Mindanao is about Saima (Judy Ann Santos) who spends the final days of her sickly daughter Aisa at the House of Hope in Davao City while waiting for her husband Malang (Allen Dizon), a combat medic, to come back home from an offensive operation in the province of Maguindanao. Saima witnesses how other patients have triumphed over cancer while some did not. Malang witnesses how death awaits on the battlefield as he tries to save the wounded soldiers where some survived and some did not.
Saima mirrors the harrowing life in Mindanao by retelling the epic tale of Rajah and Sulayman to Aisa – a story of two warrior brothers who fight against the dragons, Ginto and Pula. The crayon images of the tale interweaves the battle realms of Malang and of Aisa. Despite the bleak circumstances, Saima remains hopeful that both daughter and husband escape the impending death.
Mindanao uses a powerful and solid story to offer a remarkable and brilliantly crafted look at lives too rarely seen in Philippine cinema. It is a well weaved interconnecting story of a place, a community , a father, a mother, a daughter and a family. The film championed in delivering a story with a heart told creatively and uniquely. The narrative and screenplay is perfect! I like on how they integrate the folklore story to the ordeals of a child cancer patient to the real problems of the community up to the struggle of a loving mother and a Muslim soldier. Really kudos to the creative writing of Honee Alipio and Armando Lao and to the artistic direction of Brillante Mendoza. It will be no surprise that this MMFF entry will sweep most of the recognition comes the awards night. This is one of my favorite Brillante Mendoza movie and Mindanao will definitely not bore you.
Judy Ann Santos is definitely back on its core as an actress. This is her most restrained yet effective performance to date. You can relate to her as a mother and as a human in this film. Juday's heartfelt and natural performance deserves the nod for the coveted best actress award of MMFF 2019 and also for the award giving body next year. Allen Dizon also shines in this film with his reserved acting that is full of emotion. This is his best performance as an actor after his award winning film Magkakabaung. Allen Dizon is a dark horse comes the award night and also deserves an acting nod for this film. The raw acting of the new child actress Yuna Tangog is one of the highlight of the film that literally add colors to the film and serves as the voice of a child for this film. Other technical aspect that is noteworthy is the fast paced-editing, crisp sound design, unique animation, vivid production design and cinematography. The combination of artistry and emotional directness in this film is overwhelming as well as its relevant message on unity, patriotism and care for others. Overall, Mindanao is powerful, compelling and unmissable. It is an important piece in Philippine cinema that should not be miss before a new decade unfolds.
My Verdict: 5/5
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