I am surprised. This Filipino movie exceeds all my expectations.
Warning: Better watch the full movie first before reading my review and interpretations below.
Gayuma is categorized as erotic drama made by Tuko Film Productions and directed by Cesar Hernando – may his soul rest eternally. It is strictly for open-minded responsible adults.
Movie review: Mike (played by Benjamin Alves) is a young handsome fine arts student in University of the Philippines. Mike lives alone in a big old house. This house is ‘stereotyped’ with ghost stories about his grandfather’s past. Once in a while, Aunt Malena (Cherie Gil) visits Mike. She brings food for him and joins him during breakfast. Malena is the daughter of Mike’s deceased grandfather.
Joy (Elora Españo) is Mike’s girlfriend. They do not see each other often, because both are busy. Both are art students but Joy gets busier than Mike all the time. She is one competitive woman. She is the kind of girlfriend who commands what to do – “Mike, let us do this,” and “Mike, we should do this.” Whenever they are together, they eat somewhere then make love later.
Their relationship becomes a chore than a romance. The relationship go sour but never officially break up.
Then, there is Stella (Phoebe Walker). Stella is a mysterious nude model frequently seen by Mike inside the art classroom. Mike wonders why she disappears whenever they are together. Either she excuses to go in the comfort room or just go silently.
There is no problem with Mike. He feels comfortable whenever he is with Stella no matter how brief the moment is. Until one day, Mike reveals to Stella that he is in love with her. Mike and Stella have sex.
An art exhibit happened to honor Mike’s grandfather. Mike feels stressful the whole day. He even fails to communicate properly with Joy, who arrives outside the exhibit complaining why Mike forgets to pick her up.
Mike finds Stella in the exhibit. Mike finds her irresistible so they go home together. Inside his room, Stella reveals to Mike that she was the student of his grandfather. They had a romantic relationship but his grandfather left her. Stella died due to broken heart. For the last time, Mike and Stella had sex.
Joy finally convinces herself that Mike is not well. She goes to his house but things are too late. Mike is half-naked and dead on his bed.
Movie analysis: I am not a psychologist nor a psychiatrist. I am not an art student too. The analysis I make are limited to what and how I understand the flow of this stupendous eye-opener story.
Gayuma is a strong character-driven movie. The plot is slow, especially the first hour. The story focuses on Mike as an art student who sees and hears things that do not exist. There is an early scene that shows Mike is hearing voices but when he takes a look at the classroom, the room is empty.
Mike is left living alone. Mike spends his time exploring the old big house. He finds his grandfather’s journals. He reads it. He dreams about it too. Joy is the only person he can share these weird stories and somehow, he expects her to be with him always.
Joy is busy, however. Mike is left with no one. He feels sad and tells his aunt he is getting sadder. He even shares his sadness with Stella.
Stella, however, is not real. She is not a ghost of the past either. Mike created her in his imagination. Stella is his hallucination. She is the kind of girlfriend Mike wants and needs, that whenever he needs her, she stays with him.
The way I observe it, Mike is consumed with all the stories he reads from his grandfather’s journals. These stories become real to him until his mind sub-consciously created someone who is not real. Mike’s unhealthy coping to fill his emptiness.
All those sizzling sex with Stella are Mike’s hallucinations. Mike is either masturbating or he is sleeping restlessly when it happens.
Mike’s hallucinations are uncontrollable from the start. As a student, he feels pressured too. His grandfather is a popular artist, therefore; expectations for Mike is high. Expecting high for himself while nursing a sour relationship with a girlfriend is too much for Mike.
There is no one but his hallucinations, without knowing that in the end these habits are unhealthy for his well-being. Death is inevitable.
** **
Those scenes with a psychic are simply added to bring the plot to another level. It attempts to scare and it is scary, though untruthful and unrealistic. Mike does not need a psychic. He needs a psychiatrist.
Photos Courtesy of: IMDb
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