‘Thy Womb’ gets standing ovation in Venice
Brillante "Dante" Mendoza’s “Thy Womb” (Sinapupunan), a film about a Badjao midwife (Nora Aunor) coping with her own infertility, got a standing ovation when it opened at the 69th Venice International Film Festival.
“The Hollywood Reporter” described Nora: “Her elfin features, so powerfully expressive of both happiness and sorrow, help make Shahela an engaging, unlikely heroine here.”
“Thy Womb’s” Facebook page says that of the 89 films that have been seen so far, among the most followed are "Sinapupunan" of Brillante Mendoza (64 projections), "Superstar" of Xavier Giannoli (55), "Stories We Tell" by Sarah Polley (52) and Crawl of Hervé Lasgouttes (33)."
Nora, who is in Venice to represent the Philippines aside from co-stars Lovi Poe and Mercedes Cabral, Mendoza, writer Henry Burgos and line producer Larry Castillo, says knowing that “Thy Womb” is vying for the coveted Golden Lion Award – the highest in the annual festival – is enough reward.
The star of Mendoza’s Berlin Filmfest entry “Captive” is competing against Isabelle Huppert for Marco Bellochio’s “Bella Addometanda.”
Burgos says of Nora, “Hindi po ako Noranian, pero during the shoot, at nang mapanood ko na ang buong film, na-convert po ako! Sobrang galing nya... her maturity and expertise are the fundamental elements needed by the film's character, Shaleha Sarail--the Bajau midwife, the barren woman.”
