Tayo sa Huling Buwan ng Taon is the sequel to 2015’s Ang Kwento Nating Dalawa directed by Nestor Abrogena. After five years, Sam, played by Nicco Manalo and Isa, played by Emmanuelle Vera, move on with their lives after breaking up and try to find themselves at ease in their own relationships.

The first film was shot in De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (DLS-CSB) as the setting mostly takes place in the School of Design and Arts (SDA) Campus. Isa is taking up Digital Filmmaking while Sam is a professor of the film faculty. Isa is currently in a relationship with her boyfriend Frank, also a DLS-CSB student who went abroad, this was revealed in the sequel, while also falling in love with Sam. The film takes place five years after the events of the first film and having different careers and significant others. Sam is a public school teacher alongside his girlfriend while Isa plans to move to the United States by the end of the year with his boyfriend Frank played by Alex Medina.

Sense of reality

The sequel feels very different compared to its predecessor in terms of direction and style. The first film takes a lot of inspiration from Richard Linklater, director of the critically-acclaimed “The Before Trilogy” which consists of Before Sunrise, Before Sunset, and Before Midnight. The trilogy is known to have long takes that follow the characters on screen as if they are talking to one another in a realistic setting and atmosphere. The line delivery and dialogues make you feel they aren’t films but everyday conversations.

Abrogena tries to find his own style with the direction of this film. The script tries to be real and authentic as possible but there are times when the dialogues feel unnatural. The cinematography is commendable and the coloring of the film elevates what we see on screen. In terms of long takes, Abrogena seemingly takes notes from Linklater once more for the sequel with the use of long takes and the conversations. This adds to the authenticity and realism that Abrogena was going for but it becomes gimmicky as the film progresses.

However, this film improves from dragging unlike the first film which is heavy on long takes that seem unnecessary for some scenes.

The ‘what if?’ aspect of the film needs to be improved as five years passed and we do see the characters after a long time but there are things that needed to be explained to fill in that long gap. Though we don’t really need to know what happened to both of them in the five-year time frame, and the film focuses on how they moved forward and where they are now, Linklater’s films have longer gaps in the films but the dialogues explain what they have gone through in those years.

Tayo sa Huling Buwan ng Taon premiered on May 8 and was released for a limited time in Philippine cinemas and in the microcinema Cinema ‘76 Film Society.