I was scared coming into ‘Isang Himala.’ I love the original film by Ishmael Bernal and Ricky Lee. I teach in my classes in Philippine Film History, and it is truly a groundbreaking work that still holds the test of time. I’m also in love with the stage adaptation by The Sandbox Collective, directed by Ed Lacson Jr. and music and lyrics by Vincent De Jesus. That production turned the whole stage, including the audience, into the town of Cupang and it was filled with incredible performances by its incredible cast. While the same cast is brought into the film adaptation of the musical, I feared that what made the stage play so magnificent – the way by which the whole town of Cupang comes alive and all the audience immerses themselves into the longing and desperation of that place – would be lost as it moves into the screen. How does a camera make the audience part of that world?

But knowing that Pepe Diokno was coming in to direct gave me a little hope. After all, his ‘Gomburza’ was excellent. To differentiate his world from the stage play and the original film, Diokno shot the whole film on a studio, which allowed for full control of lighting and sound design and they could control the massive crowd scenes that inhabit this film. It gives the feeling of old school Hollywood musicals from MGM where the sets look too perfect, too manufactured and they bring this charming aesthetic to the narrative. I’m talking about ‘The Wizard of Oz’ or ‘Singing in the Rain’ or even ‘Seven Brides for Seven Brothers.’ There’s a leaning into the formalist tradition of cinema with Carlo Mendoza’s stunning cinematography turning the town of Cupang into the brilliant ochre shades that matches the film’s heavy tones and themes.

‘Isang Himala’ is about the town of Cupang, a town in need, ravaged by a drought, and the townsfolk believe that they are cursed. When Elsa (Aicelle Santos) proclaims she is having visions of the Virgin Mary and is seen healing a sick child, the town enters into a frenzy of religious fervor and zeal. A cult is quickly formed around her, tourists come from all over to receive Elsa’s blessings and healing, and the once-poor town suddenly gains a resurgence in economic growth. Factions are formed, as Elsa’s followers don’t take kindly to Nimia (Kakki Teodoro), who returns from Manila to open a cabaret while a documentary filmmaker, Orly (David Ezra), records Elsa’s movements, selling the footage and the photos he takes to newspapers in the city, while hoping to build a film about her. Elsa’s mother, Aling Saling (Bituin Escalante) is caught in the middle, a hapless observer as the town and her daughter are caught up in the madness of it all.

There are so much great things happening in this movie. Diokno’s ability to really move that camera through that madness is riveting. He creates these large set pieces as the two transforms over the course of a song from impoverished to booming in minutes. The crowds come in and make the whole set come to life. The singing is exceptional. With performers like Santos, Escalante, Ezra, and Teodoro in the cast, there’s no question that we’ve got incredible vocals to go with Vincent De Jesus’ score. 

But I felt so disconnected from the piece – a narrative that I’m in love with from its original film and its stage adaptation – and I realised that I find the adaptation of the stage musical into a film needed space and width. Cupang’s design is enclosed in canyon, everything is bunched up together and claustrophobic. Everyone is in everyone’s business. There’s a mass of people entering and exiting the scenes and the camera can come in close for the close-ups to capture the drama that is unfolding in this story. But the script does not illuminate the characters and their motivations clearly enough for us to warrant these close ups. The stage adaptation makes the whole town the central character and the audience is witnessing the transformation that it takes from the distance of spectator. We can’t really know these characters because of that distance. Here, the camera can come close. It gets intimate, but the script never really explores these characters inner worlds. I am left with no real clue on who Elsa is aside from the push and pull of people’s desires for her benediction nor do I really, truly understand what motivates Orly’s interest in her. If these are done through the songs (as most of the film is sung-through), it can get lost in the production of the music.

The only character who truly shines and creates the film’s contrast is Nimia. While everyone is great, Kakki Teodoro fully embodies Nimia’s practicality and sense. Unlike everybody else, she believes in herself and is unafraid to stand up to her former friend. Teodoro brings this to the performance and sings the hell out of one of the best songs in the musical. Of all the characters in the film, hers is the clearest of what she wants and what she believes in. As I’m writing this, I heard that Teodoro won Best Actress at the MMFF Awarding and it is so well-deserved. Shes the one everyone is talking about when I left the cinema.

At two hours and forty minutes, I felt exhausted. The film is an intense roller-coaster of powerful songs that lean more towards opera than it does to musicals. A lot of the songs aren’t melodic, which is fitting because there’s no real rhythm or melody to suffering. In the play, on just a piano, it is haunting. Here, it’s loud and aggressive. Played by a full band that makes each song feel like a finale. It’s big and the film never gets quiet enough to process all of the madness that happens within this town.

The claustrophobia and the lack of true character moments makes this world feel small. Whereas Ishmael Bernal’s use of wide empty spaces and long shots help creates that distance for the viewers so what we see is the town. Here, I see Elsa. I see Orly. I see Nimia. I see Aling Sepang. I see the characters but except for Nimia, I don’t really get to know them fully. So, I’m impressed by the performances, by the aesthetics and the filmmaking behind ‘Isang Himala’ but I’m left struggling with what I’m supposed to feel afterwards. It’s a heavy movie to take in but wonderfully made.

My Rating:

Isang Himala is now showing in cinemas. Check showtimes and buy your tickets here.