(Oh. You. Stupid. Kids...)
CAST: TJ Trinidad, Jaclyn Jose, Barbi Forteza, Rhian Ramos, Louise De Los Reyes, Marvin Agustin, Lexi Fernandez, Derick Monasterio, Renz Valerio, Alden Richards, Allan Paule, Ana Abad-Santos.
DIRECTOR: Yam Laranas
WARNING: Some SPOILERS and one seriously cursed road that should be buried under lava and salted over - straight ahead...
IT'S LIKE THIS: Ah, teenagers.... is there a stupider group of creatures in the Universe? Not if horror movies are anything to go by. I don't care if a youngster is in AP Chem, Bio, English, Algebra, and Basket Weaving, and is also the captain of the soccer team and speaks seven languages with an IQ of 179, all you have to do is put him or her in a horror movie and suddenly he or she develops the reasoning power and survival instincts of a used teabag. And it isn't just American cinematic teenagers that turns as smart as bricks when their lives are in danger. Apparently, our cousins over in the Philippine archipelago have the same issue. Our next review is the new Philippine horror flick THE ROAD, and let me clear up right now this movie has absolutely nothing to do with the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Cormac McCarthy or the cinematic adaptation starring Viggo Mortensen and Charlize Theron. Nope. The titular road in this flick is plagued by something even more freaky than roving cannibals and survivalists.
The nightmare (and onscreen stupid behavior) starts one night in 2008 when upper middle-class Manila teenager Ella (Barbie Forteza), her cousin Janine (Lexi Fernandez), and Janine's boy-toy Bryan (Derick Monasterio) decided to take Janine's dad's car out for a spin so that Bryan can teach the girls how to drive. Problem is two-fold: (1) Bryan doesn't have a license himself, and (2) Bryan is stupid. This is clearly evidenced by his decision to avoid a police checkpoint (and discovery of his non-license holder status) by - here it comes, folks, and it's a doozy - busting open a boarded up turn-off from the main thoroughfare - and driving down the dark dirt road beyond. "We have our own private road!" says Bryan, the future rocket scientist. Oh, that's right. He has no future. Moron.
Sure enough, all manner of freaky shit begins to happen. Including, but not limited to: (1) a driverless red car with its brights on that constantly shows up behind them even though they never see it turn around; (2) a woman in a long dress and a bag over her head in the middle of the road; and (3) number 1 and 2 over and over and over again, playing like some utterly fucked-up Halloween gag reel. It doesn't help that no matter how far Ella, Janine, and Bryan drive along this road, it never goes anywhere. And when they turn around to go back to the main highway, they can never seem to reach it. It's like being stuck on one of those toy racetracks - except, well, with ghosts.
Then we jump back to one day in 1998 when sisters Lara (Rhian Ramos) and Anna (Louise De Los Reyes) are driving along the same road when their car suddenly overheats. It just so happens that a cute guy (Alden Richards) is walking by, and he indicates they should follow him to fetch some water for their car. In yet another stupid move, Lara and Anna comply. I mean, seriously: it doesn't strike them as odd that someone lives alone in a house along a creepy-ass road and even creepier-ass woods? Not even a little? It doesn't come as a major surprise that the guy turns out to be a nutjob who knocks them both out and chains them in separate rooms. Eventually, Lara escapes and tries to get help. Unfortunately, our resident psycho feels she hasn't even come close to overstaying her welcome - and goes after her...
Cut another ten years back to 1988 where we find the same road and the same house, but with a family instead of a Filipino version of Norman Bates. We've got Dad (Marvin Agustin), who is a preacher, Mom (Carmina Villaroel), who is a bitch, and Son (Renz Valerio), who is fucked because he has to stay at home with his bitch mother all day. It doesn't come as a surprise, either, that she often locks the kid in a cabinet while she messes around with her boyfriend (not Dad) all day. Turns out her husband knows all about her affair, but is too pussy-whipped to do anything about it. Mom also forbids Son from ever taking one step outside the house - or she tans his hide within an inch of his life. Basically, she's an all-around mega-banshee and is more frightening than any ghost could ever be.
So... how do the events from 2008, 1998, and 1988 all tie in to one another? What is the source of the evil along this road? What role does the family from 1988 have to do with the sisters from 1998 and the teens from 2008? And vice versa? What happens when a detective (TJ Trinidad) in 2008 is asked to investigate the cold case from 1998? Will he dig further back to the history of the family in 1988? And if so, what will he find? What is the secret of THE ROAD?
Who cares. These people asked for it.
BUT, SERIOUSLY: With the release of the Japanese horror hit RINGU in 1998, the Asian Horror Genre was born. While this genre always existed, it wasn't until the worldwide success of RINGU, JU-ON, KAIRO, SHUTTER, ONE MISSED CALL and others like them that Hollywood took notice of these films that eschewed the typically-American traits of blood, guts, and sex for atmosphere, mood, and slow burn terror. Before long, American studios were remaking them in droves. Some of these western versions of the same eastern stories were hits (THE RING, THE GRUDGE), while most eventually misfired (PULSE, ONE MISSED CALL, SHUTTER). It's difficult to recapture the same eerie dread that permeates the original Asian films in American settings.
While Japan, Thailand, and Korea had many strong entries in the Asian Horror boom from the start, the Philippines didn't. There was a couple of minor entries here and there (FENG SHUI, the SHAKE RATTLE AND ROLL series), but none of them were noticed in the same way RINGU and its progenitors did due to poor quality. Director Yam Laranas' output is the exception. Laranas' first horror film was SIGAW ("Scream" in Filipino), and was remade in the United States as THE ECHO, with Laranas himself directing as well. He followed that up in the Philippines with the vampire film PATIENT X, which was okay but didn't receive the attention that SIGAW did. Consequently, PATIENT X never saw an American remake.
Now, Laranas brings us his third horror offering, THE ROAD. And it is easily the strongest of his films. In our review for CIAO (review # 435), we discussed how three main things must be considered when reviewing a film: intent, execution, and result. Many other elements like plot, character, dialogue, etc. can be lumped under each of these three categories. Basically, you have to consider what the filmmakers intended, how they went about achieving them, and whether they succeeded. Some films have admirable intentions, but the execution suffers because of either a low budget or some other weak link within the cast or crew, leading to mixed results. While other films never had lofty intentions to begin with, but were buoyed by a large budget, resulting in quality fare (at least, technical-wise). Other films achieve the perfect trifecta of having strong intentions, superb execution, and stellar results.
THE ROAD falls under the category of films that have great intentions, but are constricted by a limited budget. The result is still quiet strong, especially for a horror movie, but you can't help but feel that the film would've been even more effective with a higher budget. As it is, though, it is an admirable exercise in atmosphere, dread, and clammy horror that sneaks up on you in a quiet, quiet, quiet way. Most of the time, this is far more terrifying than loud scares that announce themselves with a crash of special effects. THE ROAD's terrors are more of the insidiously insinuating kind, much like the films it most closely resembles: the Japanese horror classic JU-ON and its even better American remake, THE GRUDGE (which is what JU-ON means in English).
JU-ON and THE GRUDGE both used a large gallery of loosely-connected characters and a fractured, non-linear progression to tell the story of how a seemingly-ordinary Tokyo house became the source of an unrelenting curse that spreads like a virus to anyone who enters its front door. Similarly, THE ROAD explores how the titular thoroughfare became as haunted as it is in the present. The interesting difference, though, is that Laranas uses a much more elegant and linear approach - except he is going back in time instead of ahead. Reverse linear, if you will. We start in 2008 with the ill-fated teens on a late night joyride, we segue back to 1998 to see how the "cold case" of the two missing sisters began, and finally all the way back to 1988, where the evil started.
Like JU-ON, THE GRUDGE, and RINGU, Laranas leaves it up to the viewer to piece together the mystery of what is happening on the road. He avoids the traps that American horror films routinely fall into - that is, overexplaining the backstory, which dissipates a lot of the mystery and tension. His scares are similarly subtle, but no less effective. Watch for the scene where Bryan and Janine are desperately running down the road to find their way back to the main highway - but something is following them. It is a supremely creepy image and will no doubt chill everyone including the hardiest of horror fans. And will make you look at plastic bags differently for then on. You'll see.
Laranas also handles the final twist of the film with understated class. In hindsight, it makes perfect sense. He even manages to end the film on an enigmatic note that makes the movie linger in your mind. Suffice it to say, Laranas juxtaposes themes of good and evil, dark and light, ugliness and beauty throughout this film - and the final image and twist is no exception. I fear I may have already revealed too much, because by saying there is a twist, you automatically condition people to look out for it. Suffice it to say, you will still appreciate it even if you see it coming. I didn't, and it's a credit to Laranas' sleight-of-hand and misdirection that he fooled me, because I correctly guessed the twist to THE SIXTH SENSE about halfway into the film. And everyone else I know never realized Bruce Willis' character was dead until it the moment it was revealed. THE ROAD's twist is more concealed - and even more devastating.
The cast of Philippine performers is both attractive and talented. My concern going into this film was that they would mostly be histrionic and over-the-top, as is the cinematic acting style of the Philippine Islands. I was pleasantly surprised to find their performances as naturalistic, subtle, and believable as Laranas' handling of everything else in the production. Whether it's the first act's trio of misguided teens played by Barbie Forteza, Lexi Fernandez, and Derick Monasterio, or the second act's doomed sisters played by the gorgeous Rhian Ramos and Louise DeLos Reyes, the final act's tragic family played by Marvin Agustin, Carmina Villaroel, and Renz Valerio, or the sympathetic and confused detective played by TJ Trinidad whose storyline acts as the spine connecting all three acts and timelines, each of these actors acquit themselves very well and keep us invested. The standouts are Villaroel as the spectacularly cruel mother, Ramos as the fiercely protective older sister, and Trinidad as the detective who slowly starts to realize the extent of the road's evil - and how far back it reaches. And just how far into the future it may continue if he doesn't stop it.
I have heard rumors that THE ROAD will eventually be picked up for a remake by an American studio. If so, I can't think of a better Asian film out there right now to be remade on these shores. Hopefully, Laranas will be allowed to direct it just like he did with SIGAW and THE ECHO. The only thing that keeps THE ROAD from reaching a rating of **** (very good) is its technical constraints evident in certain sequences. Other than that, though, it is a solidly good ghost story with great intentions, reasonably strong execution - resulting in one of the better horror movies to come along in years. Fortune willing, if Laranas is allowed to helm the American remake with a much larger budget at his disposal, I have no doubt he will create a film that will endure as a horror classic. As it is, this version of THE ROAD is just a few glitches shy of being one. For a Philippine film, that is still certainly cause for pride and celebration.
Go, Yam. Best of luck on the American remake. You and your film deserve it...
