On beauty, love and madness

Last Monday, I had the opportunity to grace the gala screenings of Joel Lamangan’s All About Her and Louie Ignacio’s Desperada. Both films are in competition at the 8th edition of Sinag Maynila Film Festival 2026, with Brillante Mendoza as its festival head and Wilson Tieng of Solar Films as co-founder.

“I am particularly proud of my collaboration with Quinn Carrillo, a writer of remarkable instinct and boldness,” said Lamangan, “Her storytelling embraces complexity — refusing to render these women as simple heroes or villains. She presented them as fully realized individuals shaped by desire, ego and the hunger to be seen.”

“Beneath the glamor of pageantry lies a meditation on power — how it is acquired, manipulated and how fragile it becomes in the hands of those who crave it most. This is not merely a story about beauty queens; it is a psychological drama about identity and entitlement,” added Lamangan.

His inspirations for Desparada, said director Ignacio: “Those who are being abused, who oftentimes are noisy or appearing to be calm, then exploding in anger when tired, hungry or when painful memories return. These are the people who became my inspiration and whom I spoke with while creating my film. I tried to understand why they behaved that way.”

“I made it a point that my actors gave authentic performances,” Ignacio added. “The emotional commitment and the vulnerability that my cast gave their characters, because of their great work, I am sure that audiences will not only see but feel the mental and emotional struggles of people with mental health conditions.”

High camp and intrigue

Trust Lamangan to be able to mix camp, intrigue and mystery and get away with it. In the film, the camp elements were most obvious in the rehearsal scene of the candidates, who were not fitting to be called “beauty” pageant contenders because they were truly lacking in the physical attributes. Another campy element — the nosy and gossipy “matrons” who did not have elan and sophistication. The actresses cast for the part were not even “grade A” players. The corporate big shots suffered the same fate as the cackling unsophisticated group of ladies.

Jim Pebanco’s Angel drove me to stitches what with his fashion designer/mentor character who seemed like a cross between Oskar Peralta and Michael Cinco, with his third world sensibilities. The campiest part of the movie is its very conclusion that was like the biggest slap to people in authority.

The high intrigue part of the movie was its Rashomon-like of presenting the sides of the truth — Olivia’s (Kelly Day) version of it, Angel’s (Pebanco) recollection of it and James’ (Itan Rosales) recount of the truth that when finally exposed, was not a piece of cake to handle.

Day and Yuki Sonoda (Issa) registered well on-screen. They were competing beauty queens and best friends and yes, they delivered true leading lady promise. Tony Labrusca (William), the policeman lover of Sonoda’s character, was handsomely photographed, believable as a jealous and intense kind of man, and boy oh boy, he should and must win the best kisser award.

All About Her is a cautionary tale that exposed the dark and ugly side of pageantry. It’s a reminder that the polish, sheen and glamour that we are all attracted to in a beauty pageant are nothing more but superficialities. It’s one massive camouflage to mask insecurities, obsession and narcissism. There is truth to the saying that real beauty comes from within, and for its power to be unleashed, it must go with a brilliant intellect, sharp wit and a champion’s resolve.

Home

The private shelter served as a home to the many mentally-challenged individuals in Ignacio’s Desperada. Run by a pair of lesbian lovers (characters paired by Sue Prado and Mercedes Cabral), they provide food, medicines, counselling and family to the likes of Brenda (Robb Guinto), a literal slave, Hesus (Mhack Morales), haunted and traumatized by a predatory man in robe; Inno (Yasser Marta), a filthy and amoral junkie and the many women who had interesting and harrowing tales to tell, which lead to their madness.

Ignacio briliantly captured the homey intimacy and the safety and security of the shelter. When each character recalls their horror stories, it made you feel that you and I are the shelter, seated as they pour out their lamentations, and it makes the breathing difficult, the tears swell and just fall. The teacher, the mother, sexually addicted miss, the abandoned gay man, their pains were visceral, you cannot look the other way and want to help, rescue and save them. What a powerful screenplay by Dennis Evangelista and with Ignacio’s directorial mastery, the co-relation between poverty and mental health issues were spot-on and heart-wrenching.

As Brenda, Guinto gave a career-defining performance. She was all heart — the silences, the eyes revealed the damage to her being and soul; the soft cries that became wails, the myriad of expressions that registered on her face, she is a welcome addition to the new hope of actresses who bring the truth that their characters deserve.

Desparada showed that madness is not a choice; we just have an overabundance of bad people who lead other people to astray and destruction. That home is truly where the heart is, and that family at times are not bonded by blood. We will all get better together — with faith, hope, joy and love.