X
- 2014
- TV-MA
- Oscilloscope
- 1 h 55 m
- 2014
- TV-MA
- Oscilloscope
- 1 h 55 m
Summary Oscar, a recent emigrant to Manila, gets pulled into a harrowing world of corruption and violence when he takes a job as an armored car driver to support his family.
Directed By: Sean Ellis
Written By: Frank E. Flowers, Sean Ellis
- 2014
- TV-MA
- Oscilloscope
- 1 h 55 m
- 2014
- TV-MA
- Oscilloscope
- 1 h 55 m
Metro Manila
65
8.1
Summary Oscar, a recent emigrant to Manila, gets pulled into a harrowing world of corruption and violence when he takes a job as an armored car driver to support his family.
Directed By: Sean Ellis
Written By: Frank E. Flowers, Sean Ellis
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally favorable
Based on 11 Critic Reviews
65
55% Positive
6 Reviews
6 Reviews
36% Mixed
4 Reviews
4 Reviews
9% Negative
1 Review
1 Review
Metascore
Generally favorable
Based on 11 Critic Reviews
65
55% Positive
6 Reviews
6 Reviews
36% Mixed
4 Reviews
4 Reviews
9% Negative
1 Review
1 Review
Metro Manila is a horror story in its own unflinching way.
Metro Manila is so spellbound by its setting that it is a good hour before we discover what kind of film it is going to be. It begins as a swirling drama of survival in the Filipino capital — but then suddenly it slips off down an alleyway, only to emerge a scrupulously engineered, Christopher Nolan-ish crime thriller.
It's a resourceful, distinctive film that builds to a satisfying crescendo.
The screenplay (co-written with Hollywood scribe Frank E. Flowers) boasts the stock characters and situations, sentimentality, foreshadowing and melodrama of soap opera. Yet by cleverly blending these ingredients with those of an action caper, the pic presents a fresher appeal.
Although the pacing would have benefited from some judicious tightening, much of the film’s effectiveness is attributable to the lead actors’ well-modulated performances.
Ellis’s twisty plotting gets too clever-clever for its own good. But it’s pacy, engrossing, and Jake Macapagal’s turn as the plucky schmuck protagonist is stellar.
Sean Ellis doesn't so much understand Filipino society as merely sees it as grist for standard genre fare, perhaps hoping that the foreign setting will somehow automatically make the clichés feel fresh.
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Awards
British Independent Film Awards
• 3 Wins & 5 Nominations
Amazonas Film Festival
• 3 Wins & 3 Nominations
Sundance Film Festival
• 1 Win & 2 Nominations
