The most delectable movie of the year

Among foreign films we’ve already seen the likes off Babette’s Feast, Like Water for Chocolate, Choclat, Woman on Top, etc. In local movies, Maryo J. de los Reyes had attempted to showcase food as part of the story of his films.

There is a currently-showing movie, however, that revolves almost solely around food and focuses on the one dish that is present in most Filipino homes during fiestas and other special occasions: The lechon. The movie is aptly called Litsonero and it is written and directed by Lore Reyes for APT Films’ Sine Direk series (previously they had Fuschia and Ded na si Lolo and coming soon are Agaton and Mindy, Beinte, Dukot and Kamoteng Kahoy).

The film opens in a kitchen in Macau where Paolo Contis works as a junior chef in a restaurant. He flies home to the Philippines for the death anniversary of his father, who is also going to be given a posthumous award as an outstanding farmer.

Back home, he faces a lot of problems with his family — his eldest brother (Gerard Pizarras) is a dropout who gets into a lot of trouble because of his temper, his only sister (Isabella de Leon) gets pregnant at age 15 and their property, to his shock, had been mortgaged and his widowed mother (Maricel Laxa) needs P200,000 to redeem it.

Over drinks one evening, he makes a bet with his uncle, Michael de Mesa, that he will be able to make good lechon the traditional way (the bet started because he was disappointed with the taste of the oven-baked lechon that was served to him at his welcome party). If he loses the bet, he will never go back to Macau, stay with his family in the province and work at Michael’s bakery. If he wins, Michael, who has his own issues with his wife, Joanne Quintas, will never touch another drink in his life again.

But how does he make the perfect lechon? He goes to Jun Urbano (Mr. Shoo-li to fans of the now-defunct Mongolian Barbecue), who is the best litsonero in town. Urbano takes him in as an apprentice, but turns out to be a tough trainer. Paolo, however, is determined to win and on the side, he woos Urbano’s granddaughter, Karylle.

Litsonero, as to be expected, shows practically every step to make good lechon — save for the slaughtering of the hog, which is so commendable of Lore Reyes because he spares viewers from such awful sight and animal rights activists will love him for this.

But aside from lechon-making, this film also delves into family relationships and the responsibility of each member toward one another. Paolo already feels burdened because he doesn’t only provide for his family financially, but also does trouble-shooting with every mess his siblings get into — and he is exhausted by all these problems. Is this fair? That is one question posed by Litsonero.

Paolo as the lead (original choice was actually Richard Gutierrez) proves that he has really matured as an actor and even tops his performances in Nasaan na si Francis and even in Banal, which gave him a couple of acting awards. The other cast members also do very well: Jun, Michael, Gerard and even Joanne.

Maricel, of course, excels as always, but I just don’t feel comfortable watching her as the mother of Paolo and, sigh, Gerard because there probably is only a five-year difference between them. But Maricel — you have to give it to her — does what she has to do and she tries to put the nuances required of her role as a mother to a problematic brood.

But what I love best are the scenes showing all the food: Adobo done haute cuisine style, seafood cooked in rich and creamy coconut milk and, of course, the lechon. I swear you’d want to rush to the nearest lechon stall and buy at least a kilo of it — the skin, the crispy skin, especially — after watching Litsonero (but be careful of the cholesterol). For 2009, Litsonero — hands down — wins as the most delectable movie of the year.