Lola Igna: Movie Review

Most people think of death as inevitable, a reality of life, but never as a blessing. You definitely don't wish it on someone or wish it upon yourself. The movie "Lola Igna" turns the table around as we get to experience both of these spectrums clearly.

The life of an elderly woman, Lola Igna (Angie Ferro) is disrupted when she is officially titled as the "Oldest Grandmother in the Philippines". On top of that, she is being forced to vie to be the world record holder for the same title with the chance of winning millions of pesos in the process. In reality, Lola Igna could care less about titles and ironically has been wishing and praying to pass away soon. But when a long lost relative (Yves Flores) arrives, her newfound fame may just have become a blessing in disguise.

Surprisingly, the life of the film turns our to be Lola Igna. For a 118 year old grandmother, Lola Igna was sprightly, jovial, and even brash. The performance from Angie Ferro was outstanding as she pulls off a deep dive into a character actually decades away from her real age. The narrative of "Lola Igna" was not perfect but the simple premise and plot development makes this an easy film to follow from point A to point B. It has underlying deep themes that audiences do not need to explore to make the film enjoyable. But unfortunately, there was unnecessary bloat that left us wondering why they were put in the film in the first place. For example, there are occult and supernatural elements that could have been completely removed. The film also implies the greediness of particular people around Lola Igna using her sudden fame for money that never goes anywhere. All of these are either off-putting or completely forgotten and put aside just to have a clean and good ending. Overall though, we truly enjoyed going on a journey with Lola Igna. It was satisfying to see her own transformation as an old person just hoping to die into an old person who longs to live, to learn, and to serve once again.

Rating: 4 and a half reels





Why you should watch it:
- puts a very different perspective on life and death

Why you shouldn't watch it:
- has some plot points left behind and under-developed