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Film review: Shake, Rattle & Roll XI

MANILA, Philippines - If it’s Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) time, then surely, that can only mean a new Regal Entertainment Shake, Rattle & Roll (SRR). Some may shake their head, rattle their brains and roll their eyes at the prospect of yet another reincarnation of the long-in-the-tooth franchise film, but before you dismiss the 11th installment, know that the SRR series has also been the breeding ground for some of our more noted “young guns” film directors. It may all be ancient history now, but the likes of Toppel Lee, Michael Tuviera and Rico Ma. Ilarde all had their commercial film “baptism-of-fire” via SRR. And don’t look now, but in terms of box-office success, for some unfathomable reason, horror films prosper during the Christmas season. They may not be the ultimate top-grosser, but they’re solidly in the middle, year in and out, and it’s hard to argue with that kind of success.

For SRR XI, the “stars” behind the camera are Rico Gutierrez, Don Michael Perez and Mother Lily’s nephew, Jessel Monteverde. Rico opens with Diablo, which stars Maja Salvador and Mark Anthony Fernandez. Taking a cue from recent events, the H1N1 virus scare and the paranoia it created, it’s a short hop, skip and jump to turn what looks like a case of some malignant virus into outright possession by the Devil. This is Rico’s excursion into modern Gothic; and the camera angles, special effects and religious imagery show just how ready Rico is to tackle this territory. There’s a sensuality that Rico mines to evoke something beyond mere horror, hinting at how while repelled, we are also aroused and seduced by Evil. At times, reminiscent of The Exorcist and more recently, Drag Me to Hell, this is one strong commercial film debut, and it would be a crime if other producers don’t sit up and take notice of what Rico has to offer.

Don Michael’s Ukay-Ukay is the more straight-out commercial episode. With Ruffa Gutierrez and Zoren Legaspi (inspired casting this) playing the role of a couple planning to get married, while unbeknownst to them, there is a curse hanging over Ruffa’s character, and this finds physical manifestation in the vintage wedding gown Ruffa chooses. John Lapus has a tremendous impact on this episode, portraying Ruffa’s designer friend. It’s in blending humor with horror that Don Michael excels — this is Carrie meets Tarantino, with Ruffa playing it for laughs when she goes into superheroine mode. I would imagine this is the episode that will have the audience howling and laughing in approval, and at the same time.

With Lamanglupa, Jessel takes on themes of ecology and respecting nature, blending this with young love and lust, and employing duendes and forest spirits to provide the horror. The episode is more ensemble acting, with Jennica Garcia, Iya Villania, Bangs Garcia, Rayver Cruz, the Roco twins and Mart Escudero ably set through the plotline by Jessel. With elements of Rosemary’s Baby and outdoor horror flicks peppering and seasoning the episode, it was good to note how Jessel manages to keep the tension and surprise at a high level. He employs flashback and non-linear storytelling to his advantage, and it augurs well for Jessel how he played with the levels of color-saturation to give his episode a unique look.

So yes, it may the 11th Shake Rattle & Roll, but this may well be one of the more solid, consistent SRRs we’ll have and I won’t be surprised if in due course, we’ll see the names of these directors on films of note, and success. Well worth the price of admission if one wants his (or her) Christmas bloody and grisly!