Underplayed Gems

Moral (1982)

Moral poster
Directed by
Marilou Diaz-Abaya
Genre
drama
Country
Philippines
Runtime
2h 18m
Rating
7.6 of 10 from 9 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
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How it feels

This film follows four women who are friends after college. It shows the different paths their lives take as they deal with issues including abortion, rape, and inequality.

observationalthoughtfulearnestslow-pacedintimatehonestsober

What happens

Moral is a 1982 Filipino coming-of-age drama film directed by Marilou Diaz-Abaya and written by Ricky Lee. It is the second in a loose trilogy of feminist films by Diaz-Abaya and Lee which discusses women's issues, along with Brutal (1980) and Karnal (1983). Set in contemporary times in the Philippines, the film stars Lorna Tolentino, Gina Alajar, Sandy Andolong and Anna Marin as a group of friends and follows the course of their lives over the course of several years after they graduate from college. A "loosely structured, observational drama", the film discusses several topics that Diaz-Abaya and Lee saw as taboo at the time, such as abortion, rape, and gender inequality in the context of the changing morals of the time. This is Seven Star Productions' last feature film. Moral has grown in stature over time and is now considered by some critics as one of Diaz-Abaya's best works. Both Diaz-Abaya and Lee consider the film one of the most personal of their many collaborations. It was restored by the ABS-CBN Film Restoration Project in 2017, premiered at that year's Cinema One Originals Film Festival, and was subsequently shown at several film festivals around the world. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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