A creature may hide another
Abstract
From the Spanish colonisation to the Marcos dictatorship, Filipino folklore has been used as a tool, allowing some to assert their domination and others to explain the inexplicable and the disorders of their world. The use of mythological creatures (kapre, aswang or tikbalang) is also part of the manipulation of the history of a country in search of itself. In contrast to the artificial staging of these puppets that populate Lav Diaz’s cinema, the filmmaker opposes the persistence of ghostly, memorial presences, established over time, in order to reconstitute the authentic face of the fragmented archipelago.
Fields of Study & Subjects
Philippine History and Culture
Cinema History and Criticism
Spanish Culture and Identity
Publication details
- Journal / source
- Routledge eBooks
- Pages
- 92–103
- Publication date
- 3 February 2026
- Language
- EN
- Document type
- Book chapter