Death in the Land of Encantos

In 2006, the Philippine region of Bicol was hit by catastrophe. First came the eruption of the volcano Mayo and a few weeks later a typhoon struck. Thousands were killed in mudslides. Diaz conducted interviews with survivors directly after the storm and interwove the material with a fictional story, in which the poet Benjamin returns to his devastated home country after years away. He manages to find two of his old friends, but has no chance against the destruction of the present and the traumas of the past. In Benjamin’s search and despair, the film densifies into a monumental discourse on the artist and his world. (Filmfest Hamburg)