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Sandy (Kris Aquino) and Dale
(Wendell Ramos) have just come home from abroad to get married, to the great joy of their relatives and friends.
Shortly after, Sandy learns that her next door neighbor and friend Helen as well as Helen's husband and mother had all met tragic deaths. It is said that all these happened because Helen went against the taboo or superstition of getting married within a year of her father's death. This information dampens Sandy's spirit but her wedding pushes through. However, strange things start to happen. At first, these are attributed by Sandy and Joya (Dale's cousin gifted with a "third eye") to Helen in the haunted house but later Joya says that Sandy's marriage is cursed. This is because it defied a belief that siblings should not marry in the same year. But Sandy has no knowledge of a sibling in such circumstances. In her vision, Joya also sees another girl similarly cursed. This other girl is Diana (Claudine Barretto) who has just gotten married to Brian (Bernard Palanca) in a far away province. On their honeymoon, Brian dies but his body disappears. After Sandy's wedding, two cousins' bodies also disappear after an accident. Similar tragic and mysterious events happen almost simultaneously to Sandy and Diana though they are far apart and do not know each other. How explain these coincidences? How can tragedies be averted?
Unlike most local pictures of the same genre Sukob
succeeds as a horror, suspense thriller. Right from the beginning, ambience starts to build up with the extensive panning of old abandoned houses. Visuals with well chosen details, some flashed quickly on screen, as well as effective sound effects including sudden jolts and booms, keep the viewers on edge. The ingenious interweaving of the stories of two women in similar circumstances keeps the moviegoers' interest. However, in the early part of the movie, the sudden switching from one locale to another could be confusing at first to the spectator who has not gotten a "handle" to the story. Foreshadowing is adeptly done with the use of symbols and other devises. Kris Aquino, Claudine Barretto and the rest of the cast give credible performances. Editing is tight. Credit must be given to Chito Roņo for his creativity as director and writer.
A lot of horror films, especially Asian, dabble in the supernatural. Sukob shows the local
superstition about a "straw man" mysteriously appearing to bring retribution to whoever breaks local taboos. Some people are afraid of the misfortunes believed to be the result of
defying such superstitions.
The movie shows this fatalism, as if one were totally at the mercy of evil forces and one can do nothing to shape one's destiny. Sandy and Diana are not aware they have broken any "rule" yet they experience misfortunes. As a Christian, one should not believe that monsters, ghosts or like creatures can ruin one's life. Neither should superstition determine one's decisions. Christians make decisions with no bearing on these old pagan beliefs. We do not subscribe to forces or beings that can decree unjust cruel fates for us. We believe in a just and loving God. The movie however, has some positive values, like the affection and closeness among family members. In the case of Sandy, she made the choice to sacrifice so as to save another's life. One of the exceptions to close family relationships is Sandy's father. His sins are visited on his children but he pays for them in the end.
(Date Reviewed: 28 July 2006)
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