Lav Diaz’s ‘Ang Babaeng Humayo’ wins Best Film at 73rd Venice Film Fest
It’s another feather on the cap of Filipino director Lav Diaz as his latest film Ang Babaeng Humayo (The Woman Who Left) won the Golden Lion at the recently concluded Venice Film Festival.
A GOLDEN LION FOR LAV. Lav Diaz holds his Golden Lion at the 73rd Venice Film Festival. (Image grabbed from CinePilyo on Facebook)
Ang Babaeng Humayo’s win at the Venice Film Festival marks the first time a Filipino movie has won the prestigious Golden Lion at the festival. The movie, shot in black and white and top billed by Charo Santos-Concio and John Lloyd Cruz, tells a story of revenge that Diaz dedicates “to the Filipino people and their struggle, and humanity’s struggle.”
It’s the story of Horacia (Santos-Concio), a school teacher who spent 30 years in prison for a crime she did not commit. Her ex-boyfriend, now a wealthy underworld boss, becomes the target of her simmering rage.
The movie was inspired by Leo Tolstoy’s 1872 short story “God Sees the Truth, But Waits”. TheIt runs for almost four hours, and plays with the theme of moral accountability within a narrative colored by kidnappings, transgenderism, and poverty.
The Venice Film Festival Golden Lion is the most recent international award received by Diaz, next to his Best Picture plum at the Singapore International Film Festival.
Other winners at the Venice Film Festival are:
● Silver Lion for Best Director: Andrei Konchalovsky for Paradise (Russian Federation) and Amat Escalante for La Region Salvajé (The Untamed, Mexico)
● Best Actress: Emma Stone for La La Land (USA)
● Best Actor: Oscar Martinez for El Ciudad Ilustre (Argentina)
● Best Screenplay: Noah Oppenheim for Jackie (United Kingdom)
● Special Jury Prize: The Bad Batch by Ana Lily Amirpour (USA)
To view the full list of winners, visit www.labiennale.org.
Source: Cebu Daily News, BusinessWorld Online, GMA News Online, Euronews
