Already the official Philippine entry to the Academy Awards Best Foreign Language Film category, Jerrold Tarog’s “Heneral Luna” was also accepted by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association as the country’s official submission to the 73rd Golden Globes Awards scheduled on January of next year.
As posted on the award-giving body’s official website last December 5, “Heneral Luna” is among the 71 entries from 46 countries that were submitted for consideration for its Best Foreign Language Film award, the same category it is aiming for at next year’s Oscars.
Five nominees will then be selected from the submissions which will be announced on December 10. The winner will be proclaimed at the Golden Globes awards ceremony on January 10, 2016.
Often seen as the precursor to the Oscars, Golden Globe nominees and winners often receive the same recognition from the Academy Awards. Oscar nominees for the Best Foreign Language film category for this year will be announced mid-December with the winner being revealed on January 14.
Further boosting the Oscar chances of “Heneral Luna” is a favorable review from Richard Kuipers of entertainment trade magazine Variety, who called the film “a worthy official submission in the foreign-language Oscar race and an entertaining history lesson for audiences everywhere.”
“Heneral Luna” was also singled out by Scott Roxborough of The Hollywood Reporter in its list of 10 Oscar contenders from Asia.
“A classic of the foreign-language race: the historical biopic. Here we see the story of General Antonio Luna, leader of the Philippine revolution against America. A box office hit at home, Heneral Luna’s budget, at around $13 million, is huge for a Filipino feature,” Roxborough further wrote.
The film, which opened in the U.S. last month following an impressive nationwide run of more than eight weeks, is still not through with its “U.S. tour.” This December 11, “Heneral Luna” is set to open in Hawaii.
And for those of us here who still can’t have enough of the film or are one of the very few who have not seen it to date, Artikulo Uno, in partnership with Magnavision, has announced that the much-awaited DVD of “Heneral Luna,” priced at P699, will be released before Christmas Day, although there is no official day yet.
In addition to the digitally mastered film, the “Heneral Luna” DVD will be available to fans outside the Philippines through its online store at the film’s official website. It is also expected to include loads of bonus features including those already posted on the site.
A phenomenal box office success that grossed over P253 million in the Philippines, “Heneral Luna,” is already the country’s highest grossing historical film as well as the highest grossing independent Filipino film of all time.
