We did not expect to be so busy that a whole month passed and we did not get to post something new for you, our dear readers.
And what with the unslappable COVID 19 entering the Philippines, it cannot be avoided that gatherings must be postponed, including film festivals such as the new Summer Metro Manila Film Festival and Sinag Maynila.
Today we shall feature one of this year’s entries for Sinag Maynila: Kintsugi, directed by Lawrence Fajardo and written by Herlyn Alegre.
Mostly set in Saga, Japan and some parts shot in Pampanga, the film revolves around Dante, a Filipino worker in Japan (played by JC Santos) and Harue (played by Hiro Nishiuchi), a Japanese woman who is a practitioner of kintsugi and the daughter of Dante’s employer. While the film is about love, the drama is vastly different from the common lovers’ anguish and mush; it also gives a glimpse into the lives of Filipino overseas workers, the cultural differences and the art and industry of pottery.
For context or to get a better grasp of what the film is about, according to Wikipedia, kintsugi is the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery by mending the areas of breakage with lacquer dusted or mixed with powdered gold, silver, or platinum, a method similar to the maki-e technique. As a philosophy, it treats breakage and repair as part of the history of an object, rather than something to disguise.
The film also shows how people and things can be broken, repeatedly, and how one can be repaired, piece by piece—with patience. Most of try to hide our past wounds, our imperfections, but the truth is our scars are part of who we are, and even upon healing or mending, the marks will remain—but the experience, and the fact that we were able to endure and recover, the result of our breaking—these make us more valuable.
We were fortunate enough to see the film still in the editing process, and even in that unfinished state we thought it safe to say that it is a good film and we were not wrong, for as of this writing we have also seen the final version. The locations are without a doubt beautiful and well-chosen, the story is believable. For someone who has directed films like Imbisibol (Invisible), Amok, and his entry to the Summer Metro Manila Film Festival, A Hard Day—Fajardo’s very delicate handling of Kintsugi is highly commendable.
We do not think it wise to divulge any special part from the film, therefore we shall refrain from doing so, but let it suffice that while this film may not have the type of action that would thrill the viewer— as is expected from a Law Fajardo film— it packs enough punch to break your heart.
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