1529. Magellan (2025)

Director : Lav Diaz

Cinematographer : Artur Tort

Genre : Drama

Country : Philippines

Duration : 164 Minutes

🔸Magellan tells the story of Ferdinand Magellan and his journey across the world, focusing on his ambition, the people he meets, and the difficult path of exploration. I really liked the basic story and the way the film sets everything up. It does not feel like a simple adventure movie about a famous explorer. Instead, it takes time to show the person behind the historical figure and the world he lived in. The story slowly builds around his journey, his goals, and the people around him. There is a good sense of history throughout the film, and I liked how the bigger events come from the characters and their choices rather than feeling like a list of historical facts.

🔸But this is a Lav Diaz film, so the biggest thing to know is that it is very slow. The film takes its time with almost everything. Conversations are long, scenes can continue for a while, and there are many quiet moments where not much seems to happen. For me, some of this works because it makes the journey feel long and tiring, which fits the story. You feel the distance and the patience needed for such a huge journey. At the same time, the slow pace can be difficult, especially in some parts where the film starts to feel too long. It asks the viewer to be patient and really settle into its rhythm.

🔸Still, I think the story and setup carry the film quite well. The performances are good, the historical setting feels believable, and there is a lot of thought behind the way Magellan's journey is presented. It is not the most exciting historical film, but it has a clear vision and does not try to rush through its story. I also liked that it gives more attention to the human side of the journey instead of only focusing on famous events. It could have been tighter, but there is enough here to make it worth watching, especially if you are already comfortable with Lav Diaz's slow style.

Verdict : Good

DC Rating : 3.5/5

1528. Underground (1995)

Director : Emir Kusturica

Cinematographer : Vilko Filac

Genre : Drama

Country : Serbia

Duration : 171 Minutes

🔸Underground is the kind of film that starts as a wild, almost absurd comedy and slowly reveals something much bigger underneath it. Set against the history of Yugoslavia, the film follows a group of people whose lives become deeply connected to the country's political changes and conflicts. What makes the idea so brilliant is the way Emir Kusturica turns an entire country's history into one sprawling human story. The film moves through different periods, beginning around the Second World War and continuing through the decades that follow, showing how people, friendships, lies, politics, and personal ambitions survive even as the world around them changes. The different periods are not simply separate chapters. They constantly connect with each other, and details from one part gain a completely different meaning later. By the time the larger picture becomes clear, the film feels like a strange, tragic, and darkly funny portrait of a country losing and rebuilding itself.

🔸The storytelling is deliberately chaotic, but there is a method behind the madness. Kusturica mixes political drama, satire, comedy, tragedy, romance, and surrealism, sometimes within the same sequence. The result can feel completely outrageous, yet the historical background gives all that madness a serious foundation. I especially liked how the film shows history not simply through major political events, but through the way those events affect ordinary people and their relationships. Characters carry old lies and old loyalties into completely different periods, creating a sense that the past is constantly following them. The film's energy is helped enormously by the performances. The cast fully embraces the exaggerated tone, but they also give their characters enough emotional depth for the story to remain human beneath all the madness. There is a wonderful balance between larger-than-life personalities and genuine moments of sadness.

🔸The biggest achievement of Underground is how all these seemingly disconnected pieces eventually form a much larger picture. What initially feels like a series of bizarre episodes gradually becomes a story about history repeating itself, people manipulating history for their own benefit, and the difficulty of separating personal memory from political reality. The music, crowded celebrations, chaotic movement, and constantly changing environments give the film an almost unstoppable energy. At times, that energy becomes exhausting, and the film's length and deliberately excessive style can make some sections feel less focused than others. Still, its ambition is enormous, and very few films attempt to tell such a complicated historical story with this much imagination. Underground is funny, tragic, absurd, angry, and deeply political, but most importantly, it has a very original idea at its heart. A fascinating film where the smaller stories eventually reveal the much bigger story of a country.

Verdict : Very Good

DC Rating : 4.25/5