''Ma' Rosa'' is a 2016 Filipino

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...

directed by

Brillante Mendoza Brillante "Dante" Mendoza (born 30 July 1960) is a Filipino independent filmmaker. Mendoza is known one of the key members associated with the Filipino New Wave. Career He was born and raised in San Fernando, Pampanga. He took advertising ...

. It was selected to compete for the

Palme d'Or The Palme d'Or (; en, Golden Palm) is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festival's highest prize was the Grand Prix du Fe ...

at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival. At Cannes,

Jaclyn Jose Mary Jane Santa Ana Guck (born October 21, 1964), better known by her stage name Jaclyn Jose, is a Filipino cinema and television actress who has earned international critical acclaim. She is best known for her roles in the films ''Private Sh ...

won the award for

Best Actress Best Actress is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organisations, festivals, and people's awards to leading actresses in a film, television series, television film or play. The first Best Actress aw ...

. It was selected as the Filipino entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 89th Academy Awards but it was not nominated.

Plot

Rosa (Jaclyn Jose) is married to Nestor (Julio Diaz) with whom she has three children. Rosa's family runs a

sari-sari store A sari-sari store, anglicized as neighborhood sundry store, is a convenience store found in the Philippines. The word ''sari-sari'' is Tagalog meaning "variety" or "sundry". Such stores occupy an important economic and social location in a Fi ...

in a neighborhood in Manila. The income from the small convenience store business alone isn't enough to meet the family's daily needs, so illegal drugs particularly "ice" or

crystal meth Methamphetamine (contracted from ) is a potent central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is mainly used as a recreational drug and less commonly as a second-line treatment for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and obesity. Methamphe ...

are also sold at Rosa's store. One day police officers arrest Rosa and Nestor for selling drugs and ask them for "bail money" or a bribe for the couple's release. Rosa's children, left on their own to deal with the struggles of daily life, find a way to free their detained parents.

Cast

as Rosa Reyes * Julio Diaz as Nestor Reyes *

Baron Geisler Baron Frederick von Geisler (; born June 5, 1982) is a Filipino actor, businessman, occasional model, resource speaker, amateur artist, and aspiring poet of German-American descent. As a child actor and later as a teen idol, Geisler's career ha ...

as Sumpay * Jomari Angeles as Erwin Reyes *

Neil Ryan Sese Neil Ryan Sese (born April 26, 1979) is a Filipino actor. He is currently working as an exclusive talent of GMA Network. Sese is best known for portraying Asval in the 2016 version of ''Encantadia''. Background Neil Ryan Sese was only seven y ...

as Olivarez *

Mercedes Cabral Mercedes Cabral (born August 10, 1986) is a Filipino actress. She is best known for starring in Philippine arthouse and independent films, notably those by Brillante Mendoza such as '' Serbis'', '' Kinatay'', ''Captive'', and '' Thy Womb''. She ...

as Linda *

Andi Eigenmann Andrea Nicole Guck Eigenmann (born 25 June 1990), professionally known as Andi Eigenmann (), is a Filipino actress, model, and social media influencer. Early life Descent and family Eigenmann is the daughter of actors Mark Gil and Jaclyn Jos ...

as Raquel Reyes *

Mark Anthony Fernandez Mark Anthony Lacsamana Fernandez (born January 18, 1979) is a Filipino actor. He is the son of actor Rudy Fernandez and actress-politician Alma Moreno. Career He first rose to prominence when he was once a former member of one of the famous ...

as Castor * Felix Roco as Jackson Reyes *

Mon Confiado Ramon Veroy Confiado (born March 19, 1968), professionally known as Mon Confiado, is a Filipino character actor, theater actor and businessman who has appeared in both mainstream and independent films. He is the son of late veteran actor Án ...

as Sanchez *

Maria Isabel Lopez Maria Isabel Pagunsan Lopez—Melrod (born 19 August 1957), is a Filipina movie and television actress. Lopez was the Binibining Pilipinas Universe 1982 titleholder and represented the Philippines in the 31st Miss Universe Pageant in Lima, Pe ...

as Tilde * Kristoffer King as Jomar

Production

Director Brillante Mendoza decided to make the film to tackle the issue of small-scale drug selling in the Philippines which he says is really happening in the country and described the situation as alarming. Mendoza noted that the concept of corruption which is a subject of the film appeals to a worldwide audience since he says that corruption is happening in many different countries on a different scale. ''Ma' Rosa'' was originally titled ''Palit Ulo''. The film was shot in

Mandaluyong Mandaluyong, officially the City of Mandaluyong ( fil, Lungsod ng Mandaluyong), is a first class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 425,758 people. Loca ...

during the

rainy season The rainy season is the time of year when most of a region's average annual rainfall occurs. Rainy Season may also refer to: * ''Rainy Season'' (short story), a 1989 short horror story by Stephen King * "Rainy Season", a 2018 song by Monni * '' ...

of 2015 and was supported by French distributor firm, Film Distribution.

Critical reception

The film holds 78% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Maggie Lee of

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

reviewed the film and said "Boasting a simple, coherent plot shot with real-time, handheld verismo, it’s a work of understated confidence that will not disappoint his festival acolytes, but probably won’t win many new converts".

Peter Bradshaw Peter Bradshaw (born 19 June 1962) is a British writer and film critic. He has been chief film critic at ''The Guardian'' since 1999, and is a contributing editor at ''Esquire''. Early life and education Bradshaw was educated at Haberdasher ...

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

stated that "''Ma'Rosa'' is made with control and clarity, a narrative purpose which is held on to despite an apparently aimless docu-style, and a clear sense of jeopardy".

Accolades

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ma Rosa 2016 films 2016 drama films Philippine drama films Films directed by Brillante Mendoza Films about poverty Films about the illegal drug trade Films set in Metro Manila Filipino-language films