Liwanag Sa Dilim (9 Works Theatrical)

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Elesi (Anthony Rosaldo) becomes an orphan once again with the death of both of his adoptive parents, sparking more frustration and curiosity within him regarding his biological parentage. When he is given a necklace and a small propeller toy with a green light, both tagged as the only items he had on him when he was found as a child, he is later swept into a time travel frenzy taking him back to the 1800’s, in the fictional world of Rizal’s Noli Me Tangere. There he meets Crisostomo Ibarra (Vien King) and his fiance Maria Clara (Alexa Ilacad) as well as the crazy lady of the town Sisa (Rita Daniela). As Elesi is fascinated by his new timeline, he decides to stay put and befriend his new acquaintances. He also discovers a few more secrets along the way with the help of his time travel device, including one that might just give him answers about the missing parents he has been searching for.

The War of the Worlds

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An extraterrestrial object falls somewhere in Britain, causing curiosity among the locals. The thing turns out to be a cylinder launched from Mars and as its lid slowly rotates as if being opened from the inside, a Martian emerges and struggles to literally find its footing on Earth’s radically different gravitational pull. As humans crowd the area, they are decimated by the alien’s heat ray. Panic ensues and an unnamed narrator flees with his wife to another town where he leaves her so he can go back to their home and return the dog cart they borrowed while escaping. There he finds Martian tripod machines wreaking havoc with poisonous black smoke. The narrator seeks refuge along with an artilleryman and, later, a curate. Meanwhile, his brother attempts to flee the country by securing a ticket to cross the channel to mainland Europe, but hindered by the continuous Martian attack and a human opposition that is rapidly getting decimated.

Richard II

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Richard II, reigning king of England, mediates between the noble Thomas Mowbray and his own cousin Henry Bolingbroke. The squabble has something to do with high treason, Henry accusing Mowbray of stealing funds from the English army. Furthermore, the former is also accusing the latter of the murder of his uncle, even though his father John of Gaunt believes Richard II himself had a hand in his death. It is decided that the verdict will be reached via Trial by Battle, but the duel is cut short by Richard II when he just arbitrarily opts for the banishment of both men from his realm. As the king busies himself with the war in Ireland, Henry sneaks back into the country, invades the northern coast, and persuades the Duke of York who was left as caretaker by Richard II in his absence to join his cause. Turning the tide of public opinion against the king, Henry succeeds in stripping Richard II of his mandate and succeeds him as Henry IV.

The Taming of the Shrew

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Baptista Minola, a lord in Padua, has two daughters. While the younger one, Bianca, is the epitome of everything a man should like in a woman, the elder sister Katherina is outspoken and strong-willed, which is a major turn off for potential suitors. Baptista has declared that her younger daughter will not be married before the elder, which leads some of Bianca’s prospective suitors to hatch a plan to find someone that would agree to marry Katherina. Hortensio and Gremio, eager to win Bianca’s hand in marriage, recruits Petruchio of Verona to woo Katherina, the titular shrew that needs to be tamed. Through various plans and gaslighting, Katherina and Petruchio end up married while Bianca ends up with a totally different man – university student Lucentio, while Hortensio eventually gets married to some random widow. In the end, Petruchio is admired for being successful in his quest to tame the shrew.

As You Like It

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Duke Frederick usurps the kingdom from his older brother Duke Senior, who then goes into exile at the Forest of Arden. Duke Senior’s daughter Rosalind remains in the kingdom at the behest of her cousin Celia, Frederick’s daughter, given how the two young ladies are inseparable and more like sisters. Threatened by his niece’s popularity with the masses, Frederick gives Rosalind an ultimatum to leave the kingdom or face execution. Knowing she wouldn’t be able to bear being apart from her cousin, Celia hatches a plan to flee with Rosalind, which they do, along with the court jester. The trio end up living a pastoral life at the forest where they meet Orlando, the youngest son of Sir Rowland de Boys, who fell in love at first sight with Rosalind when he saw her in court before she was banished. Disguised as men, Rosalind and Celia interact with shepherds and Orlando himself, using the advantage of their disguise to provoke from them an honest opinion of various matters.

The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde

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Lawyer Gabriel John Utterson is taking a stroll with his cousin Richard Enfield when they pass by an unkempt house door which brings back some unpleasant memories. Enfield recalls how he witnessed a strange looking man assaulting a girl in the area one evening. His name was Edward Hyde. When Enfield interfered and forced him to pay up, he went to the house of Utterson’s friend, doctor Henry Jekyll, who issued a cheque for damages. Later on, Jekyll talks to Utterson requesting him to name Hyde as the beneficiary of his last will and testament. Suspecting probable blackmail, Utterson commences a secret investigation, on his own, to figure out who Edward Hyde is and what is his role in Jekyll’s life. As Hyde figures in another murder investigation, this time of a prominent victim, Utterson races against time to protect his friend, but the clues lead to a shocking secret whose discovery he might not really be prepared for.

Snow White (2025)

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The reigning monarchs of an unknown kingdom welcome their daughter and only child in the midst of a snowstorm and, thus, name her Snow White (Rachel Zegler). The princess is raised with benevolent values such as compassion for their subjects. Unfortunately, the queen falls ill and eventually passes away, leaving a door open to potential stepmothers. Enter a fair maiden who ends up as the Evil Queen (Gal Gadot). Obsessed with beauty and being hailed the fairest of them all, she regularly asks her enchanted mirror whether she is, indeed, the fairest. For the longest time, the answer is an undeniable YES, but as the princess grows up to be a fine young lady, the Queen’s title is usurped, prompting her to send her stepdaughter deep into the woods to be killed, if only the huntsman kept his word. Lost and confused, Snow White ends up at the humble abode of seven dwarves with varying personalities.

Kisapmata (Tanghalang Pilipino)

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When aspiring doctor Mila (Toni Go-Yadao) finds out that she is pregnant, she tells her mother Dely (Lhorvie Nuevo-Tadioan) right away, even though she is really hesitant to let her father know. Dadong (Jonathan Tadioan) is a retired police officer who runs his household under strict scrutiny, like Martial Law and house arrest combined. When the cat is out of the bag and Mila introduces Noel (Marco Viaña) to the family, everything seems to be going well. The two get married and agree, upon the insistence of Dadong, that they reside in the same house with them. What seems to be a harmless request turns out to be a power move from the patriarch to exert control on the newlyweds and manipulate the two to do his bidding anytime he wants them to, as long as they are under one roof. As tensions flare and patience runs thin, Mila and Noel hatch a plan for their escape, but will they succeed?

Anino sa Likod ng Buwan (PETA)

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Military man Joel (Martin del Rosario) befriends impoverished couple Emma (Elora Españo) and Nardo (Ross Pesigan) who are caught in the crossfire between the army and the rebels that they are pursuing on the mountains. The three spend late afternoons together at the couple’s hut, just playing cards and even having simple dinner together with what Emma can come up with from the occasional sardine tin can that Joel smuggles from their headquarters. The unlikely friendship becomes the talk of the town. For many, both parties seem to have something to gain from the unexpected camaraderie. They believe that Joel is suspecting the couple of being in cahoots with, if not being part of, the rebels themselves. What they do not know is that Joel and Emma are having an affair right under her husband’s nose. As feelings begin to develop, lines are blurred between mission and lust. In the end, who is really playing whom?

Babygirl

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High-powered CEO Romy Mathis (Nicole Kidman) has an enviable reputation in an industry that is primarily dominated by men. She has reached her current position by taking risks and leaving a mark in the computer automation market, at the helm of a company that serves as an innovator and leader in their field. Her husband Jacob (Antonio Banderas) is in the performing arts, serving as director of a theater group. Together with their two daughters, they seem to be the portrait of a happy family. Or so they thought. Romy has certain fantasies and sexual desires that are left unfulfilled by her husband, a gap that is later filled by a daring intern named Samuel (Harris Dickinson) who senses, early on, his mentor's eccentric quirk of craving to be told what to do. What unfolds between them is a game of power, of giving and taking. In the end, who will emerge victorious?

The Devil Wears Prada

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Fresh out of Brown, 23-year-old Andrea Sachs leaves the comfort of her home state and moves to Manhattan so she can begin her quest for a career in journalism. Her main goal is to work for The New Yorker, but prospects have been rather slim after she sends out her CV to dozens of companies but receives close to no interview callbacks. When she gets a call from Elias-Clark for a potential position at fashion magazine Runway, Andrea is reluctant but left without much of a choice. She eventually gets hired as the second assistant of Miranda Priestly, a British-born editor-in-chief, whose snooty demeanor and bad track record of emotional abuse of her subordinates should have been a glaring red flag. However, as first assistant Emily Charlton would like to say, “it’s a job a million girls would die for.” Add the assurance that a year at Runway means guaranteed recommendation from Miranda to whichever company a former employee would like to move to and Andy is convinced, not knowing that she might as well be working for the devil herself.

Antimarcos

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AYON SA PABALAT NG AKLAT: “Ika-23 taon ni KKK aka Kommander Kulas Korazon. Pagkagising, nalaman niyang nawawala pala ang kanyang puso, notebook, kasaysayan, atbp. Simula ito ng wakas ng simula ng kawasakan, kaliwa’t kanang gahasa at pagpaslang hanggang sa sarili niyang kamatayang walang-hanggan. Siya nawa.” AYON SA HUKOM NG CARLOS PALANCA AWARDS 2023 FOR LITERATURE: “Isang ambisyon na naisakatuparan ang Antimarcos: ang paggamit ng plataporma ng nobela para gawin ang lahat ng makakaya ng wika – sa iba’t ibang tono at istilo – at isulong ito para magbuwag ng mga hangganan ng genre, magbasag ng mga formula, at padaluyin at paliparin ang mga posibilidad ng kamalayan at imahinasyon sa malalim na kaalaman sa kasaysayan ng sining at panitikan at buhay, sa lawak ng mga espasyo at panahong sinagad at ginalugad, sa dulas at daloy kung saan muli’t muli, aliw at kabusugan ang pagbabasa. Hinuhudyat nito ang hugis, lawak, lalim, at tayog ng pagkukuwento ngayon at sa hinaharap. Kahanga-hanga!”

Stray Cats

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Teenager Elisa Paz lives a life of relative comfort belonging to an upper-middle class family that resides in a gated subdivision. Her best friend Raquel Madria is the daughter of the housemaid next door and attends the same private school she goes to thanks to a scholarship. When Raquel suddenly goes missing, her mother tells everyone that her daughter has been sent back home to Pampanga to take care of her ailing father. A speaking cat named Oscar Santos appears to Elisa and begs to disagree. She cannot believe her eyes and ears at first, but the feline actually does speak, and tells her that it saw Raquel get kidnapped by a man with a ponytail on board a grey sedan. Knowing that nobody will believe her without evidence aside from the testimony of a talking cat, Elisa investigates the matter on her own, not knowing that what she will discover is one of society’s many ills, far detached from the seemingly fairy tale life she is living.

An Artist of the Floating World

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Masuji Ono has made a career in the arts and was revered both in his local community and in his industry for his body of creative work. Now retired, he seldom paints anymore and devotes his time reminiscing and trying to reconnect with his former colleagues. His older daughter Setsuko is married to Suichi. Ichiro is their son. The young boy is full of energy and visits his grandfather from time to time, puzzling the old man with his proclivity for western culture. Ono’s younger daughter Noriko almost failed to get married, and she feels as though her father’s past had something to do with the Miyakes canceling her wedding to Jiro the previous year. In any case, the crisis is averted as she eventually marries into the Saito family the following year. Given his involvement as a police informer during Imperial Japan’s war effort, Ono reflects on his life decisions as the country is ushered into a new age of democracy and capitalism.

The Age of Umbrage

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Guadalupe de Leon has had a rather curious upbringing. A child of a broken marriage between a guy your parents warned you about and a stereotypical woman who is supposed to be smart but turns out to be an idiot when it comes to love, Guada is raised by her single mother Siony in their humble home until opportunity knocks on their door. Although a teacher by profession, Siony’s passion is in the culinary arts. When she accepts a catering job for a big company and the owner falls in love with her cooking, she receives a job offer to be the family’s cook in exchange for an irresistible compensation package and free lodging for her and her daughter. Reluctant at first, she eventually accepts for the sake of Guada and the opportunities the little girl will gain access to. Moving into Don Paquito’s palatial estate in the gated subdivision of Alhambra, Guada experiences the perks of a rich lifestyle despite not being wealthy herself, while her mother slaves away in the kitchen.

The Historian

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An unnamed narrator finds a vellum bound book in her father’s study that has a dragon as its centerpiece. Curious, she begins to ask questions. Paul is hesitant at first, but aware that he must eventually share the story to his daughter, and so he does in several installments. He begins with the disappearance of his thesis adviser professor Bartholomew Rossi and how his tale is similar to his own, starting with the discovery of a dragon notebook among their pile of books while doing research at the library. What comes next is curiosity paving the way for a deeper research on the lore of Vlad the Impaler, the notorious 15th-century prince of Wallachia who had a penchant for horrendous torture methods. When Paul suddenly disappears just like Rossi, his daughter races against time as she tries to track her father, who is later revealed to have gone away in search of his wife Helen, the narrator’s mother, all while a supernatural presence consistently stalks them in the background.

The Brutalist

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Bauhaus-trained architect László Tóth (Adrien Brody) flees his native Hungary and ends up in Bremerhaven where he boards a ship that brings him to America. His wife Erzsébet (Felicity Jones) and young niece Zsófia (Raffey Cassidy) are left behind. Docking in New York, László makes it his primary life goal to be reunited with them in America, but the American dream is proving hard to attain. He gets help from his cousin Attila (Alessandro Nivola) who has immigrated way before him and has now fully assimilated to the American way of life. The two are contracted by twin siblings Harry (Joe Alwyn) and Maggie (Stacy Martin) to convert a room in their father’s estate into a library as a surprise gift for his birthday. When the wealthy Harrison Lee Van Buren (Guy Pearce) walks in on them in the middle of renovation, he gets mad and fires them on the spot. Later on, he traces László’s whereabouts after he discovers the latter’s reputation in the world of architecture. A partnership begins and lives are changed, for the better and for the worse.

A Complete Unknown

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Bob Dylan (Timothée Chalamet) hitchhikes to New York city to meet his idol Woody Guthrie (Scoot McNairy). He finds out that the folk singer is in New Jersey battling Huntington’s disease. Upon reaching the care facility, Bob finds Guthrie with his close friend Pete Seeger (Edward Norton), a folk singer and activist who has an ongoing court case. The young musician is coaxed into singing one of his original compositions impromptu, which ends up impressing both Seeger and Guthrie. Soon, Dylan finds himself being dragged across town by Seeger, introducing him as an aspiring folk singer. He meets Sylvie Russo (Elle Fanning) in one of his gigs and they start a relationship. Slowly gaining popularity, Dylan is soon paired with established folk singer Joan Baez (Monica Barbaro), the two frequently performing together being a consistent bone of contention between the couple. As Dylan rises to the top of the folk music scene, his sudden shift to electric instruments raises eyebrows and puts his career at risk.

[CHUGOKU] Budget and Itinerary

FRIDAY: February 28, 2025

Cebu Pacific (Manila - Fukuoka) - 4,320.00

Kyushu Rail (Fukuokako - Hakata) - 260.00

Hearts Capsule Hostel (8 Nights) - 19,435.00

Yoshinoya (Gyudon) - 498.00

JR West (7-Day Sanyo Sanin Pass) - 23,000.00

JPY47,513.00

[SHIMANE] A Boat Ride To Matsue Castle

Aside from recording all my travel shenanigans, Nomadmania has also been useful for me when it comes to suggesting attractions in a specific region. This used to be Wikitravel’s exclusive domain in my book, but now I tend to enjoy a mix of the two. One of the most persistent recommendations from Nomadmania appearing in all Japanese regions is a boat ride. I was finally able to test it out when I set my sights on Shimane prefecture. Another castle, yes, but the main experience there for me was the optional boat ride to actually get there. I could’ve taken the bus from the main station but where’s the fun in that, right?

[YAMAGUCHI] Akiyoshido Cave and Akiyoshidai Plateau

It has been a custom for me to plan my Japan trips to cover several prefectures in one itinerary, and I also make it a point to diversify the attractions involved. If I already visited a castle here, then I should look for other options instead of visiting another castle there. In the case of Yamaguchi, the choice was easy because the most popular attraction is a cave. Japan has no shortage of caves you can visit, but I’ve only been to one up north, which was Ryusendo in Iwate prefecture. That one was accessible through a single bus ride from Morioka station. In the case of Akiyoshido down south, you need a train and bus combo.

[HIROSHIMA] Memories of War

When I visited Nagasaki last year, I knew that I also wanted to see Hiroshima, just to compare the two. That desire was kind of ramped up even more after watching Oppenheimer. If you are interested in this gruesome side of WWII history, then going to Japan to check out Nagasaki and Hiroshima really gives you a glimpse of the other side of the story. Nagasaki was chill and gave the impression that somehow they no longer want to dwell on that unfortunate segment of the city’s history. Hiroshima, on the other hand, struck me as having the opposite sentiment, with all remnants of that fateful day on full display for all to see.

[SHIKOKU] Budget and Itinerary (2)

SUNDAY: March 2, 2025

Burger King (Nuggets w/ Fries + Coke) - 660.00

Water (Vending Machine) - 360.00

Kotoku Line (Takamatsu - Ritsurin Koen) - 240.00

Admission Fee (Ritsurin Garden) - 410.00

Kotoku Line (Ritsurin Koen - Takamatsu) - 240.00

JPY1,910.00