Magnifico is a 2003 Philippine coming-of-age drama film directed by Maryo J. de los Reyes and written by Michiko Yamamoto. Starring Jiro Manio, Lorna Tolentino, Albert Martinez, and Gloria Romero, the story follows a titular child character who decides to design and build a coffin for his grandmother as well as raise funds to buy a wheelchair for his younger sister who has cerebral palsy.
Produced and distributed by Violett Film Productions, the film was theatrically released in the Philippines on January 29, 2003. Local and overseas critics generally praised its screenplay, emotional weight, and the cast's performances, and it received numerous accolades from award-giving organizations and international film festivals.
Contents
Plot
In a small town in the province of Laguna, one special boy changes the lives of everyone he meets. Known to all as Magnifico, whose nickname is Ikoy, a child of an impoverished family. His father works odd jobs, his elder brother (Miong) has lost his academic scholarship, and his mother spends her days caring for both Helen, a young daughter who has cerebral palsy, and her husband's aging mother, who lives upstairs in the family home and has diabetes and pancreatic cancer. Magnifico is a sweet and well-intentioned boy who is often berated by his father for his stupidity, an unkind assessment for a child who is considerably more clever than anyone gives him credit for.
Magnifico's world is filled with a cast of characters in need of his special gifts of hope, determination, and love. There's the grief-stricken man who mourns for his mother; two feuding shop owners; the crabby old woman who runs the mortuary; his elder brother, who has a crush on a wealthy girl; his little sister, who wants to get out and experience the world but cannot walk; and his own ailing grandmother, who worries that the family won't be able to afford a proper burial for her when the time comes.
Nonetheless, Magnifico applies himself diligently to the task, concocting a remedy for the mortician's ailments, playing matchmaker for his love-struck brother, industriously scheming to provide a burial gown and coffin for his grandmother, and negotiating a wheelchair so he can take his invalid sister to the carnival. Seeking nothing for himself, with his undaunted dedication to bringing joy to the people he loves, Magnifico somehow manages to find just the right solution to fill every need. And when the night of the big carnival arrives, his efforts pay off in spades.
Magnifico attempts to cross the street and instead gets fatally hit by a car one afternoon. Gerry, Edna, and Lola Magda mourn for their loss, and they rest him in the coffin he had originally crafted and intended for his grandmother. At his interment, Magnifico's family, friends, and the people he has touched are present as the community shares a tearful moment for his undying generosity.
Production
The screenplay, written by Michiko Yamamoto and which won first place in the scriptwriting contest, was inspired by her grandmother. Scenes from the film were shot in Pagsanjan, Laguna.
Release
The film was first released in the Philippines on January 29, 2003, and received endorsement from the Department of Education. It was later given a release at the international film festivals including the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival in the Czech Republic on July 11, as one of its official entries; Fukuoka International Film Festival in Japan on September 13, under the Asian Panorama section; and Toronto International Film Festival in Canada on November 14.
Reception
Critical response
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 63% of 8 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.53/10. Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 53 out of 100, based on 11 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.
Lito B. Zulueta, writing for the Philippine Daily Inquirer, described the film as a "first really good movie of 2003", with praise towards its screenplay, where screenwriter Michiko Yamamoto "expertly endows a contemporary and even positivistic flavor to the traditional miracle story" and Maryo J. Delos Reyes' serious direction from the original material. He also commended the cast's performances, including Jiro Manio, Gloria Romero, Albert Martinez, and Lorna Tolentino.
Time Out called the film an "undistinguished gentle comedy that turns into an astoundingly saccharin melodrama". Film critic Vincent Musetto, writing for the New York Post, praised the film for its "well-made" story as well as the acting performances of its lead actors, particularly child actor Jiro Manio. He also commended Delos Reyes' direction and Yamamoto's screenplay for evoking a range of emotions in the audience.
Ferdinand Lapuz, a foreign correspondent for Ricky Lo's entertainment column "Funfare", informed the columnist about the review of the film by film critic Norman Wilner for "Metro" in Toronto, Canada. Wilner's review said that "Magnifico is one of those films in which a decent soul struggles against enormous odds to bring some comfort to the people he loves. It's a melodrama, but it's honest about it".