Rigodon (2005) User Reviews

Beautiful, Poetic Art Film on Immigrant's Nightmares

[sangre51600 · 9/10 · 28 March 2006]

A surprise feature at the San Francisco Int'l Asian American Film festival. We walked into the theater not expecting to see "Rigodon" as a fascinating and unusual film on immigrants. I found this film to be beautiful, visceral but very challenging to watch. Even with its minimal approach to movement and storytelling, some scenes made me wince in emotional tension. Painterly and poetic, the style is unconventional and gears away from the usual Filipino melodramas I've seen. The three protagonists beautifully played by actors Torre, Gutierrez and Acuna portrayed the disparate and misery-ridden dreamers in post 9/11. The filmmakers, Dalena and Sicat were able to convey the tortured soul of one who is displaced. "Rigodon" is quite intellectual and artsy, can be very intimidating to the mainstream audience. A must-see for cineastes.

Beautifully made art film that probes the lives of Filipino illegals living in NYC

[tomscratch2004 · 10/10 · 1 October 2006]

Saw the film at the Asian Pacific Film Fest in DC. It is a sonnet to the serious lives of immigrants who can never stop fearing the possibility of deportation. This may be the first bona fide Filipino art film. The characters are depicted as doing everything understatedly: talk (does anyone raise their voice?), sing, engage in private intrigue, play chess, have sex, and in every way maintain a low profile, consistent with the lives of many illegals. The film is slow moving, many scenes have minimal editing (few cuts), and the camera seems locked on a tripod with only subtle movement if any. However, the visual quality of every scene is simply exquisite. Shot in 16mm, many scenes have strong shadow areas and a richness of detail that could make this film a contender for best cinematography recognition (Spirit Award electors, take a look). Comparisons to Rembrandt for the overall look of the visuals and to Directors Bergman and Antonioni for the tone of the film-making provide a clue of what to expect with this film.

From the stage, the filmmaker said that the film was originated as a thesis for school. Considered as a "student film" this is an extraordinary achievement. She also said that in the Philippines, the film was not that well received, due to not falling into any of the popular formula categories. This is a gutsy filmmaker to have created this film. If she can stick around, she may be a major talent to reckon with, perhaps a Filipino Wong Kar Wai, cryptic but not as cryptic as that icon.

Pretentious, Trying-hard to be artsy but failed miserably.

[kcabad-1 · 3/10 · 19 March 2006]

I've seen this film in the recent Asian American Film Festival in San Francisco. Knowing only the synopsis and the actors in the film before watching it, I only had high expectations from it. Torre and Gutierrez are well-known thespian actors in the Philippines and all the films I've seen with them were nothing short of brilliant. However, this film does nothing but disappoint. The filmmakers overly focused on the cinematography at the expense of substantial and meaningful dialogue. The pacing was extremely slow, I thought it lasted forever, when the film only lasted for an hour. There were segments in the film that should not have been included as they only made the storyline more obscure than it already was. There was a lack of realism throughout the film - from where they lived (it almost depicted a typical squatter's area in Manila), from how they interacted with each other (more silence than words), from how they prayed, from the scene where the INS official arrested Torre...it's just awful. What a waste of good talent! I tried hard to like it. I love Filipino films..but this one just didn't make the cut.

artsy fartsy film, pretentious, boring, poor sound quality, unrealistic scenes..

[ponape_mary-imdb · 1/10 · 21 November 2012]

i fully agree with the review by KCABAD. i have watched over 500 filipino films and this one is by far the worst i've ever watched. it's a trying too hard to be artistic film that just doesn't work. scenes jump around, make no sense, unrealistic, poor sound quality, poor lighting. just not interesting. painful to sit through the film until finish. only thing that made the film worse was the writers/directors discussion after the film about how great their movie was. boastful and full of themselves, no wonder the film was so bad.

not possible for a review to contain 'spoilers' for this film since absolutely nothing of importance or interest happens in "Rigodon".

to give an idea of how bad this film was, i am writing this 7 years after i watched this film, compelled to express my opinion after i was reminded of it due to a new film out of the same title.

Great

[tsimshotsui · 12 June 2018]

Rigodon as a film, and Sari Dalena and Keith Sicat as filmmakers, may exactly be what and who I've been waiting for (but only found now). From the moment the film opens with a quote from Kidlat Tahimik's Perfumed Nightmare, I knew I could expect something great. The film is told in separate segments about its 3 characters: Dante, Amado and Salome, Filipinos in New York for different reasons, and in different situations, but are connected to each other. The film, in its brief length, manages to describe the terror of immigration laws, the loneliness and helplessness of being away from home, and a dream becoming a curse and a trap. I love the atmosphere and the non-extravagant but beautiful production design.

I definitely picked the right film to watch this Independence Day, and am very excited to explore more of Sari Dalena's works, should I be fortunate enough to find them!