Although known for his flashier action-thrillers such as On The Job and The Aswang Chronicles, Filipino director Erik Matti is no stranger to the insufferably atmospheric. In his deft hands, Nine-Day Novena (Pa-Siyam) proved to be an unflinching ghost story about a dysfunctional family reunited by the recent passing of their mother. Following his grim crime drama Honor Thy Father, Matti returns with Seclusion (Seklusyon), a period thriller following a ritual which sets deacons out into a "holy fortress" to ward them off of temptation seven days before their priesthood. The film is set in the late 40's, the last instance of the said ritual. It recalls to mind a horror short film Matti directed in 2012 called Vesuvius, in which a young man sees demons hiding behind the disguise...
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- 11/25/2016
- Screen Anarchy
Veteran Filipino director Erik Matti (Gagamboy, Pa-Siyam, Exodus) makes a welcome return to the genre fare where he first made his name with the upcoming Tiktik: The Aswang Chronicles.An action-horror film with some comedy elements, Tiktik was shot entirely in a green screen studio with Matti and his partners launching their own post production house to bring their vision of local folklore to the big screen in a way that could live up to their standards.For the unfamiliar an aswang is a type of creature from Filipino folklore, a beast that can look very nearly human but loves to feed on human entrails and - even better - babies. One of these coming after your unborn child would be bad enough. Matti's story pits...
- 8/16/2012
- Screen Anarchy
Filipino director Erik Matti has long been a favorite of this site, his films consistently charming with their unique sense of style and energy. But as much as we may argue that films like superhero riff Gagamboy or atmospheric chiller Pa-Siyam are fun films - which they very definitely are - the realities of the system that Matti has been forced to work within have largely meant that while his films are consistently fun they are very seldom what would be called good, at least not good in the big, serious arthouse definition of the word. Only once that I'm aware of in his career - with the gritty drama Prosti - has Matti really been able to showcase the serious craftsman in him and that film has been seen by so tragically few people that it hardly counts.
This is about to change.
When posting the trailer for Matti's...
This is about to change.
When posting the trailer for Matti's...
- 1/20/2010
- Screen Anarchy
Erik Matti's is a name that should need no introduction in these parts. The Filipino film maker has been a staple here for years, coming to our attention with his wacky lo-fi Spider-Man riff Gagamboy before impressing with sparsely atmospheric horror tale Pa-Siyam and diving into fantasy pulp with Exodus. The man's even done some very serious indie-drama.
Matti's career is an unusual one, particularly by Filipino standards, where most commercial directors must simply grind out quick, formulaic money earners to keep the entrenched studio system there happy. And Matti has certainly done his share of that, being a good soldier and playing generally within the rules of the system while still managing to work in his own unique flourishes to let audiences know that there may just be something a little more lurking beneath the surface.
Well, what's beneath the surface is now quickly coming to the top.
Matti's career is an unusual one, particularly by Filipino standards, where most commercial directors must simply grind out quick, formulaic money earners to keep the entrenched studio system there happy. And Matti has certainly done his share of that, being a good soldier and playing generally within the rules of the system while still managing to work in his own unique flourishes to let audiences know that there may just be something a little more lurking beneath the surface.
Well, what's beneath the surface is now quickly coming to the top.
- 1/15/2010
- Screen Anarchy
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