"This is dragging too long", one of the character said referring to the Baler siege, the same is true of the movie. The movie started fairly well with the story of Celso (Jericho Rosales) and Feliza (Anne Curtis) meeting and falling in love, until the Baler siege happened. The whole middle part of the movie chronicled how the Spaniards sat inside the church waiting for reinforcement to come from Manila, not knowing that Spain is already defeated. In between, there are small stories like Gabriel, the brother of Feliza who wants to be a priest ( this story did not materialize any further after Gabriel went out of the church), the story of the other Filipino/Spanish soldier, Lopa, who fell in love with Luming (Feliza's friend) and the political turmoil of the Spanish Filipino war. Some have criticized the bad Spanish but I appreciate the effort the filmmakers made in making Spaniards speak Spanish. The make up, costume, cinematography are good and the details of the historical context seemed to be well researched. If the facts are true, I must say this is proof that Filipinos are really forgiving people. Even up to now, Filipinos are quick to forgive the sins of their leaders. The filmmakers are laudable for the effort they gave in making a period movie. There was controversy in the source of the funding of this movie but I don't think money was wasted in this movie.

I can relate the movie Baler to my favorite movie, 'Pearl Harbor.' Why? Because both movies revolve in the story of war and is related to romance.I cannot say that this movie was better than Pearl Harbor, of course, because 'Pearl Harbor' was made in Hollywood and effects were worked on very hard, while 'Baler' was made in the Philippines. However, 'Baler,' as I see it, could be something that the Philippine Film Producers can be proud of and is world-class. It is not just good nor very good. It was excellent.Beginning from the plot, the film really did impressed me; and the production like filming locations, acting, and effects were explicit and is undeniably amazing. Also, considering that actors were from the Philippines, the pronunciation of Spanish words were very good that you may not be able to notice that they just memorized their scripts.For the action-packed parts, I need not to elaborate anymore, because if you watch the movie, you will find it yourself. The drama part which was raised by the forbidden love of a Mestizo soldier (Jericho Rosales) and a Filipina lass (Anne Curtis) was also good.8 out of 10 for Baler!

One of the best Filipino movies for me, I am from Maria Aurora a nearby town from Baler and i never known how great the story of the Baler Siege is until i watched the movie.I'm surprised to know that the love story of Celso and Feliza really did exist as what is mentioned on the last part of the movie.The direction is good, while the cinematography was superb.Though a lot of people keep on saying that there are character mismatches in the film, the actors and actresses particularly the lead characters really did a great job.Anne Curtis was beautiful and really effective in her portrayal. She is really commendable Well for me, the movie DEFINITELY deserves its wins especially when you are gonna compare it to some other festival entries.

"Baler" is a lavishly produced Marilou Diaz-Abaya-ish historical romantic epic that wouldn't feel out of place with Hollywood's favorite WWII-setting, except here the political situation is set in the late 19th century during the cusp between the final days of Spanish reign and the dawn of American colonization.Mark Meily's emotionally hollow saga tells the story of doe-eyed Feliza (Anne Curtis), a young Filipina from the capital of Aurora province who falls in love with Celso (Jericho Rosales), a Filipino-Spanish soldier fighting for Spain as the once mighty empire is now on a losing battle defending its overseas territories from the US. Feliza's dad (Phillip Salvador) is an adamant anti-Spanish government fighter which means their love is anything but permissible, and thus are struggling to keep their relationship secret. Outnumbered and out-gunned by the Indios they once governed and abused, the Spanish soldiers in Baler, including Celso and buddy Lope (Mark Bautista), are now forced to hole up in a church as they wait for non-existent military reinforcements to rescue them from the band of Filipinos who have now surrounded them and are waiting for their surrender.Feliza and Celso are such hackneyed portrayal lovers who are unfortunately caught in the horrors of a military conflict; Roy Iglesias' script thankfully doesn't dwell on their relationship too much, and Meily understates it in favor of focusing on the lives of the Spanish soldiers trapped by their leaders' (Baron Geisler and Ryan Eigenmann) ignorance-induced patriotism. Meily, director of acclaimed comedies "Crying Ladies" and "La Visa Loca," seems an unlikely choice for a serious war drama, but his image of the events is more comfortably reticent than historical weepies of, say, Joel Lamangan. Such restraint, however, comes at a price, as the story lacks an emotional core, where battle scenes - which are in the first place few and far between - lack a sense of urgency, and romantic scenes dutifully go through the claptrap.It's a beautiful film, though, at least in terms of aesthetics. Curtis plays her damsel-in-waiting with such innocence and beauty that it blends perfectly with Lee Meily's cinematography of a 19th-century rural Philippines, contrasted by the pensively gray monochrome Celso and his mates inhabit. It would have been a nice portrait were "Baler" simply all about the visuals; but Meily, despite his most noble intentions, fail to give the movie its requisite pathos, reducing "Baler" to a story with the emotional effect of a high-school history textbook.