malamadre

one of the best films i've seen the past two years, celda 211 is a gripping prison drama that absolutely grabs hold of the audience from start to finish... the story of two men on different sides of a prison riot -- the inmate leading the rebellion and the young guard trapped in the revolt, who poses as a prisoner in a desperate attempt to survive the ordeal.

although there were contrived coincidences such as when utrilla took on the mob outside the prison and accidentally hit juan's wife, the movie successfully shown drama, suspense and human emotion in a tale of trickery, ethical questions, justice, will to survive, violence, friendship and death. thanks to competent direction, powerful screenplay and outstanding performances, especially from luis tosar (malamadre) and alberto ammann (juan oliver). the pacing was very good and interlocking flashbacks were fleshed out in an excellent manner, which did not negate the overall approach and progression of the story.

as john hartl asks, how do you protect a necessary lie? how can you maintain a sense of honor while you're participating in an elaborate deception? these were the dilemma of juan, who ultimately won over the cruel malamadre and had an intriguing friendship made along the way. the movie added the ETA factor in it, creating a "local" conflict that spanish audience will be able to relate to. far from hollywood and pinoy approach, this movie's realistic in showing the dehumanization of prisoners, who are committed to wielding pre-homosapiens "predatory moral standards" in order to preserve one's life and advance whatever causes. this was especially highlighted when juan cut utrilla's neck, as the prison officer announced to everyone that juan was indeed a prison officer, moonlighting to be one of the prisoners in order to survive the ordeal. at the same time, the movie also brandished human's capability to trust and strike amity and friendship, no matter what the circumstances the two parties are involved in. what i also liked about this movie is its commitment to its plot, never transgressing into the moralistic stance but ultimately presenting the common issue of prisons, its conditions and how society should approach convicted criminals.

i would have liked it better if juan survived and later reunited with his wife, more for hopeful ending. i think the movie's ending says that life's twists and turns are sometimes unfair. but in the end, one's bad experience could very well translate to redemption for others, even if that means losing one's former stature, in the case of malamadre to apache. certainly, there are no certainties in life, so we have to live by the day and count our blessings.

after seeing a bunch of noteworthy and outstanding films in this year's spanish filmfest, the question is... will we ever see something like celda 211 from pinoy cinema? nowadays, pinoy films are of these kinds only -- sappy romcoms built around today's "bankable" love teams; incompetent horror films; gay soft core films without much story; upfront comedies, with a "funny" lady as central character; and too "indie" indie films that are usually unresolved. haaayyyy...