Marianing – review

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Created by: Niko Salazar

Release date: 2012*

Contains spoilers

*I have put 2012 as the release date but I am unsure and there is no IMDb page at the time of review. This animated film was posted to YouTube in 2012, however.

confronting the aswang

Those that visit this site regularly will know that I have a particular soft spot for the legend of the aswang. In fact that is a misnomer as the aswang mythologies are incredibly varied – aswang being both a genus of Filipino vampire and a catch all name for a variety of creatures. Be that as it may, I get all excited if a piece of literature or film includes the aswang in one form or another.

iconic

This is a short film and I do not want to give too much away. It is silent, beautifully drawn and animated and concerns a hunter saving a young woman and a young man from a group of aswang. Given that it isn’t long, some 8 minutes in all, I encourage you to pop over to the YouTube Page and give it a watch for yourself.

firefly escapes

I do want to cover one little aspect though, as it was a fascinating little bit of lore. We see an aswang, dead upon the ground with a machete buried in its head, and the mouth reddens. It is not blood but the emerging of a firefly. Now nothing is said but I immediately cast my mind to the Slavic myths of a vampire’s soul escaping from its executed body in the form of a butterfly. This is covered in depth in my review of the film Leptirica. Now I don’t know for certain that this firefly represents the aswang’s fleeing soul, but it felt like that as I watched the film and the parallels are wonderful.

A marvellous piece of short animated art. 7.5 out of 10.