II.

TICKET OF THE MOVIE

PICTURES
 MIRACLE

IN CELL N0.7

A FILM REVIEW SUBMITTED AS A

REQUIREMENTS IN ART

APPRECIATION

JAMALIA M. MOXIR

JANUARY 9, 2020
 IV. INTRODUCTION

Joselito “Lito” Gopez (Aga Muhlach), an intellectually disabled man who is wrongfully

accused with sexual assault, kidnapping, murder of Secretary Yulo’s daughter. In prison, he

became friends with his fellow inmates and together they form a plan to smuggle his young

daughter Yesha (Xia Vigor) inside the cell. Years after Lito’s execution, his daughter (Bela

Padilla) becomes a lawyer and is determined to prove his father’s innocence.

The film is based on a 2013 South Korean movie of the same name directed by Lee

Hwan-kyung. The film was distributed and produced by Viva Films.

V. HISTORY OF THE PHILIPPINE MOVIES

The cinema of the Philippines (Filipino: Pelikulang Pilipino or Sine Pilipino)

began with the introduction of the first moving pictures to the country on January 1, 1897 at

the Salón de Pertierra in Manila. following year, local scenes were shot on film for the first time

by a Spaniard, Antonio Ramos, using the Lumiere Cinematograph. While most early filmmakers

and producers in the country were mostly wealthy enterprising foreigners and expatriates, on

September 12, 1919, Dalagang Bukid (Country Maiden), a movie based on a popular musical

play, was the first movie made and shown by Filipino filmmaker José Nepomuceno. Dubbed as

the "Father of Philippine Cinema", his work marked the start of cinema as an art form in the

Philippines.

Even with the problems currently facing motion pictures around the world, movies are

still considered as one of the popular forms of entertainment among the Filipino people, directly

employing some 260,000 Filipinos and generating around ₱2 billion revenues annually.
 The Film Academy of the Philippines established its own national film archive in

October 2011. Furthermore, their annually held Luna Awards honor the outstanding Filipino

films as voted by their own peers. Meanwhile, the Manunuri ng Pelikulang Pilipino hands out

the Gawad Urian Awards, which is well known due to its credible choices of winners.

Currently, Box Office Mojocompiles box office performance for local and foreign films in the

country.

The Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) is an annual film festival held in Metro

Manila, Philippines. The festival, which runs from December 25 (Christmas) through New

Year's Day and into first weekend of January in the following year, focuses on Filipino films.

During the course of the festival, movie theaters show only films that are approved by its jurors.

At this time, foreign films are excluded except in 3D theaters and IMAX theaters. Since 2010,

film entries were played in select 3D cinemas that it can show movies in 2D format. It is one of

the two Filipino major film festivals to exclude movies out of the country in a week-long period,

the other being the Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino happening during August.

The annual event began with the 1975 Metro Manila Film Festival, during which Diligin

Mo ng Hamog ang Uhaw na Lupa ("Water the Thirsty Earth with Dew") by Augusto

Buenaventura won the best film award. One of the festival highlights is the parade of floats at the

opening of the festival. The floats, each one representing a movie entry with their respective stars,

parade down usually Roxas Boulevard, as was the case in many of the previous awards, but

beginning in 2017 the float parade is now usually hosted by each of the 17 local governments of

the capital region. On the awards night, a Best Float award is also announced along with the

major acting awards.

 A precursor the current festival began in 1966. Then-mayor of Manila Antonio Villegas

inaugurated the "Manila Film Festival" ("Manila Tagalog Film Festival"). It was set up in order

to get Philippine films screened in "first-run" theaters which at that time only screened American

films. It was a 12-day event from June 14 through June 24, Manila's birthday, during which only

locally produced films could be shown in the theatres. The festival featured a parade in

downtown Manila of actors and the featured films. In addition, in an effort to promote Philippine

films, Antonio Villegas banned the showing of foreign films at movie houses during the Manila

Film Festival. Most of the first batch of the festival films came up with English titles. Despite the

lack of support, there were different changes in making the festival flourish. The best films of

Manila Film Festival included Daigdig ng mga Api (1966), Dahil sa Isang

Bulaklak (1967), Manila, Open City(1968), Patria Adorada (1969), Dimasalang(1970), Cadena

de Amor (1971), Elias, Basilio at Sisa (1972), Nueva Vizaya (1973) and Alaala mo Daigdig

Ko (1974). Starting in 1975, Manila Film Festival was discontinued as Metro Manila Film

Festival took over.

In 1973, the Manila Film Festival was discontinued as Martial Law was imposed in

September the year before. On September 21, 1975, during the Marcos dictatorship, the film fest

was expanded to include all the other cities and towns in the newly formed Metro Manila and

began under the name "1975 Metropolitan Film Festival" (MFF). In 1977, name was changed to

"Metro Manila Film Festival".

After Villegas' death in 1984, a special award in the Metro Manila Film Festival,

the Gatpuno Antonio J. Villegas Cultural Award, was created in his honor and is given to the

best film that best portrays Philippine culture and Filipino people to the world. MRN Film

International's Andrea, “Paano Ba ang Maging Isang Ina?” was the first one to receive the
 lifetime achievement award in 1990. Since then, it has been awarding prestigious films that

deserve the honors.

In 2010, the film festival underwent some changes. First, the commercial viability

criterion (box-office performance of the entries) was removed. As of 2010, the criteria for the

selection of Best Picture(s) are: artistry; creativity and technical excellence; innovation; and

thematic value. Entries are also judged for global appeal (70 percent) and Filipino cultural and/or

historical value (30 percent). In addition, the festival format gave a tribute to independent "indie"

films. Lastly, the established board of jurors was expanded to include housewives, drivers,

students, teachers, etc. The festival logo was changed to feature a map of the Metropolis of

Manila, based on the old seal of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority with seventeen

stars on it symbolizing the 17 cities and municipality of Metro Manila. The logo for the first 35

festivals featured a torch.

In September 2011, Atty. Francis Tolentino, then-chairman of the Metropolitan Manila

Development Authority (MMDA) changed the category name of "indie" films to "New Wave"

films to make it sound better and more attractive to hear, as well as including "Student Short

Film Category" for the first time. Consequently, the next year, the 38th Metro Manila Film

Festival held in 2012 became the highest earning MMFF to date with 767 million pesos, 21%

higher than that of 2011.

VI. FILM REVIEW

A. FILM CONTENTS

1. Film Facts

The title of the film is Miracle in Cell No. 7 and was shown on December 25, 2019 and

one of the eight official entries to the 2019 Metro Manila Film Festival. It was produced by
 Vincent del Rosario III and Veronique del Rosario-Corpus. The main cast are Aga Muhlach,

Bela Padilla and Xia Vigor. The other casts are namely Joel Torre, JC Santos, Mon Confiado,

Jojit Lorenzo, Soliman Cruz, John Arcilla, Tirso Cruz III, Yayo Aguila, Epy Quizon, Mark

Anthony Fernandez, Ian De Leon, Christopher Roxas, Andrea Del Rosario, Ali Khatibi,

Mayton Eugenio, Gary Lim, Candy Pangilinan. It was directed by Nuel Crisostomo Naval.

2. Genre

The main genre of the film entitled Miracle in Cell No. 7 is Drama. The sub-grouping of

the film falls under the melodrama genre because it gives an appeal of emotion to the

audience.

3. Setting

The film Miracle in Cell No. 7 takes place both in the past and present. The aspects of the

setting that the audiences were aware of are its physical environment and time of the day.

The film takes place in a jail somewhere in the Philippines. The opening scene takes place in

a court somewhere in Laguna.

4. Summary/Plot & Structure

Joselito “Lito” Gopez is a mentally-handicapped man with the intellect of a six year old.

He and his 7 year old daughter named Yesha live in a run-down house in Pasig River. One

day, he and his daughter were looking at a Sailor Moon backpack that Yesha wanted but

suddenly it has been bought by Secretary Yulo’s daughter. They went to the maid and

Secretary Yulo’s daughter pleading them to return the Sailor Moon backpack to its place

because Lito will buy it for Yesha when he get his salary that will be given in a few days.

Secretary Yulo saw what happened and threatened the violently frightened Lito. Soon after

that, Secretary Yulo’s daughter tricked Lito that she found another store selling a Sailor
Moon backpack and Lito followed her. Suddenly, in that rainy day, she accidentally slipped

due to the wet pavement and suffers a fatal blow in the head. When Lito saw the girl lying on

the ground, he was trying to save her without hesitation. While trying to save the dying girl, a

woman mistakenly thinks that he was molesting her.

Lito was falsely accused of the kidnapping, murder and rape of Secretary Yulo’s daughter.

The police take advantage of his disability and violently force him to confess to the crime

while ignoring or not searching for some evidences. Lito was almost killed by Prisoner

Director Johnny San Juan after him reading his file that he murdered and molested a child.

Lito was assigned and imprisoned to Cell No. 7 where he met the gang leader named

Soliman “Boss Sol” and the other inmates named Mambo, Choi, Bong, and Tatang Celso.

The inmates in the cell didn’t treat him kindly after Lito confessed his crime that was said by

the jury. When Lito saves Boss Sol from being stabbed by a rival gang, Boss Sol repays him

by smuggling Yesha into Cell No. 7 and that made Lito very happy. The cell’s inmates

slowly befriend him and believe that he is innocent and a good man who was wrongly

accused and was taken advantage of his disability. They help him to rehearse what to say

before his trial commence. Even the warden of the cell, Prisoner Director Johnny, who was

initially harsh to Lito but softens up after being saved by him from the arson attack. He

realized that Lito was force and cornered into making a false confession. He takes custody of

Yesha and allows to visit her father every now and then.

Before Lito’s trial commence, Secretary Yulo threatened him to harm Yesha if he didn’t

confess his “crime”. Lito chooses to sacrifice himself by pleading guilty and was punished by

getting a death sentence. Lito’s execution date is on December 23 that coincides with

Yesha’s birthday. Before the date of execution happens, Boss Sol and fellow inmates work
 hard to make a hot air balloon and force Lito and Yesha to board and try and let them escape

but it failed due to the rope that was connected to the hot air balloon was caught in a barbed

wire. On December 23, Lito was executed later on.

Years after Lito’s execution, Yesha became a lawyer and she gathers her father’s former

inmates (all have been released) to testify at her late father’s retrial, which results that the

father is not guilty of the accused crime. When she left the court, she imagined her father

dancing with their signature dance.

The plot is structured by flashbacks. There are some plots running parallel or happening

at the same time like the scene when Boss Sol and the inmates are helping Lito and analyze

how Secretary Yulo’s daughter died and Prisoner Director Johnny San Juan analyzing Lito’s

case and searching for evidences that will prove him not guilty. The suspense is built up at

scene when Lito’s trial begins. The film didn’t foreshadow any events on what is to come.

5. Conflict

The main conflict happens in an external way because it was caused by the people

surrounding Lito. He was being violently forced to confess to a crime that he did not

committed without giving him the chance to state his side of the story and takes advantage by

the police of his mental disability. He was also been beaten by the prisoner director and the

inmates when he told them or when the prisoner director read his file about the false case.

6. Characterization

Lito’s character is a mentally handicapped man who thinks like a 6 year old child. He is a

hardworking and a good spirited father. He never fights back and shows kindness to

everyone else. He also never gets angry or mad to anyone. He wore casual clothes but later

on the film wears a prisoner’s uniform due to the reason of being falsely accused of a crime
that he didn’t commit. Lito’s character did not change and always appear on the movie. The

qualities that stands out in Lito’s character is that he is always jolly, shows kindness to others,

and being a good father to Yesha. Lito’s character is believable because he really portrays his

character very well as a mentally handicapped man.

Yesha is a good daughter and loves her father very much. She also wears casual clothes

and school uniform in the movie. She is very gleeful and respectful when interacting with

other people. Her cheerful smile, kindness to the inmates, and her love for her father is what

that stands out the most in the film. She is not a static character because her appearance

changes. It was shown in the movie her young and adult appearance and behavior. Her

character is believable because she just didn’t portray her character, but she also really felt

her character so much.

Boss Sol is a gang leader in Cell No. 7. He is known to be cranky or grumpy man and an

illiterate person but he has a kind heart and willing to help other people that are in needing

especially Lito. He was shown wearing a prisoner’s uniform. He acts and interacts to people

in a grumpy way when people embarrassed or annoys him. He acts shy when people or

Yesha complimented him. His kindness towards Lito and Yesha is what that stand out the

most in his character. He is a static character because nothing has changed in his character.

He really portrays his role as a grumpy but kind old man in the film.

Mambo is one of the inmates in Cell No. 7 and a friend to Lito. He was known to have a

timid personality. He becomes kind when Yesha is pleading to him or when she talks to him.

He slowly became friends with Lito. He was shown to be wearing a prisoner’s uniform and at

the first and last scene, he was wearing casual clothes. Mambo’s timid personality and

behavior stand out the most. He sometimes appears in some scenes and he is a static
character. He is also a believable character like the other characters due to the serious and

nice portrayal of his character.

Tatang Celso is a generous and kind inmate in Cell No. 7. He was always shown giving

food to Yesha and to the other characters in the film. He interacts with the other characters in

a soft-spoken way and not in a loud way. He also wears a prisoner’s uniform. The quality

that stands out the most in Tatang Celso’s character is his generosity. He also sometimes

appears in some scenes and a static character in the film. He portrays his character very well

in the film.

Choi shows a naughty personality but he is also a kind and a friend of Lito. He is also

annoys Boss Sol in some scenes. He wears a prisoner’s uniform in the film. He doesn’t talk

very much like Mambo in the film but he annoys Boss Sol sometimes. He also appears in

some scenes and a static character in the film. His importunate personality suits his

appearance and behavior.

Bong is also one of the inmates in Cell No. 7. Like Mambo, he also has a timid

personality, but the difference is he easily get nervous. He always thinks of the negative

outcome rather than the positive ones. He also gets jealous when he sees Lito with his

daughter because he misses his wife who was in labor. His personality changes when Yesha

gave him a chance to talk to his wife and becomes kind to Lito later on in the film. He

interacts in an ill-tempered way and sometimes emotional to the characters. He also appears

in some scenes and also a static character in the film. The quality that stands out the most in

Bong’s character is that he easily gets nervous and how he behaves. His character also suits

his appearance and his behavior in the film.

 Prisoner Director Johnny has a strict, righteous and brave personality. He acts harsh to an

inmate when it comes to a crime committed by an inmate whose victims are children. He

also appears to be kind when he met Yesha and his thoughts about Lito being a criminal

change. He interacts with the characters strictly and with dignity. He wears a police

uniform with a badge on his right chest. He seldom appears in some scenes and also a

static character in the film. he quality that stand out in Prisoner Director Johnny’s

character is his bravery and righteous personality. His character is very well portrayed

and felt his character very much in the film.

7. Narrator

The narrator in the film is the grown-up Yesha (Bela Padilla). There are some narrations

that she is talking to herself and some of the lines are for her father. It means that she is

narrating in her point of view. It is in It is in the grown-up Yesha’s point that the story was

being unfold. The story is in the first person point of view. The story was told in an off-

screen narrator.

8. Imagery

The symbol that was used in the film was the balloon. It represents Lito’s soul in the film.

At the first scene it was shown that the balloon was tied in the court where Lito’s trial

happened. It means that Lito is still bound by the crime that was accused to him that he never

did. In other words, he cannot even obtain nor have the freedom every human should have

even though he passed away. In the last scene, it was scene the balloon floating away in front

of Yesha (Lito’s daughter). It signifies that Lito’s soul has been set free all thanks to his

daughter and his friends’ help. The images of the film consist of white, black, and orange.
 The white and black signify the color of the prison. Meanwhile the orange represents the

uniform of the prisoners’ uniform.

9. Theme

The themes of this film are about family, friendship, innocence, and justice. It has an

aspiring and touching story that will touch the heart of every audience.

B. CINEMATIC EFFECTS

1. Soundtrack

The soundtrack and dialogue fits together. While Yesha’s narrating and the song entitled

“Tag-araw” was playing, it gives the feeling of happiness and contentment that she achieve

her goal and she successfully proved his father’s innocence. It really suits the atmosphere and

the dialogue perfectly. It really touches the emotions of the audience.

2. Use Of Camera

The close up shot is used when they focus the camera on the Sailor Moon backpack, the

picture frames of the family of Prisoner Director Johnny, and when they slam Lito’s left

check on the police desk. The medium shot was used when Lito is interacting with Yesha or

to the other characters. The full shot is used in the scene when Lito was put inside in the Cell

No. 7, Lito and Yesha doing their signature dance, and when the detective is going towards

the vehicle of Prisoner Director Johnny’s vehicle. The long shot is used at the first scene and

when Lito is entering the prison and when Secretary Yulo entered a room where Lito is

(rehearsing his lines before the trial) and threatened him.

The straight-on angle was used when Lito introduces himself to the inmates. The high

angle is used when Lito is going towards Secretary Yulo’s dead daughter and when Lito is

entering the prison. The low angle is used when Secretary Yulo is threatening Lito at a store
 and when Prisoner Director Johnny is beating up Lito at the detention room. The oblique

angle is used when he is pleading for Prisoner Director Johnny and Yesha calling for her

father before being executed.

It doesn’t say anything about the character the way in which the cameraman hold the

camera in a certain way.

3. Lighting

The lighting that was used suits the atmosphere of the story of the film. The lighting

mostly focuses on the main characters and the other characters in the film. The mood of the

lighting that it gives in the film is not suspense but a really gentle atmosphere. The film uses

mostly in the scenes are high-key lighting. They use bright and illuminating lightings. They

also filter when filming outside of the prison and in the detention room in the film. The effect

of using a filter on the scene is that it reduces the ultraviolet light when they are filming

outside and to reduce the noise caused by the raindrops at the scene where Lito is trying to

save Secretary Yulo’s daughter. At the sunset scene, they use a CGI (computer-generated

imagery) to make it look like Lito and Yesha enjoying the view of the sunset while the hot air

balloon is floating. The color that is most dominant in the scene is white and orange.

4. Editing

The film editor and the director cut it in a present-past-present sequence. The present’s

scene duration is not long but the past’s scenes duration are longer. The pace or tempo of the

film is not that fast. They are not rushing or they are not being hasty in making the story of

the film.

VII. CONCLUSION
 The film is great and absolutely touching. The skills and the way the actors is what stand

out the most in the film. It also views the reality on how was justice was given for every

individual. It was really satisfying to watch this film and the director didn’t make a mistake

or failure making this film. It also surprised me that they add the scene where the grown-up

Yesha met his father who has grown old (just in her imagination). The importance of

cinematography in films is that it is not only about making pretty pictures. It is about how to

take the story from the script and translate it into reality or in action. Cinematography takes

emotions and turns it into picture. The composition, lighting, use of equipment, camera

movement, visual effects, etc, are planned out by the director and other staffs in order to

attract the attention and to have a maximum effect on the audience. The reception of the

movie by the viewers of this film is that it shows the importance of love and how they

convey it. The educational value of this film is that never judge a book by its cover. Even

though they are different or have a disability, we should treat them like humans. We should

also give them the freedom to voice out their opinion and to have the justice that every

human deserves to have. Justice is not only for the rich and normal people, justice is also

given to the people who are unable to afford some money to rent for a lawyer and with

disabilities.

VIII. RECOMMENDATION

The film was very touching and very beautiful. It warms your heart and it shows the

value of family affection in every way. I recommend this film to everyone since it is available to

all ages. It is very enjoyable to watch with your family and friends because you will learn a lot

from this film and it will make you realize the importance of familial love for every human being

living in this planet and we how to treat each other equally.