Seklusyon

Four deacons are locked (?) for seven days inside an abandoned seminary/place (?), where they must withstand temptation before they are able to fulfill their calling to priesthood. Soon, their inner demons pay a visit.

The first one-third of the film was decent. The novelty of creepiness drawn from what is unknown (or known, as for the case of a holy statue) was engaging for only a certain length of time. Then various familiar horror tropes are used (jump scares, tears of blood, a confused archetype of a demon child). These would have been understandable had it not been for its severely didactic approach.

Contrary to its obvious but asymptotic attempts to discuss the fallibility of one’s faith, or the grey area of morality, it babbles more than it shows. And literally, biblical passages are splashed onscreen complete with highlighted keywords a la Korina Sanchez to make the audience realize that they’re in for something more profound and allegorical than what it already is. The film also puts visual cues that turn into spoonfed plot details that equally insult the audience’s capability to do basic guesswork and to piece together details through logic. It is at this point, starting at the latter two-thirds of the film, that the film falls off its course.

The film could have been decent, but the misguided and fragmented editing severely fractures the narrative. It felt like they wanted to cover so many things with characters that are poorly developed. Add this to a synthesized musical score that felt cheap. The only saving grace was its yellow-tinged cinematography. But it was just more of a grace note to matter.

Seklusyon closes in as a film that could have been great, but terribly missed. It was ultimately lost and confused by its own making, like its characters and audience who are all painfully searching for a way out.