MANILA, Philippines?Of the 10 feature-length entries to the recently concluded Cinemalaya festival and competition, we were able to view five. We?ve already reviewed ?Boses? and ?Brutus,? so we?re following up now with our notes on the other three movies:

Chris Martinez?s ?100? strikes us as one of the competition?s best bets. It tells the story of a cancer patient (Mylene Dizon) who prepares for her death by experiencing all of the ?druthers? on her ?bucket? list before she expires.

Wish list

The items on her wish list run the gamut from gorging on crispy pata to achieving closure with the man she?s loved the most.

This ?enumeration? format is risky, because it could quickly fall apart and end up as a tiresome series of unrelated actions. But, Martinez is able to inject enough variety and accelerating pertinence to make his story constantly absorbing, diverting and affecting.

He?s aided in this regard by the strong and insightful performance turned in by Dizon, who emerges as a standout actress in this production. Also exceptional are Eugene Domingo as her exceedingly supportive best friend, and Tessie Tomas as her mother.

For its part, ?Namets? is a culinary love letter to Bacolod and Negros cuisine. Told in a yummy mix of Tagalog, Ilonggo and Cebuano dialogue, the film has a storyline that involves a young chef (Christian Vasquez) whose ?serious? approach to cooking is threatened and compromised by interlopers, led by the character played by Angel Jacob, who want to ?update? his restaurant and make as big a profit as possible.

Complicating their relationship further is their back story, which reveals that they used to be lovers.

Truth to tell, however, the movie?s storyline isn?t as significant as the colorful characterizations that enliven this production, which are diverting in and of themselves. Despite this, the movie doesn?t hold together all that well, having been weakened by its lack of a strong plotline.

The fifth film we viewed was Paul Morales? ?Concerto,? which is set during World War II and focuses on a family of refugees. As bad luck would have it, they discover that their hideaway is near a Japanese encampment.

While they fear for their safety, the refugees try to make the best of their difficult situation. Some of them are cordial to a number of the Japanese officers in the camp, and their kindness is reciprocated by their new friends.

Enlightened feelings

Thus does the film end up on the side of peace, not war?and, as the movie?s title intimates, the conduit for such enlightened feelings is music.

While we support the film?s optimistic view of human nature and the power of music to soothe some savage human ?beasts,? the production?s enlightened message is occasionally communicated too ?artistically? for credibility and viewing comfort. A sharper, more believably realistic edge would have made the film a more truly illuminating and inspiring viewing experience.