Ma. Isabel Ongpin
AT last a film that reflects to the nth degree and in infinitesimal but felicitous detail a work by National Artist for Literature Nick Joaquin that successfully parallels his mind. “Larawan,” the musical, might seem unlikely as it has to tackle Joaquin’s unique narrative in a film with music and dancing. But it delivers Joaquin’s paean to the past, his understanding of its fated evolution to the present and an intimation of the future, all in the actions and attitudes of the people that are the focus of Joaquin’s great play, “Portrait of the Artist as Filipino,” with music and dancing to boot.