Dr. Jonathan de Dios (Piolo Pascual) has just proposed marriage to his girlfriend Dr. Agnes Salvador (Janella Salvador). However, he had nightmares that she would fall seriously ill. He made a trip to his ancestral house in Magalang, Pampanga, with his friend, now deacon Lucas (JC Santos). Jonathan wanted to look for a hidden room which held a secret that gave his great-great grandmother Dona Facunda Mallari (Gloria Diaz) a very long life.

After they arrived, murders began happening in Magalang -- first involving a sex worker, then an online scammer. These chilling events brought back memories of the town's notorious former parish priest Fr. Severino Mallari, son of Dona Facunda, who was convicted on charges of 57 murders back in 1812. Meanwhile, Jonathan found film footage shot by his grand-uncle Johnrey Mallari in 1948 about their family's dark secret.

Writer Enrico Santos' previous horror output for story and screenplay included "Amorosa: The Revenge" (2014) and "Bloody Crayons" (2017). He outdid himself this time with the inter-generational premise of "Mallari" that began from the 19th century all the way to the present was complex and ambitious. The plot points were all laid out and woven together with meticulous care, with a strong ending that was neither hasty (unlike most Pinoy horror films).

Director Derick Cabrido also had his share of horror films recently -- "Clarita" (2019) and "U-Turn" (2020) -- before this one. Here, the richness of Santos' epic story was a much bigger challenge to tell cinematically, but Cabrido more than pulled it off here in "Mallari." He was able to tell his story very clearly, even if he had one actor in three roles, jumping in and out of three separate time periods, with scenarios crossing over from nightmares into reality.

Piolo Pascual was playing three distinct characters from three different centuries here, so this is likely the most challenging role of his career, and the most difficult acting feat for any actor in this entire MMFF. Having successfully portraying the nuances of each persona here, Pascual is bound to win Best Actor of the festival, capping this milestone year when he just also won an Aliw Award for Best Lead Actor in a Musical for his stage debut in "Ibarra."

JC Santos, as the young insecure deacon assisting Pascual's doctor, stands a good chance to nab supporting actor citations for his efforts. Janella Salvador registered well, especially with the Gen Z viewers in her scenes with Pascual, from the sweet to the thrilling. Elisse Joson played the role of Felicity, the Fil-Am wife of Johnrey, who would figure in a life and death situation. Tommy Alejandrino was transformed into Didi, a lusty transgender teenager.

Its dark, high-concept story, high production values, startling jump scare moments, and creepy, edgy atmosphere, primes "Mallari" for both box-office success and critical acclaim. Fearless forecasts put this film on course for Best Picture, Director, Story, Actor, Supporting Actor, and probably all the technicals (cinematography, film editing, Gregorian-chant-heavy musical score, production design, costumes, sound).

This review was originally published in the author's blog, "Fred Said."