Batang West Side

In many ways, this film has left me fairly speechless. so instead I’m going to talk about the stuff I can formulate some sort of thoughts on. Lav Diaz’s famous and infamous style is simultaneously completely absent and totally omnipotently present. In comparison to something like Filipino family this feels like an action movie yet it’s still entirely feels like a Lav Dias film.  Despite the drastic increase in pace Diaz retains all of the depth and all of the nuance somehow. On paper, it seems like the topics Diaz cover’s can only be truly explored in the melancholia evolution of a Filipino family style, but this film has brought that into question for me.  This film brought up so many questions about my own intentions. What exactly do I want to achieve? How do I want to achieve it and why do I want to achieve it that way? why do some things translate about art and why do others not? How do I wish to capture my thoughts and stories? And why that way? This may be in competition for the most stunning looking film I’ve ever seen. It’s some insane crossbreed between Paris, Texas, and a brighter Summer day. It’s a look at the United States only a foreign eye could achieve.  It’s been a real long time since I’ve been this stumped on why I like something but Batang West Side has given me the greatest gift of all. More questions to answer.