Double Barrel

The dialog is somehow close to how people in such areas commonly use (with a few exaggerations regarding nationalism and missing the all-too-common swagger), and the story itself has some basis on what's been happening ever since the drug war started. The problem is the sub-par acting of the main characters. Hats off to Dindo Arroyo and Mon Confiado, who were the only ones who lived up to the their characters, with a few other uncredited bit players. If you're going to watch this, focus on the story and not on the acting.

The Filipino action movie is an extinct genre/style of film which eventually died out in 1993. There were a few films from the mid 90s like Moises Arcanghel and Melencio Magat that tried to faithfully uphold the traditional aesthetics of the genre but most of the movies from 1993 onwards with the "action" label are dishonest and lacking in artistic integrity and most of the elements that made the genre uniquely entertaining were absent from said productions. The classic Filipino action movie is distinct in style from most western action films and also action movies from Hong Kong, because of obvious differences in culture and because the genre is made entirely for local audiences.

"Double Barrel" is an attempt by veteran director of action films, Toto Natividad to once again revisit and perhaps resurrect the long dead genre but was he successful? First off, the film can be commended for its production and choice of locales. But other than these two aspects, the movie alternates between decent and cringe with cringe outweighing the more positive merits of the film. One of the few positives of the film is local 90s action star Jeric Raval now playing a corrupt, Punisher style cop. His character here is a departure from his Ebok Ala days where he mostly played hoodlums or petty crooks. The blood effects (an integral component of action films) are mostly present in all but a few scenes which is a plus. A few stylistic clips like the scene where Raval's character is gunned down where the gunman is shown in close up with the firearm discharging bullet shells is expertly shot. Another scene is when the protagonist is told to beat the crap out of a fellow inmate; this scene was deftly handled and is reminiscent of the director's past films like Hanggang Saan Ang Tapang Mo (specifically the final stabbing scene in that movie). In its entirety though, the film is a complete and epic debacle.

For a movie funded by Vic Del Rosario Jr., you think someone would have hired bit players who could at least act. The woman shouting tagalog expletives in the first part of the film sounds very unconvincing as well as that one cop in the police station. The guy playing the protagonist (AJ Mulach) has no screen presence and doesn't command the attention of viewers like a Robin Padilla or an FPJ. He has a cool hairdo and tattoos like Wesley Snipes in Blade but that's it. The most glaring flaw of the movie though are the badly choreographed fight sequences. Dindo Arroyo's fight with the protagonist is the most embarrassing along with the other fight sequence with Raval later in the film. The fight with Arroyo's character is the worst as it felt like an ill rehearsed routine than a spontaneous and organic flow of movement. Which leads me to another drawback of the movie: lack of editing and improper staging of scenes. Many scenes have a very rough cut feel to them which makes the filmmakers seem like amateurs. Contrast this to a film with a similar theme (Mikhail Red's Neomanila) but is a million times more technically competent. Natividad's film also at times feel like an episode of the stupid Ang Probinsyano (now thankfully over) with the overly pompous staging which is only natural because Natividad is one of the directors of that dumb show.

Even the song used for the ending sucked. It's a religious song so maybe that helps explain why the film is sh-t on many levels.

The film is only one of the few movies that tried to revive the Filipino action movie but eventually failed. The other films include the vanity projects of one E. R. Ejercito. Honestly, just watch the old classics. Those classics should be digitally restored for them to be fully appreciated by a new audience.

Double Barrel attempts to revive Filipino action movies but it did not pan out for me as oppose to my initial expectation. The main and most evident problem is the cringe-inducing acting. Even though the script's semantics are natural to the slum language, the artists jeopardized it by acting with uneasy body language and insincere awkward speaking tone.

There are also some plot holes that are too unrealistic to ignore. The prime example is Marta's shooting skill. She never fired a gun before but just by practicing in a couple of days, she learned to use it, not only accurately but also comfortably while riding in a motorcycle. In a specific scene, with the use of a pistol, Marta killed 3-4 experienced bodyguard who obviously outskilled and outgunned her. This problematic plot inconsistencies in the film is too many to mention that I do not bother to list them all.

Meanwhile, the action scenes are pretty mid (except the first chase scene), the sex scenes are forgettable, the camerawork is decent and the background music are very unremarkable (minus the final song). I have no problem with the film's color grading but it is not revolutionizing either.

There are only one outstanding aspect of the film that I admire: the realistic setting. The film was shot in a real slum area and the houses utilized appear to be real houses of the people living there. The humid atmosphere of the place is also evident in a positive way, signified by the occasionally haggard and sweaty looks of the artists. However, these two positives did not able to significantly push the film into the higher realms of action movies.

So to sum up, unless you wanted to have a rough idea about the realism of the war on drugs or you just wanted to admire the hotness of AJ Mulach and Phoebe Walker, the film Double Barrel is not worthy of an attentive watch.