Just when you thought that Tiktik was bad-ass, wait ‘till you see this. GMA Films never outdid themselves since Muro Ami. It’s great seeing them back in making an awesome film. I just wish that we won’t wait for more than a decade for another GMA classic.
Erik Matti and Michiko Yamamoto’s attack in this sequel is comparable to what Phil Lord and Christopher Miller did with 22 Jump Street and Edgar Wright with the Cornetto trilogy. They made fun and paid homages to different movies without losing their material’s originality. It’s actually better than W.S. Anderson and Michael Bay’s blockbuster mayhems. Neatly-edited action scenes and no explosions. Surreal in its own world but doesn’t force you to turn your brains off to enjoy it.
Top seven films that I remembered while watching Kubot:
1. Sweeney Todd (gorgeous opening credits)
2. Insidious (dream sequences)
3. Evil Dead (Makoy’s groovy arm)
4. Kill Bill (blood + Western musical score)
5. The Twilight series (Aswang Edition)
6. The Godfather (Dom = Michael Corleone)
7. OTJ (Joey Marquez, car chase, police car. Kulang
nalang yung “Put*ngina mo! 50x”)
I’m surprised how the film started with a graphic death. It was a good
warm-up for the dark humor and grotesque moments to come. The first act had a lag
time as it introduced new characters but it gained a momentum as it entered the
prison, where the movie went over-the-top and laugh-out-loud.
Dingdong Dantes effectively showed a different, gloomy side of Makoy. Joey Marquez
(Nestor) is still funny but Lotlot de Leon (Nieves) has the balls. I can’t stop
giggling every time the dynamic duo of Ramon Bautista (Justiniani) and Bogart
the
Explorer (Macapagal) are on screen, especially when Bogart is speaking in
Tagalog. Isabelle Daza (Lex) excellent at being silly. KC Montero (Dom) was
good. I want more from Elizabeth Oropesa (Veron) because her character was
brilliantly designed. Jun Sabayton (Tope) is funny and his Family Guy Chicken
Match with Joey is classic. I’m just confused on why he didn’t hate Dom for
turning him into a Kubot.
The last act was kinda forced but it’s still fun to watch, especially
the OTJ-like car chase. Lex and Tope’s conclusions might have been cut and the
end won’t be for everyone, but I love how they wrapped Makoy’s story in a sinister
but bittersweet way. The movie has a lesson of forgiveness and finding a will
to live. The epilogue made me very, very excited for the next sequel.
Kubot: The Aswang Chronicles 2 felt like a bunch of awesome clips that
were cohesively mashed to produce a peculiar and heavily entertaining film. Even
if it didn’t win the Best Picture award, it’s still a movie that you can be
proud of because of its world-class production and one of a kind story.
Best wishes to Mr. and Mrs. Dantes!
BACONTASTIC HOTDOG! 4.5/5
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