Kono Basho (This Place)

Gabby Padilla once again shows that she is one of the country's top rising dramatic actresses in Jaime Pacena II's quietly heartrending tale of two sisters who must wade through a lifetime's worth of pain after a tragic event, that also features a noteworthy performance from Japanese actress Arisa Nakano. (A)

Kono Basho is an astoundingly assured debut, a delicately crafted ode to sisterhood featuring stirring performances by Gabby Padilla and Arisa Nakano. (4.5/5)

Watching this is like reading a poet, simple lang pero it will capture your heart, its a beautiful tale of healing, reconnections and finding yourself again. (4/5)

Aside from its surface level family drama and slice of life elements, Kono Basho isn't only about "a place," it is also how people shape places and vice versa, and how that shaping creates history. (4/5)

Presenting how to process emotional baggage elegantly through beautiful cinematography and silence, Kono Basho takes you on a tranquil journey visually and emotionally which helps the audience to take in more, to notice more and to feel more. (4/5)

Kono Basho is a pleasant film that takes audiences on a journey to find that calm.

I adore this film, even with its overuse of poeticism to zero in on the essence of rebirth and moving forward. As an intimate exploration of grief and loss, it contextualizes the collision of Japanese culture and Filipino identity that nonetheless share the same tenets. (A-)

Writer-director Jaime Pacana II crafted a beautiful Japanese aesthetic for his feature film debut. Those scenes outside the Iwate Tsunami Memorial in Rikuzentakata were suffused with zen balance and symmetry, in contrast with the devastating 2011 disaster the museum (and this film) commemorated. (7/10)

[...] Kono Basho excels at using quiet moments for reflection, immersing us in its universal story of grief and healing. While it may not turn out as smoothly as I had hoped, there is promise in seeing more stories about healing and hope in Philippine cinema.

Less is more in this film. Your patience is rewarded with a satisfying payoff as the slow burn becomes a clever storytelling device that pays off in the end, making the investment of time and emotional energy worthwhile. (3.5/5)

At some point, it feels like the movie is too selfish to share its process of healing. Instead of trying to reach out like a person, poetry and imaginery would be inserted. Not that it’s a bad thing. But nothing beats personal interactions and connections. (1/5)

This nuanced slice of family drama deeply examines the many facets of trauma, from having a half-sibling to surviving a natural disaster and the sudden death of a parent, all compounded by language and cultural barriers. (3/5)