A thriller conjured out of suppressed fears, Joselito Altarejos' Pamilya sa Dilim (ADCC Productions, 2076 Kolektib, 2023) is a concentration of ecstasy and violence devised in a perfect union of ideological paradox and existential instability. Through a combination of headstrong ambition and opportunistic abandon, Altarejos managed to tap this mother lode of disquietude. The basic premise is so thunderously resonant that it’s easy to overlook the skill with which Altarejos has gotten to its dramatic turning point. With simmering tensions and fractured psyches, Altarejos presented an ideal platform for his cast to deliver some of the finest work of their careers. Allen Dizon is fascinating, yet vulnerable as Eddie Boy, but it’s Laurice Guillen’s complex portrayal of Mamang Anita, the matriarch of the Medialdea family, that remains to be the film’s most captivating element. Her ability to mine gravitas may have brought her closer to the core of the movie than her celebrated co-stars could reach. Guillen's showcase scene and the film’s, comes when she recalls how her husband met his fate then all of a sudden the figures in her story appear and begin speaking their parts. From watching her past unfold Mamang Anita exits the shot and then joins the ghostly tableau, she has come unstuck in time. Memory is a selection of images, some elusive, others imprinted indelibly on the brain. In this spectral pageant, Mamang Anita shows us the pain of her memories and misfortune. This moment of attenuated stillness is pure cinema, and so is the eruption that follows.
It takes a formidable talent to play mother to Allen Dizon (at his most magnetic here), but Guillen upstages him. She has a way of gliding into a room as though on a dolly and her reaction shots are so acute that the film uses them as punctuation. Her unsettlingly wide eyes flicker between emotions outsize and minute. Pamilya sa Dilim is about trauma and the way it surreptitiously weaves its way into the lives of every member of the Medialdea's, even Minda (Sunshine Cruz) and Marie (Therese Malvar), who are emotionally volatile despite being in the dark about the abuse that happened. Altarejos is not shy about suggesting parallels with current politics. The narrative pushes forward through a parade of digressions and asides with unrelenting momentum. Pamilya sa Dilim never stops breaking rules, creating an intentionally tremulous tone, implications of incest make us pause. Rarely in such drama is there a no-turning-back moment like the truth-telling that anchors Pamilya sa Dilim. Altarejos is a filmmaker who demonstrates both a keen interest in people reckoning with emotional trauma and an energetic technical style. For Mamang Anita, trauma is not so easily overcome. The effect is overwhelming, the final indignity from a family that has so long turned a blind eye. As with all great melodrama, there is catharsis here but it seems clear it is just a temporary balm for wounds that may never heal.
Production Designer: Jay Custodio
Musical Scorer: Von de Guzman
Sound Engineer: Andrew Milallos
Editor: Joselito Attarejos
Director of Photography: Manuel T. Garcellano
Written and Directed By: Joselito Altarejos
