Bela Luna is a romantic drama film from the Philippines released in 2023 which was powered by the imagination of one of the Philippines’ finest screenwriters Ricky Lee. It is directed by Mac Alejandre. The movie was produced by Viva Films. It stars the breakout Angeli Khang who plays a bold and intricate dual role alongside Mark Anthony Fernandez, Kiko Estrada, Julio Diaz, Francis Mata, and Nicco Manalo. Bela Luna is a 109-minute film that tackles the complex issues of womanhood, abuse, creativity, and self-liberation.
Overview: Interwoven Stories and Female Liberation
Bela Luna intertwines two distinct but connected tales. One of Bela, a screenwriter but she is stuck in the middle of a commercial and an artistic war. The other, Luna, a schoolteacher ensnared in a toxic and abusive martial relationship. While these two women appear different, their stories have been developed in such a way that, in the end, they could be brought together in a beautiful and painful way.
Luna is shown as a quieter woman wearing glasses, and is married to an older, domineering husband, Abe. Her marriage is emotionally and physically abusive. Financial constraints and caring for her sick mother force her to stay in the marriage. Her feelings of hopelessness culminate in a surreal aching to escape a rooftop setting, and rather than plummeting to her death, she appears to float, an allegorical representation of her desire to escape her life.
Meanwhile, an independent and self-assured scriptwriter, Bela, is dating an up-and-coming director, Arnold. Her new script is at risk of being ruined by producers who want shallow, sexually explicit scenes added to fit Vivamax’s market formula. To help Arnold, she reluctantly agrees to rewrite the script. Bela quickly learns the harsh reality of unfaithful partners after spying Arnold in the act of infidelity and ends both personal and professional ties.
In a turn of events, a fugitive named Diego takes Luna hostage after a robbery gone wrong. As she aids him with reading and writing, Diego emotionally opens up to her, revealing a softer side of masculinity. This relationship is fraught with tension— morally unclear and emotionally complex, it captures the intersection of trauma, power, and intimacy.
Bela and Luna’s paths finally intersect in the film’s closing scene, where both women are positioned on a city street facing each other, locked in silent, wordless gaze. This encounter is shrouded in ambiguity and raises the question of whether the two women are separate individuals or two versions of the same woman. The film does not provide concrete answers, allowing the audience to grapple with its symbolic implications.
Cast & Crew
- Director: Mac Alejandre
- Writer: Ricky Lee
- Producers: Vincent Del Rosario III, Valerie S. Del Rosario
- Cinematography: Daniel Uy
- Editing: Benjo Ferrer, Celina Marie Donato
- Music: Von de Guzman
- Main Cast:
- Angeli Khang as Bela / Luna
- Mark Anthony Fernandez as Diego
- Kiko Estrada as Arnold
- Julio Diaz as Abe
- Francis Mata as Mr. Dizon
- Nicco Manalo as Gardy
Bela Luna is perhaps best known as a film in which Angeli Khang demonstrates her talents in two drastically different parts. Her ability to transition from the domineering Bela to the subdued Luna is not just a testament to her talent, but it also provides the film with more depth than it might otherwise have had.
Bela Luna has sparked critique and praise simultaneously, most prominently due to the film’s overarching themes and commentaries on the film industry.
An exceptional aspect of this film is its self-reflection on the film industry itself. The film focuses on Bela’s agony as a writer and her need to oversell her material, highlighting the commodification of women in the media. Bela’s critique of the excess sex scenes is, in itself, a critique of the vehicle meant to disseminate this film. Thus, the film serves as a critique to Vivamax as well as to its spectators for the filth and misogyny that comprise the women’s narratives, and cinematic imaginings in the Philippines.
Perhaps, another important take away comes from Ricky Lee’s screenplay that is notable for its layered symbolic meaning. Its interwoven narrative arc is also a bit of an emotional puzzle as the audience must follow what is happening between Bela and Luna, but is also deeply satisfying. The central conflict of this film which is the struggle between the battling forces of self subservience and self-expression is accentuated by the motifs of mirrors, reflections, and dual selfhood.
The film is also noted to have a flaw in its pacing and persistent shift in tone. One such critique focuses on the stories that have been compiled together into a ‘metziotic’ whole and lacks finesse and fluidity. While the film seeks to comment on the subject of sex in media, it contains a number of sexually explicit scenes which serves to undermine the very argument the film is attempting to make.
The emotional reward and final act are considered by many to be impactful and insightful. The synthesis of Bela and Luna’s worlds comes together in an act of self-recognition, which can be viewed as an act of reclaiming identity after going through trauma, exploitation, or after a creative compromise.
Thematic and Analysis
- Identity and Duality
The film employs Angeli Khang as both Bela and Luna, which provides a window into how women, in order to cope in a patriarchal society, slice into different fragments of themselves; one angled towards boldness and expression, the other in a hushed and resigned demeanor. This duality goes beyond the plot and extends to a psychological critique.
- Emancipation of Women
Both women are in pursuit of freedom: Luna, of the domestic violence, and Bela, of the creative kind. The film does not offer a linear one, but does offer glimpses of strength and clarity, depicting freedom as a journey towards an end that can never be fully grasped.
- The Price of Creating
The compromise of Bela’s narrative gives a pointed perspective on the issue of artistic compromise. The strife that Bela faces as a writer of fiction reflects the broader reality in which one’s artistic integrity has to be surrendered to marketing, particularly in contexts where sex sells and female voices are pushed to the margins.
Conclusion
Bela Luna transcends the boundaries of a conventional erotic drama. Beneath the surface, it portrays a complex examination of identity, trauma, and the nuances of female empowerment. Ricky Lee’s screenplay, along with Mac Alejandre’s direction, have attempted to avoid the more formulaic tendencies of Vivamax productions. While the film does have some flaws, it makes a daring attempt toward broadening the scope of genre cinema in the Philippines.
Bela Luna stands out as one of the most notable films of 2023, with its striking moments of rich symbolism, thematic ambition, and its striking dual protagonist structure. It is driven by Angeli Khang’s nuanced performance which showcases a combination of careful direction and a bold script which marks the film as witness of cultural critique and a personal awakening.
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