This erratic pacing is felt most during the first act of Heneral Luna – where things play out very much like an oral history. Unfortunately, because of some jagged pacing, tension such as is this is not consistent throughout the movie. The closest character who can keep up with Luna’s onscreen presence is his equally proud contemporary, Heneral Mascardo (Lorenz Martinez) – whose refusal to give in to Luna provides a tension-filled back-and-forth sequence in the middle of the film. Janolino, the leader of Luna’s killers, feels too forced as a villain scorned by the titular general. Mon Confiado’s Emilio Aguinaldo seems more like a spineless weakling who hides behind his cohorts rather than a respected political foil while Ketchup Eusebio’s Capt. Not that there are any weak performances, it’s just that none are able to keep up with the gravitas of John Arcilla’s Luna. You’ve got names like Joem Bascon, Alex Medina, Mon Confiado, Nonie Buencamino, Mylene Dizon, and even Ronnie Lazaro but sadly none of the other performances stand out.

There isn’t much to be said about the rest of the cast of movie, which is a pity given that Heneral Luna assembles quite an ensemble.

It is truly his performance that propels Heneral Luna (and, sadly, his alone). Delivering virtually the same line of dialogue on two separate moments, Arcilla is able to convey anger bordering on madness at first and compassion nuanced with frustration soon after. One prime example of just how dynamic Arcilla’s portrayal can be is during this one scene involving a chicken vendor. He is an antihero – the Wolverine of the Filipino insurrection. Here’s a man who rides head first screaming into battle just to rile up his troops’ morale, but at the same time he is a one who can share warm moments and some banter with his mother. He is able to showcase the fierce, boisterous, and volatile man the general has been historically known to be, yet he is also able to flip the coin and show the passionate, sympathetic, and battle-weary softer side of the character. Arcilla plays with the whole spectrum of emotions in his portrayal of the larger-than-life general. Heneral Luna is a tale of how a dissenting voice can get swept away and ultimately perish under a wave of egos and personal interest.Ĭarrying the weight of the story is the above stellar performance of John Arcilla in the title role of General Antonio Luna. The real focus here is the tension, the inner turmoil, that brewed in the ranks of our so-called Filipino founding fathers. Taking cues from Oro, Plata, Mata the movie deliberately puts the colonialists in the periphery, making them merely a backdrop whose presence stirred the pot. Rocha Heneral Luna takes a different approach in telling the story of how we lost the battle and got occupied by the Americans. Directed by Jerrold Tarog and with a script co-written by him, Henry Hunt Francia, and E.A.

The heneral luna movie