Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

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rapta
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Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#1 Post by rapta » Fri Oct 28, 2016 8:45 am

Formally announced today...

LINO BROCKA: TWO FILMS [MANILA IN THE CLAWS OF LIGHT + INSIANG]
Limited Dual Format Edition (Blu-ray + DVD)

Due in March 2017 (date TBC)

RRP £34.99

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L.A.
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#2 Post by L.A. » Fri Oct 28, 2016 12:36 pm

Although I am aware of some classics from the Philippines like Genghis Khan, Himala and Oro, Plata, Mata I still haven't seen any films from the country before. These two shall be the first, looking forward to this set.

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zedz
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#3 Post by zedz » Fri Oct 28, 2016 3:36 pm

L.A. wrote:Although I am aware of some classics from the Philippines like Genghis Khan, Himala and Oro, Plata, Mata I still haven't seen any films from the country before. These two shall be the first, looking forward to this set.
In the meantime, you could catch up with Lav Diaz's superb Norte, the End of History.

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rapta
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#4 Post by rapta » Fri Oct 28, 2016 4:02 pm

Yeah I was about to say the same. Norte is the only Filipino film I've seen to date, and what a film to start with. The UK disc from New Wave is a must-have, and is relatively inexpensive too.

From what I understand, Diaz is the successor to Brocka's legacy as the Philippines' most renowned filmmaker. Will be great to get hold of two of Brocka's films in one go!

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L.A.
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#5 Post by L.A. » Fri Oct 28, 2016 4:04 pm

zedz wrote:In the meantime, you could catch up with Lav Diaz's superb Norte, the End of History.
Will do. Thanks for the suggestion.

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knives
Joined: Sat Sep 06, 2008 6:49 pm

Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#6 Post by knives » Fri Oct 28, 2016 6:52 pm

rapta wrote:Yeah I was about to say the same. Norte is the only Filipino film I've seen to date, and what a film to start with. The UK disc from New Wave is a must-have, and is relatively inexpensive too.

From what I understand, Diaz is the successor to Brocka's legacy as the Philippines' most renowned filmmaker. Will be great to get hold of two of Brocka's films in one go!
Though the two directors couldn't be more different. Brocka is utterly amazing telling the conflict of tradition against progress typically through sex and religion in a quietly unique fashion.

Calvin
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#7 Post by Calvin » Fri Oct 28, 2016 8:47 pm

Himala (and some other recent ABS-CBN restorations) are available on iTunes. Well worth a rental. And Mubi UK is currently hosting a Lav Diaz retrospective if you can access that. It's a great time to discover Filipino cinema.

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repeat
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#8 Post by repeat » Sat Oct 29, 2016 6:14 am

Calvin wrote:And Mubi UK is currently hosting a Lav Diaz retrospective if you can access that
The retrospective is actually worldwide: there's been a lot of good stuff streaming on Mubi in recent years, but I don't think there's ever been a better reason to sign up than this. They'll be posting one film a month, and the previous one will leave when a new one appears. The first one (Evolution of a Filipino Family, 2004) is available for one more week - and it's ten and a half hours, so better hurry up if you want to catch it (an opportunity that might not renew itself anytime soon!).

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Brevity
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#9 Post by Brevity » Mon Oct 31, 2016 6:01 am

^Thanks, you've managed to finally convince me to subscribe to a streaming service. Somehow I didn't know how Mubi worked (or that it was available here), but it seems like a good way to watch some of these, as opposed to half-sleeping through a festival screening or getting a (hypothetical?) disc and not having anything to force you to actually watch it (my Sátántangó has been staring at me for seven years now)!

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Cronenfly
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#10 Post by Cronenfly » Mon Nov 21, 2016 10:19 am

I'm liking the cover art up here, simple yet elegant.

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GaryC
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#11 Post by GaryC » Tue Nov 22, 2016 3:11 am

repeat wrote:
Calvin wrote:And Mubi UK is currently hosting a Lav Diaz retrospective if you can access that
The retrospective is actually worldwide: there's been a lot of good stuff streaming on Mubi in recent years, but I don't think there's ever been a better reason to sign up than this. They'll be posting one film a month, and the previous one will leave when a new one appears. The first one (Evolution of a Filipino Family, 2004) is available for one more week - and it's ten and a half hours, so better hurry up if you want to catch it (an opportunity that might not renew itself anytime soon!).
Heremias (Book One: The Legend of the Lizard Princess) - a mere nine hours (actually eight hours thirty-nine - PAL speed-up on Mubi's copy?) - is on Mubi now and for another twenty-two days. Next month's Diaz will be Melancholia, seven and a half hours.

Lino Brocka actually appears as a character in Evolution of a Filipino Family. Some of that may have been archive footage but mainly he was played by an actor. The only one of Brocka's films I've seen is Bona, on its one and only showing on British television, in 1986. If I remember rightly from the time, the BBC cut it, despite it starting at five minutes past midnight on BBC2.

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dda1996a
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#12 Post by dda1996a » Tue Nov 22, 2016 8:07 am

I fail to find the appeal of 8 hours long movies. If he made one like Tarr then I'll tag along but the fact that every film he makes is at least 4 hours is a bit too much for me. Regarding these two films, I never heard of Brocka. Any reference points beside Diaz

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knives
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#13 Post by knives » Tue Nov 22, 2016 12:19 pm

I'm not sure of these two films specifically, but Bunuel and Almodovar are about as close as I can think of. Though that dramatically fails to capture his full magic.

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dda1996a
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#14 Post by dda1996a » Tue Nov 22, 2016 3:40 pm

Well seeing as I really like both that good news. I just never even heard of Brocka so I'm hesitant to pick this up blind, especially as I have no prior experience with Filipino cinema. Anyone can vouch for the two films?

Paul Petit
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#15 Post by Paul Petit » Tue Nov 22, 2016 4:50 pm

Sure I can vouch for them. Magnificient as well as truly important films they are, and as such they would deserve standalone releases in my eyes. You might also file the films under 'third cinema' though this may be a bit misleading as they're neither experimental nor low-budget nor defiantly imperfect. 'Taxi Driver' or 'Z' might be other obvious points of reference/comparison in the case of 'Maynila'. But I suggest to have a look at one of the blurry, but subtitled version of 'Maynila sa mga kuko na liwanag', which you can easily find on Youtube. That should help you to come to a decision.

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What A Disgrace
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#16 Post by What A Disgrace » Sun Jan 15, 2017 9:02 am

Has this been delayed? Its been up on Amazon for months, but you can't pre-order it.

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rapta
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#17 Post by rapta » Sun Jan 15, 2017 10:06 am

It's still listed as March 20th at the BFI Shop, and both films have been rated by the BBFC. I guess it could end up being slightly delayed due to extras production (or packaging).

We'll have to wait and see, but after the Scorsese cock-up they would then have nothing on the Blu-ray front for March.

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What A Disgrace
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#18 Post by What A Disgrace » Tue Jan 31, 2017 11:54 am

Finally available to pre-order on Amazon, though there are no further details as far as supplements go.

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MichaelB
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#19 Post by MichaelB » Wed Feb 01, 2017 1:23 pm

Full specs announced:
Two Films by Lino Brocka
Insiang (1975)
Manila in the Claws of Light (1976)


Filipino director Lino Brocka (1939-1991) was a force of nature in world cinema, his powerful work illuminating the harsh social realities of life in his home country. His films have been largely unavailable on DVD & Blu-ray but now, thanks to Martin Scorsese’s World Cinema Project, his two finest works have been rescued from obscurity and restored in 4K. They will be released together on DVD and Blu-ray in a 4-disc Dual Format Edition by the BFI on 20 March 2017.

A fascinating portrait of life in Manila’s corrupt, teeming urban jungle, Manila in the Claws of Light finds Julio, a 21-year-old rural fisherman, arriving in the Filipino capital to look for his girlfriend. Robbed of his cash, he struggles to survive, drifting through the city in search of his beloved.

Isiang is the story of a girl who, having been raped by her mother’s boyfriend, seeks comfort in the arms of her would-be suitor Bebot. Finding him little better than her attacker, she is forced to return home where she sets about exacting her revenge.

Special features
• New 4K restorations of both films
Manila... A Filipino Film (Mike de Leon, 1975, 23 mins): fascinating making-of documentary featuring interviews and behind-the-scenes footage
Manila stills and collections gallery
Visions Cinema: Film in the Philippines (Ron Orders, 1983, 40 mins): Tony Rayns interviews Lino Brocka and other prominent Filipino directors
Signed: Lino Brocka (Christian Blackwood, 1987, 84 mins): award-winning, feature-length documentary exploring the director’s life and work
• The Guardian Lecture: Lino Brocka in conversation with Tony Rayns (1982, 62 mins, audio only)
• Illustrated booklet featuring a new essay by Cathy Landicho Clark, an interview with Lino Brocka from 1980, and full film credits

Product details
RRP: £34.99/ Cat. no. BFIB1278 / Cert 15
Philippines / 1975 + 1976 / colour / Filipino language, with optional English subtitles / 126 + 94 mins / original aspect ratios 1.85:1 and 1.37:1 / BD50 x 2: 1080p / 24fps / PCM mono audio (48kHz/24-bit) / DVD9 x 2: PAL / Dolby Digital mono audio (192kbps)


jlnight
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#21 Post by jlnight » Wed Feb 01, 2017 4:12 pm

Intriguing release. Signed: Lino Brocka was shown on Channel 4 in 1989 as part of a short season along with Manila In the Claws of Darkness, Jaguar and My Own Country. Those days are long gone now!

What was the last Tagalog language film on TV? Metro Manila?

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rapta
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#22 Post by rapta » Wed Feb 01, 2017 7:13 pm

Probably, yes. I don't think they've showed any Lav Diaz or Raya Martin on telly yet (at least, not here in the UK).

Those extras sound great, I'll definitely be picking this set up as soon as I can! Was worried it was going to be a bit light extras-wise but happy to see they haven't disappointed.

Question now is, what will the packaging be like? 4 discs and a booklet may mean two cases in a slipbox...or will it be the dreaded digipack?

There's a trailer for Manila in the Claws of Light up, if anyone was wondering what the WCP restoration looked like (and Carlotta uploaded one for Insiang last year as well).

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colinr0380
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#23 Post by colinr0380 » Wed Feb 01, 2017 7:41 pm

jlnight wrote:Intriguing release. Signed: Lino Brocka was shown on Channel 4 in 1989 as part of a short season along with Manila In the Claws of Darkness, Jaguar and My Own Country. Those days are long gone now!

What was the last Tagalog language film on TV? Metro Manila?
Yes, aside from Metro Manila getting a couple of screenings on Film4 in recent years, I think the last film on UK TV from this part of the world was when The Killing of Satan (NSFW) got shown on Channel 4 in 2002 as part of the Mondo Macabro season, along with the episode on Filipino exploitation cinema.

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Cronenfly
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#24 Post by Cronenfly » Thu Feb 02, 2017 11:30 am

This looks like a superb set, no need to wait for Criterion.

Can't wait to see what Tony Rayns looked like circa 1983...

peerpee
not perpee
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Re: Manila in the Claws of Light / Insiang

#25 Post by peerpee » Fri Feb 10, 2017 8:35 pm

Here's what he looked like in 1982: https://twitter.com/shittydeath/status/ ... 5371576320

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