As a member of the Media Club of my school, Miriam College Grade School, I was required to watch Dayo. And being now considered part of the press, I had the rare privilege of watching the red-carpet premiere of the movie in Megamall and be one of the first in the world to see this all digital full-length animated feature movie made in the Philippines.
As we all know, a lot of Filipinos, especially the youth, think foreign films and shows are always better. Before watching the movie, I even thought it was going to be a boring experience, fit for much younger kids. To me, it was just a film I had to watch to get good grades. But my opinion about the film was proven wrong once the movie started to unfold. It was absolutely beautiful and could surely compete with Hollywood animated movies I grew up watching.
Dayo revolves around an 11-year-old boy named Bubuy and his quest to find and rescue his grandparents in Elementalia, a place where fantasy exists. Along the way, he meets different creatures, including manananggals, a tikbalang, some merfolk, a kapre and an aswang. It gives many moral lessons but at the same time is full of fun. The humor in it, especially from the voices of Michael V. as the vain tikbalang Narsi, Pokwang as the lovable manananggal yaya and someone who sounded like newscaster Mike Enriquez, will really give you plenty of good laughs. There were also funny scenes from the lolo and lola when they teased each other. The Visayan kapre was so endearing. Anna, the teen-aged manananggal sounded like a true 14-year old girl who is concerned with her diet and worries about her strict dad. The star-studded voice cast, including Nash Aguas, Hopia Legaspi, Michael V, Pokwang, Peque Gallaga, Johnny Delgado, Laurice Guillen, Nova Villa and Noel Trinidad, truly made the film awesome. I was also very touched with the beautiful song of the very talented Lea Salonga as she rendered the movie theme Lipad, which is about aiming high and reaching for one’s dreams.
Dayo is definitely the movie to watch, whether with family or friends and whether you are a child or an adult. Not only will its heartwarming story and script keep you glued to your seat. It will also inspire you to face challenges and persevere, value nature, and believe in yourself. It will teach you to fight for what you think is right, be there for a friend in need, respect and love your family, especially your elders, and pray and have faith in God.
The Filipino animators did an excellent job. I gasped and clapped with the audience at the breathtaking beauty of Elementalia as Anna first showed it to Bubuy. I felt very excited and sometimes even scared when the villainous characters ran after them. The colors and effects were wonderful. After watching the well-directed film, surely, you will be very proud to be a Filipino.
So go to your favorite theater and watch it. Not only will you have a wonderful time watching an excellent Filipino product and laughing at very Filipino jokes, you will also be helping so many talented Filipino animators who need all our support. And do not forget, bring the entire family.
(The author is a 13-year-old consistent honors student. E-mail her at mika_gancayco@yahoo.com.)