BY
DECEMBER 6, 2013
DECEMBER 6, 2013
INDIEWIRE
“Played by acclaimed actress Nora Aunor,
she carries the film through its many passages and depictions of the Bajau’s
lifestyle.”
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Note: 'Thy Womb' is
the Philippines' hopeful entry for the Golden Globe Nomination for Best Foreign
Language Film. U.S. : None Yet. International Sales Agent: Solar Entertainment
Corporation
Giving birth to a
child is a defining moment in every woman’s life. It represents the fulfillment
of a biological purpose. It is also the promise of hope in a new being. Each
society across the globe infuses the miracle of motherhood with its own
particularities, but there is a unanimous appreciation and respect towards
mothers as symbols of prosperity and keepers of a continuous cycle of life.
Ironically in Brillante Mendoza’s film Thy Womb, the protagonist, a midwife
unable to bear a child for her husband, decides to find him a fit woman to
deliver him an heir. With immersive filmmaking and a breathtaking setting, this
slice of life feature transcends mere ethnography to bring to the screen an
augmented and visceral vision of reality.
Few words are
ever spoken by Shaleha (Nora Aunor ), but her expressive eyes convey a
religious peace and a love that knows no boundaries. Knowing that her partner
Bangas-An (Bembol Roco) is reluctant to adopt a child and aware that her
infertility won’t let her satisfy that necessity, she takes matters into her
own hands. What she needs is simply a surrogate mother, someone who can provide
him with such joy. Nonetheless, in this Bajau Muslim island community there are
rules to abide by, and finding a mother for her husband’s child essentially
means searching for a new wife. Lacking any sort of jealousy or selfishness
Shaleha’s unconditional love motivates her to help him find the right young
lady. Not only must they obtain permission from the woman’s family but they are
required to raise a sizable amount of money and goods as dowry. Together they
sell fish, trade, borrow and scrap as much as they can until they are able to
afford Bangas-An's new wife.
Rendered to help
others become mothers but never getting that opportunity herself, Shaleha is a
character fueled by faith and not tormented by the poising nature of human
desire. Played by acclaimed actress Nora Aunor, she carries the film through
its many passages and depictions of the Bajau’s lifestyle. Nurturing and
assertive she is indeed a woman more than capable of caring for a child, but
the cards she has been dealt require her to act with selflessness. Naturalistic
and minimal her performance resonates even in the silent and humble poetry that
permeate the images.
Relying upon a
basic storyline, the magic of the film lies in its design. Form is more
relevant here than any twist and turns in the plot. Arranged with an eclectic
cinematic grammar, the director incorporates aerial shots of the sea gypsy
community combined with underwater sequences, slow motion observational shots,
and seemingly traditional filmmaking that are always in motion, never static.
The camera is alive, it moves around this world with grace. It is also
completely conspicuous making the viewer aware of its presence. Mendoza places
his characters in the real world and films them, which creates a sort of raw
fiction that is neither entirely scripted or fully documentarian. Still, for all
the experimental elements he includes, Mendoza made a film about tradition that
simultaneously inspires a sense of discovery. Via its postcard-worthy
landscapes and all-consuming spirituality, Thy Womb is a film that revels in
its apparent simplicity, which makes for a compelling and revelatory piece. It
lets outsiders intrude into a place undamaged by modernity and functioning in
harmony despite being surrounded by external turmoil.
