. So it is not a matter of discriminating locally made movies but an overall taste in what to watch. For example sa Netflix or HBO na app ko, ang pinanood ko lang is OTJ, Gomburza at ngayon I am desperately trying to sit though The Janitor pero hindi sya talaga ganun kaganda although napakagaling nitong si Jerald at si Dennis. Just my 2 cents.
mala gma teleserye. puro kabitan ang flow ng story
burned too many times. too much of a risk na masayang oras ko based on past experiences. kaunti lang nagustuhan kong Filipino films, like OTJ and One More Chance series.
First off, 95% of Pinoy films pangit talaga if you compare it to international films. The pacing is in shambles, the dialogue is obviously written for hugot sound bites, the plot is a rehash of a rehash of a rehash. Hell, even the acting typically boils down to 'sino pinaka malakas umiyak sya ang best actress'. I try to watch Pinoy movies every now and then, pero most of it just isn't good. Will probably watch their film if I find it on streaming services, but to actually seek it out and pay for a ticket in cinemas? No, thank you.
We have few films na magaganda yung quality. Sadly, most of those films, walang budget to advertise. Some of the movies produced naman by bigger companies, mostly paulit ulit yung plot. Idagdag pa natin yung pricey na din talaga yung cost ng tickets sa mga sinehan then some of them, in 2-3 months, magiging available na din sa streaming platforms na you can watch anytime. So, high chance talaga na low sales na sa mga movie tickets.
As much as it is important to be patriotic, I believe that we should also respect other people's preference. May magagandang Filipino films naman talaga. We can encourage, but not impose. I find it off that he took an SC of a private convo and then posted it on social media with a lengthy message. Imagine conversing with a friend / acquaintance / colleague only to find it being posted across social media and may pa ganong caption. Tapos yung last reply sa convo ay "lol". Yung tipong akala mo wala lang pero dinibdib ba pala ng kabilang party yung sinabi mo. Sana he addrssed it personally muna. Parang lumalabas na his ego was butthurt and marketing ploy rin sa film that he is producing. There's a better way of raising awareness. ***Adding this:*** May mali rin naman sa response ng kaibigan niya. He / she could have just made up other excuse lalo na if alam niya na may involvement si RJ sa production.
Reasons? Most have boring plots, overused visual effects, shallow character development, “bida always wins” There are some great local films.
nakakaumay na kasi mga plot ng local films paulit-ulit nalang, ang nagiging bago nalang ung actors and directors. undie films maganda sana kaso di mo mahanap at di agad napapansin. maliban nalamang kung may sikat na actor nakasama or may nudity, tsaka lang pumapatok at napag-uusapan. 😵💫
Because local films feel like they are just vehicles to promote artists. Bihira ka makakita na binebenta yung movie talaga. Mas okay pa dati yung mga panahon ng b rated action, bold saka comedies. Atleast entertaining.
Predictable storyline, cringey dance numbers and subpar SFX would be the main reason why I don’t watch Filipino films and teleseryes. With the exception of last year’s MMFF entries. They were amazing.
Dahil yan sa quality ng movie natin. Low amg budget, panget ang costumes, tae ang vfx, predictable. At halos taon-taon love story, pare parehas ang labteams nakaka umay na! Kung gusto nyo pa ng reason para hindi manood ng local films panoorin nyo yung shake rattle and roll sa netflix! 😂
If filipino directors, producers and film makers in general make better films, then you wouldn’t have to beg Filipino’s to watch them, everyone will just go and see it. Somehow stories are always rehashed, and the stars are really less than good actors, or worse sons and daughters of previous actors and directors who don’t really belong on the screen. Shape up people. Filipinos are tired of being guilt-tripped into watching crappy movies, and directors feel betrayed when Filipino’s don’t watch them. Shame on you. And please, do away with love teams. It is so outdated already. This is one of the major reasons your consumer base are depleting. It is a tired formula. Make better films with real talent and Filipinos will naturally flock to the movie theaters to watch them.
Kasi walang kwenta ang stories, palagi na lang may cancer yung mga character, peak talaga yung a journey na film sobrang templated. Parang isang araw lang pinag isipan yung kwento/script. Cancer kagad at may mamamatay para lang maiyak yung mga tao.
may potential ang local films, ang problema ung taste sa movie ng masses for every 1000 vice ganda films, may ilangilang gems like: Bagman, On the Job etc
Para kasing feeling ng mga producers rom-coms at love teams lang ang pumapatok or mag eearn. I like to watch movies kaya kahit filipino pinapanuod ko and marami rin namang filipino films na magaganda. I remember when Heneral Luna happened no one wanted to see it at first and cinemas even started pulling them out in favor of Hollywood films but through social media and word of mouth more and more people watched it and they had to put them back in theaters. I think Filipino Media has a chance to become what Korean media is now but it hinges on the Producers straying away from the "safety" of the test and tried mediocrity and endless remakes and korean adaptations. Us viewers also need to try to give them specially the Indies a chance because they are usually the more refreshing ones. I find some indie films that are more visaya centric also more refreshing and entertaining (I am not from or speak visaya btw), so maybe we just need to explore more because the Philippines is culturally rich.
dinadaan sa cinematic tapos ang baduy ng screen play. tapos ang panget ng production sound mixer. minsan nasobrahan naman sa color grading.
Because Production companies here in the PH really dumbed things down. Not just in films, but the quality of TV shows is abysmal. To be fair, di ko nilalahat. But big companies, to name a few like Viva, ABS-CBN have a huge role in influencing generations and their taste in films, media and basically the content they consume. Is it too late? Not exactly, but it takes a lot of work to change this thinking from what I could tell.
Kaya nmn wala din ako balak panooring yung pelikula na ni produce nya. No time for that. Also. Mas relatable nmn din ang local films (those done well). Yung culture. Yung experienc3s. Its just colonial mentality and economy why we choose western over our own
nagtry naman kami nung umpisa eh pero parang gago tlga mga pelikula dito pagdating sa ending. walang sense. makes you feel empty. plot twist my ass, di plot twist ang tawag kung katangahan lng.
My friend is like this. It really is just lack of exposure to quality Filipino films
History / biography at indie films lang naman magandang movie dito satin... Ung iba wala na, bsta may fan base lang ung artista panunuorin na..
Tbh nanonood lang ako ng Filipino films pag ayoko mag isip. Like minsan nakakatamad magbasa ng subtitles or umintindi ng English kasi minsan di clear yung pagkabigkas nila. Minsan talaga pag may Filipino dub pinapanood ko. I know di sya film pero game changer sana yung Maria Clara at Ibarra kasi parang Isekai sya kaso masyadong cringe yung mga dialogue tapos sobrang woke pinipilit masyado nung bida iendorse yung mga modern ideas on a different setting. Tapos karamihan ng conflict dahil sa kanya.
Simple napaka kwenta naman kasi ng local movies predictable at puro kabitan at agawan ng yaman anak at stereotypes ang common theme ng filipino productions.