The 50th edition of the Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) last year featured entries that had Vice Ganda (“And the Breadwinner Is…”) and Vic Sotto (“The Kingdom”) bringing their A-game to the holiday projects they chose to champion.
This year’s eight-title lineup is even more auspicious, with the annual cinematic feast fielding entries that are acclaimed for their thematic pertinence (“I’mPerfect,” “Manila’s Finest”) as much as for examining humanity’s never-ending need for meaningful connection (“UnMarry,” “Call Me Mother,” “Rekonek”).
Is 2025 the MMFF’s best edition since it halted its separate, prefestival indie programming 10 years ago? Almost, but not quite.
That distinction still belongs to the 2016 edition, when Baby Ruth Villarama’s best picture winner “Sunday Beauty Queen” ruled the roost in a delectable lineup that also included Jun Robles Lana’s “Die Beautiful,” Erik Matti’s “Seklusyon,” Avid Liongoren’s “Saving Sally,” Marlon Rivera’s “Ang Babae sa Septic Tank 2,” and Theodore Boborol’s charming rom-com “Vince & Kath & James.” Even the soporific “Kabisera” was made more significant by the magnetic presence of National Artist Nora Aunor.
In the festival’s postpandemic era, we still had to endure lackluster films like the Toni and Alex Gonzaga-starrer “The Exorsis,” Jake Cuenca’s “My Father, Myself” or Matteo Guidicelli’s head-scratching misfire “Penduko.” But at least they were no longer as derivative as the musty potboilers of Jinggoy Estrada (“Hiwaga ng Panday”) and Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. (“Pepeng Agimat”) nor as odd as Manny Pacquiao’s perplexing forays into acting (“Anak ng Kumander,” “Wapakman”).
Some of our choices this year may be different from those preferred by the judges, but we happily acquiesce to the leadership, experience and expertise of jury head Clodualdo “Doy” del Mundo Jr., whose celebrated screenplays include “Maynila Sa Mga Kuko ng Liwanag,” “Itim,” “Kisapmata,” “Merika,” “Batch ‘81” and “Mulanay: Sa Pusod ng Paraiso.”
In fact, we think Doy (along with illustrious director Mike de Leon) should be conferred the National Artist award while he’s still strong enough to savor its perks. But we digress.
Based on what we saw in Megamall, PowerPlant, Shangri-La Mall and Robinsons Galleria during the first three days of the current festival, the only downside to this year’s batch of films are the much-diminished lines at the box office. At the cinema lobby of Megamall last year, there was hardly room to move around on opening day. Not this year.
And we think it’s partly due to the steep ticket prices. For much of the past year, movie buffs had enjoyed cheaper tickets for local films (at ₱270 or ₱280 each in Metro Manila). But a regular admission fee for this year’s MMFF is worth ₱410 each—which is about 52% more expensive than the pre-MMFF rate.
Meanwhile, a regular ticket costs ₱340–₱350 at SM Cebu, while it’s ₱280 at SM Davao and ₱180 at GMall in Digos, Davao del Sur. It gets even pricier if you watch movies at swankier malls or in specialty theaters like the Director’s Club.
The MMFF earned ₱800 million last year and ₱1 billion in the record-breaking 2023 edition.
For years now, the MMFF has also refused to disclose the box-office performances and ranking of entries because, among other reasons, it wants to encourage moviegoers to watch as many films as possible. But how much can Regular Juans afford to shell out from their minimum daily wages? Unless the festival only caters to those who earn so much more.
In terms of patronage, do people need to spend so much more just to be entertained? Take a family of five. It has to spend ₱2,050 to watch a single film even without popcorn and soft drinks. What more if they want to watch half of the entries?
We have it on good authority that box-office champ “Call Me Mother” earned almost ₱50 million upon closing time on Dec. 25, followed by “Shake, Rattle & Roll: Evil Origins” at less than half of that. But at least even the lowest-grossing of the bunch, “Rekonek,” managed to breach the million-peso mark. Of course we expected the big winners to get a notable bump on the leaderboard after the awards night last Saturday.
We’ve never really warmed up to the festival’s penchant for confidentiality and habitual secrecy in terms of box office because any absence of transparency invites doubt and scrutiny. After all, haven’t we learned from the chilling repercussions of so-called “confidentiality” in government offices recently? Even Hollywood releases a weekly listing of box-office grosses religiously, from its top earnings down to the last cent.
Moreover, box-office data and related metrics need to be transparent because the Metro Manila Development Authority, which oversees the MMFF, is a government agency bound by the concepts of transparency, accountability and honesty. Such is how good governance supposedly operates.
Here’s how we weigh in on this year’s entries, listed in order of preference:
‘UnMarry’
Directed by Jeffrey Jeturian
Cineko and Quantum Films’ domestic drama, easily the festival’s most fully realized production, whisks viewers through a series of heartbreaking, hilarious, frustrating and ultimately liberating situations that two pairs of couples—Stephen (best supporting actor Tom Rodriguez, as nasty as he is cocky) and Celine (Angelica Panganiban, delivering one of the finest performances in 2025), and Ivan (Zanjoe Marudo) and Maya (Solenn Heussaff)—endure as they go through annulment proceedings under the anti-poor Philippine legal system.
With Eugene Domingo’s razor-sharp wit (as Celine and Ivan’s lawyer) keeping things on an even keel, the film drives its sobering perspective across without a single hysterical confrontation scene.
“UnMarry” demonstrates why Jeturian is one of the country’s finest filmmakers. Ironically, it is his first full-length film since helming Vilma Santos in the 2013 Cinemalaya indie “Ekstra.” He’s also credited for directing parts of “Lakambini: Gregoria de Jesus,” one of the best films of the year.
‘Manila’s Finest’
Directed by Raymond Red
Don’t believe the atrocious reviews online. Red’s mastery of film language is on gorgeous display in MQuest Ventures and Spring Films’ eye-candy crime thriller, although its sinfully simmering slow burn could have benefited from a measure of heightened tension at some point in its narrative progression.
Set against the backdrop of police brutality, economic turmoil and the looming Marcos dictatorship during the First Quarter Storm, this cop-versus-cop morality tale in the late ’60s and early ’70s follows three policemen—Homer Magtibay (Piolo Pascual), Conrad Belarmino (Ariel Rivera) and Billy Ojeda (Enrique Gil)—as they navigate conflicting sides of the moral divide.
Look out for Elijah Canlas’ indelible cameo and a kickass turn from Rico Blanco as Piolo’s cocky new boss, police chief Epifanio Javier.
‘I’mPerfect’
Directed by Sigrid Andrea Bernardo
It’s hard not to get swept off your feet by the sunshiny charm of “I’mPerfect” lead star Krystel Go, the first Filipino performer with Down Syndrome to win best actress. (Belgian actor Pascal Duquenne clinched a similar feat in 1996 when he won best actor in Cannes for his role in “The Eighth Day.”)
In the MMFF’s best picture winner, Krystel is cast as 28-year-old Jessica, a part-time waitress who finally finds the man of her dreams when she crosses paths with Jiro (Earl Amaba), who also has Down Syndrome. When their parents’ disapproval begins to threaten their happily-ever-after as a couple, they pack their bags and elope!
The storytelling goes exceedingly well until, well, it doesn’t, significantly marred by a weak second-half that’s a little too whimsical and implausible for our taste. Just the same, this first-of-its-kind production is greater than the sum of its disjointed parts—another triumph for the visionary director behind such festival darlings as “Kita Kita,” “Ang Huling Cha-Cha ni Anita,” “UnTrue” and “Pushcart Tales.” Bernardo pulls off a high-wire act that’s as inspiring as it is hopeful.
‘Call Me Mother’
Directed by Jun Robles Lana
Best actor winner Vice Ganda continues to sail into uncharted waters steered by the prolific screenwriter-director behind “Bwakaw,” “Die Beautiful,” “About Us But Not About Us” and the upcoming Hilda Koronel starrer “Sisa.” Lana’s coherent, compelling stories elevate and add context to Vice’s brand of comedy-bar humor.
In “Call Me Mother,” Vice’s best film to date, the contented life of beauty pageant trainer-turned-queer single mother Twinkle Reyes (Vice) takes a drastic turn when wealthy supermodel Mara de Jesus (Nadine Lustre, in fine form as usual) returns to take back Angelo (best child actor Lucas Andalio, who’s precocious without being annoying), the son she abandoned 10 years ago.
While the film aptly dials down Vice’s hit-everywhere spontaneity for added believability, it also cleverly incorporates his frenetic humor more seamlessly into a story that dispenses lessons about the nobility of motherhood in a world in dire need of nurturing.
‘Bar Boys: After School’
Directed by Kip Oebanda
The film, which picks up 10 years after the events in the acclaimed 2017 indie “Bar Boys,” explores the trials, tribulations and triumphs of bosom buddies, Erik Vicencio (Carlo Aquino), Torran Garcia (Rocco Nacino), Christian Carlson (Enzo Pineda) and law school dropout Joshua Zuñiga (Kean Cipriano).
As they take stock of life after law school, they come together to take care of their ailing former mentor, Justice Bing Hernandez (best supporting actress Odette Khan). Theater luminary Sheila Francisco, who portrays the dreaded law professor in the musical adaptation of the movie onstage, is introduced as another deliciously cunning character, Rhodina Banal, and runs away with the role.
While the film benefits from likable actors, a breezy pacing and an entertaining story, it’s weighed down by a consistently proselytizing tone and an eagerness to please, seizing each opportunity to turn every scene into a teachable moment.
‘Shake, Rattle & Roll: Evil Origins’
Directed by Shugo Praico (“1775”), Joey de Guzman (“2025”) and Ian Loreños (“2050”)
While uneven in style and execution, Regal Entertainment’s fabled franchise manages to find a common thread that traces the evolution of evil. This lengthy three-in-one tale mixes the different subgenres of horror—with mixed results.
The supernatural drama involving haunted nuns (Loisa Andalio, Carla Abellana, Janice de Belen) is too dark and needlessly protracted, but the succeeding installments play out as serviceable chillers about jumpy Gen Zs (Fyang Smith, JM Ibarra, Francine Diaz and Seth Fedelin) getting chased by knife-wielding serial killers at a Halloween party, and post-apocalyptic survivors (Richard Gutierrez, Dustin Yu) protecting each other from an omniscient and shape-shifting aswang.
‘Love You So Bad’
Directed by Mae Cruz Alviar
Alviar’s thematically relatable and beautifully photographed latest charmer banks on the screen-sweetheart appeal of “Pinoy Big Brother” alumna Bianca de Vera as Savannah Aquino, a bright but impetuous college student torn between bad boy LA Dolores (Dustin Yu) and nerdy student leader Vic Alvarez (Will Ashley).
As Vanna, LA and Vic work through the complications of the romantic triangle they unexpectedly find themselves in, they must also face the challenging personal issues that could change the course of their plans for good. But who will ride happily into the sunset with Vanna?
‘Rekonek’
Directed by Jade Castro
Can you survive life without the internet for 10 days? Castro’s (“Endo,” “Zombadings,” “LSS”) well-meaning ensemble film is imagined as a fizzy and feel-good, modern-day Christmas parable that examines the ties that bind people from different walks of life and persuasions.
In this star-studded production, the characters (played by Gerald Anderson, Bela Padilla, Charlie Dizon, Andrea Brillantes, Kelvin Miranda, Mavy and Cassy Legaspi, Angel Guardian and Gloria Diaz) are forced to put their phones aside and turn to each other for connection.
Unfortunately, their backstories are too scattershot to be truly relatable and sympathetic, so you end up not caring at all if the characters ever make it home in time for noche buena. We understand the intention but don’t feel the connection the movie wants to forge with its intended audience.
The 51st edition of the Metro Manila Film Festival wraps up its two-week run on Jan. 6.
