The reason I watched Jun Lana’s recently-released film, Anino sa Likod ng Buwan (Shadow Behind the Moon), was because my friend Marvin highly recommended it. According to him, Anino is one of the best movies this year. Quite a declaration, right? That was reason enough for me and the fact that I loved Lana’s previous work, Barber’s Tales (2013).
Anino is set in Marag Valley in the early 1990s. It involves only three people, Nando and Emma (Anthony Falcon and LJ Reyes), a couple who relocated to the village after being displaced by the ongoing war between the communist rebels and the military, and Joel (Luis Alandy), the couple’s friend who happens to be a soldier. The film unfolds like a one-act play. The story is propelled by the characters’ heavy, nuanced conversation on the ongoing war and its adverse effects on the people and the community. There is also a palpable sexual tension between them, a quite expected story arch that perhaps there is more than meets the eye.
Jun Lana plays around the themes of war, love, and fidelity set against the backdrop of the leftist’s armed struggle. As the night deepens, the characters’ masks and motives are slowly unraveled. Though some twists were more predictable than others, the attempt to depict the mind games between them is refreshing form-wise. The question of “does she or doesn’t she” plays out quite well throughout the whole narrative. It’s no easy feat to keep the audience’s attention with a conversation-driven drama. As the film reaches its climax, Lana’s set pieces converged into a thrilling crescendo. My head was shooting all kinds of possible scenarios – again would she or wouldn’t she?
My main criticism lies in the inconsistency of Emma’s character. Lana is known for portraying strong women characters as seen in his previous film, Barber’s Tales. Anino‘s Emma left me with mixed emotions. First, the recuperation of female sexuality as women’s weapon of choice is hardly empowering. I would rather see her not as an object of desire but a solid subject, someone who has more to her than her sexuality. Instead of being treated, once again, as this fragile object, I would rather see a laser-focused woman character who knows what she wants and gets it. I do see how Emma’s oscillation could stem from the physical and emotional strains of war. The reason why she’s strong and weak at the same time could, in itself, be the depiction of her suffering. Perhaps I’m just tired of highlighting female sexuality as the only weapon at our disposal. It’s cliche at best, and cringeworthy at worst.
Overall Anino is still worth watching. Hell it’s a must-watch simply because of its laudable attempt to offer a stimulating political thriller with people just talking pretty much the whole damn time. That being said, I sincerely wish Lana’s next project does not re-use the rebel story. For me it’s getting old. I’m starting to question its relevance even though I know it still is.
for the lurv of 