One of the wild cards of this year’s iteration of Cinemalaya is An Errand, written by Sarge Lacuesta and directed by Dominic Bekaert. Known for the stunning and creative visuals of his music videos (Nadine Lustre, Inigo Pascual, FKJ, etc.), this would be Dominic’s first Filipino feature film, and it takes us on a transformative road trip between Manila and Baguio (and back).

I consider it a ‘wild card’, as it’s one of the true indie films in the pack, privately financed, and counted among the ones with no major studio backing and their corresponding marketing and promotion budget. In other words, you won’t hear much of this one pre-festival, and it will have to ‘fly’ primarily by word of mouth.

Sid Lucero would be the most recognizable actor attached to the film, but the cast is an impressive roster of actor’s actors: Art Acuña, Nanding Josef, and Elora Españo — all proven thespians - known for their acting more than for name recognition.

On the surface, the storyline concerns a ‘day in the life’ of Moroy (Sid Lucero), a driver for a somewhat shady boss, referred to in the film as Sir (Art Acuña). Sir has this affair with corporate woman Brenda (Elora Españo), and a good part of the action has to do with a gift Brenda gave Sir a Givenchy t-shirt with the Mona Lisa portrait emblazoned on the front of the shirt. A separate narrative strand is created in the driver’s lounge while Moroy is waiting, as another driver (Nanding Josef) relays the story/urban legend of Rex (Eric Kelly), the bodyguard/driver of a local politician.

Moroy is sent from Baguio to Manila just to retrieve the Mona Lisa shirt and bring it back to Baguio. The absurd errand He undertakes becomes a jump point for an existential journey into his psyche. It becomes a commentary on class and character and a meeting point for memory, dreams, and fantasy. It’s this blending of the internal with the physical that makes this such an intriguing and ultimately illuminating film.

At one level, there are the whims and capricious nature of their bosses that those in the service sector are subjected to. Whether as driver or bodyguard, the demands of your ‘amo’, the crazy hours spent in service, are observed with studied detachment, leaving us, the audience, to form our conclusions. There’s a cameo by ELF, a true-to-life society figure; she knocks it out of the ballpark in this film, her acting debut.  

With his French/Belgian roots, Bekaert would be familiar with the literature of Albert Camus and Jean-Paul Sarte, and he applies this to the source material provided by Lacuesta. As in The Stranger, there’s not much to say about Moroy’s past or even future. What’s being put under the microscope is his present-day circumstances and how he addresses them.

The cinematography reflects this as well; at times, it is dream-like and gauzy, mirroring his thinking, confusion, and questioning. There’s an intent and purpose to how the camerawork lends itself to the brisk storytelling.

In a sense, the resolution to the film is purposely left open-ended or even non-existent. It’s more a case of ‘this is just the way it is,’ and the takeaway is our own, not dictated by the filmmakers. Watch this Cinemalaya XX film; be amused, entertained, challenged, and rewarded. Very much worth seeking out. It’s my dark horse contender.