Fandom comes in many forms, whether you’re talking about the different subgenres of the pop-culture obsessed or the types of fans themselves and how they choose to express that devotion as individuals. It’s no wonder that after decades of pop culture obsession gradually morphing into a globally recognized phenomenon, we’ve taken to documenting fandom on film, through both fictional and nonfictional accounts of people willing to go very far, maybe even too far, for the things they love. Infused with a fresh, crowded sense of community, Adolfo Borinaga Alix, Jr.'s Faney (The Fan) (Frontrow Entertainment, Intele Builders, Noble Wolf, AQ Films, 2025) is anchored by an emotionally wrought yet effective turn by Laurice Guillen. She etches an unforgettable screen character in Lola Milagros/Bona, a woman whose complexities and eccentricities match her dignity and willpower. While Althea Ablan is authentic and funny as Bea, Milagros' great granddaughter, Gina Alajar's Babette is the real lynchpin, the part that truly holds the film together. It is too easy to overlook what she does because she plays daughter to Guillen's mother, but she is arguably the most important character because Babette embodies the kind of innate decency to which all the other characters must aspire. Of course, fandom can get out of one’s control, which is what happens in Faney’s most entertaining subplot involving Pacita M. (Roderick Paulate). Added to this, we find it exploring themes of family – particularly the challenges of mother-daughter relationships and how they can usually be softened by speaking from the heart.
The film is more nuanced and it points out that nostalgia lies and simplifies, but it's also yearning and swooning enough that it doesn't mind us being nostalgic. It wants the viewer to be more sensible and objective, so we're thinking about the characters as characters. Loss is something that everyone processes differently and much has been written about the fact that no two people mourn in the same way, which is precisely why no one has been able to craft the definitive text on grief, despite it being one of the most common philosophical and artistic motifs across all of human history. Because of its strong sense of character development, Faney touches a plethora of emotional chords. It is unabashedly sentimental with tear-filled scenes, plenty of hugs and moments of downright existential angst. Yet there are also moments of lightness sprinkled throughout and, deep intimacy and exceptional believability, as well as a dash of full-on humor, that makes things far less dour than they otherwise easily could have been. The poignancy of Lola Milagros’ visit to Nora Aunor’s gravesite is calculated to make the audience join her in regretting that she’s come to the end of her devotion. We too can feel a palpable absence, ready to believe that she’s really gone. It’s hard to imagine another director doing a more loving, thorough job with this material. Through the extraordinary grace of Alix’s filmmaking which revels in the transmutational power of filmmaking itself, Faney renders it larger than life. The film lives on Guillen's performance and she once again shows, as she did in last year’s Guardia de Honor that she’s up to the task of shouldering such a complex character with seeming ease. Faney is a celebration of a pop culture phenomenon. By the end, we're looking at Lola Milagros and the world, through Nora Aunor's eyes. It does work off the conventions that rule more ordinary movies, but only to enrich its own singular voice.
Sound Design: Roy Santos
Production Design: Jhon Paul Sapitula
Editing: Xila Ofloda, Mark Llona
Music: Mikoy Morales
Director of Photography: Odyssey Flores
Written and Directed By Adolfo Borinaga Alix, Jr.
