Movie No. 54 (2014). Cinemalaya X: RONDA

Ronda (2014)
Director: Nick Olanka
Cast: Ai-Ai Delas Alas, Carlos Morales, Carlo Aquino, Menggie Cobarubbias, Perla Bautista, Julian Trono

The movie shows a policewoman (Ai-Ai Delas Alas) as she and her partner patrol the streets of Manila at night to dawn. The next two nights are not ordinary nights because her only son, a high-school student, hasn't come home. There are scenes showing her trying to contact her son, but to no avail. Then there's another scene showing her informing her husband, who's working abroad, about the son "missing." She does her routine in most scenes, but looks like she's more interested in her other "affair" than finding her son. It looks like there's too much effort in Ai-Ai Delas Alas to morph her face to look serious  as the character requires.

Other characters give a necessary and welcome diversion. The chief of police looks like not at all concerned about fighting criminals. The Carlo Aquino character is actually more interesting than the policewoman's son. And Carlos Morales, as Ai-Ai's partner in her nightly patrol, is a standout in his performance particularly in that telephone conversation which practically appears (on screen) like he's doing a monologue.

Rating: 2.5/4.0

Date seen: August 3, 2014



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