Product Details

• Actors: Ian Gamazon, Edwin Lagda, Edgar Tancangco, Norma Tancangco, Quynn Ton
• Directors: Ian Gamazon, Neill Dela Llana
• Writers: Ian Gamazon, Neill Dela Llana
• Producers: Ian Gamazon, Quynn Ton, Neill Dela Llana
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, Full Screen, Subtitled, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo)
• Subtitles: Spanish
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Magnolia
• DVD Release Date: August 8, 2006
• Run Time: 80 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000G6BM1E
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #129,448 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Cavite" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

CAVITE - DVD Movie

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Knowledgable of Filipino Culture, September 6, 2006

By 

Mariano Apuya Jr "Mariano Apuya Jr" (Kapolei, HI United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cavite (DVD)

Cavite is where the Philippines under the first Filipino president General Emilio Agiunaldo declared independence in the 19th century. There is a scene in the movie where the park is named after him.

The filmakers definitely know Filipino culture. There is a scene where the song "Mr. Suave" by Parokya ni Edgar when even the antigonist sings to the tune. Mr. Suave is a hugely popular song by the band that is widely considered as the national band of the Philippines as of the date of this review. They would only know of this if they were au courant with the goings on on the Philippines. They are also knowledgable of the political climate of the Philippines. The conspirators while never named, are in the ilk of Abu Sayaff or the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. So with this in mind the filmakers weave a story that they know intimately and therefore is meaningful for any outsider that may have doubts about the authenticity of portraying the culture. And they may not show the best of Filipino society, nonetheless this is a how a big part of the Filipino masses live.

The filmaking itself, in my opinion, is not that great but not bad either. The filmakers actually went to film school, I can't tell by sitting through the whole 80 minutes of the film whether they earned good grades. They certainly may have passed.

The bad guy feeding instructions to the main character via cell pnone is truly bad. Other reviewers have written that they can't follow the dialog between the two. I am fluent in Tagalog and had a hard time following it too. The voice comming out of the cellphone talking in Tagalog has a strange accent. To me it didn't sound like a local, it may have been an American who speaks Tagalog, diction and locution is not very good. Also the subtitles are too small to read at a distance, although it is colored in legible yellow.

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Thoughtful storyline in an original setting!!!, September 6, 2006

By 

jgacis (California, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cavite (DVD)

This story shows an interesting perspective of a filipino american who travels through despair within his native country. Although the story of terrorism has been played out many times in the media, this movie shows its own form through the cultural differences between a man's first world home environment and the roots of his native third world country. The main character of Adam personifies his American mannerisms while the movie shows the conflicts that this character has to endure. Some examples include him talking only in English to the enemy, being repulsed by the sights and smell of the squatter villages, and having to eat food that most Americans (and Adam himself) wouldn't want to eat! (balut).

Although the movie represents some of the realistic hardships in the Philippines, some people might be offended by this focus of poverty. The country itself is constantly growing, developing, and in some ways improving as well in a slow way. The movie doesn't really show this since it's main focus is the dark storyline that Adam goes through. So although the background scenes fit well with the plot of the storyline as well as the current conditions there, the images of the Philippines in the movie is only a sample of what the country really represents.

Overall, this is a good movie to watch. You will learn some of the cultural lifestyles and actual scenes you would see if you were to travel there yourself. The struggles of Adam will also make you think what you would do if you were him. With today's issues of terrorism, poverty, and globalization, this movie provides it's own unique artistic style of filming that addresses these issues.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Really evil, May 2, 2009

By 

Animalnation (California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cavite (DVD)

This movie had a lot of potential, but failed in a number of important ways. As an American with no ties to the Philippines, the cultural realism was not an issue for me. I saw it rather through the eyes of the protagonist (also American): brutal, squalid, and cruel to people and animals. The cock-fighting scenes were enough to turn the stomach. The predatory attitudes displayed by every single character in the movie is a real negative. While we feel for Adam's predicament on a objective level, he does not elicit as much sympathy as he should. But more than that, the movie itself was not always believable. Was that really his sister's finger? His mother's tongue? How would he recognize such things as being authentic? How could the audience? The fact that we never see him meet up with his family is grossly dissatisfying because, if you were skeptical about the plot, there's no resolution to the mystery. So the movie has a core: the horror story of the voice on the phone insulting and abusing Adam, but really no clue as to what is real or not. I think the film technique was a bit much. Jump-cutting is one thing, but you don't have to make the viewer dizzy. That just seemed like an affect, a bad-boy thing. It's like playing gross-out: How disgusting can you get? I also think that as long as we're on the subject of terrorism and religious fanatics, the movie could have explored this a little more in order to give more context to the plot. I guess the redeeming part of this is that there was no implied support for any of this criminal activity. One truly wonders how he carries on with the rest of his life.