Lav Diaz's Magellan and Violence

I've mentioned it a handful of times in previous blogs, but my most looked forward to film of 2025 was Magellan by Filipino Slow-Cinema director Lav Diaz.

Still from the film Magellan (2025) credit: Janus Films Press Release

Magellan follows the life of titular figure Ferdinand Magellan and his hand in the colonization of the Philippines, Canvasing a decade of Magellan's life, from the capture of Malacca in 1511 to his death in 1521, this film captures the slow march of time in a dread-filling way. The ending is known to most people, but the journey is not. Diaz's film focuses mostly on the atrocities of colonization, from enslavement to religious conversion, and Magellan's involvement in these.

Interestingly, Magellan is a film that is almost without "action" scenes, as in before any violence starts, usually battles and such, the film cuts to the aftermath, ignoring the action, and focusing on the decision and the consequence. This framing in a way removes the "glory" of a conquest or battle, which is part of what Magellan was searching for, and leave only the cruelty behind. It was a very compelling technique to me, keeps you from being distracted from the narrative for the "Killing Everyone While Aura-Farming" sequences that are so common in modern war films. Though I wouldn't exactly consider this a war film, it's a historical epic that has a war in it, but it's more a film about colonization.

As I said previously, this was one of my most looked forward to film of 2025, and I'm happy to say it was in fact the best film of last year. Diaz's slow cinema style of lingering on landscapes and watching life unfold is so beautiful, and across his body of work he has made some truly beautiful films. A Tale of Filipino Violence is a roughly 7 hour long 'film-novel' set during the reign of Ferdinand Marcos. Norte, the End of History is 4 hours long and the story of a murder. Diaz's works focus on life and history, but most importantly people and how the powers around them effect their life. I'd probably call him one of the most important filmmakers of his generation, and I highly recommend watching some of his stuff, even if it seems a bit long I promise it doesn't really feel it.