Magellan
An absorbing story of colonial conquest and obsession, starring Gael García Bernal as Ferdinand Magellan.
16th century. Magellan (Gael García Bernal), a young and ambitious Portuguese navigator, rebels against the power of the King, who doesn’t support his dream of discovering the world. He persuades the Spanish Crown to fund his bold expedition to the fabled lands of the East. The voyage is exhausting beyond expectations, with hunger and mutiny pushing the crew to their limits. Upon reaching the islands of the Malayan Archipelago, Magellan’s mind changes. He becomes obsessed with conquest and conversion, which sparks violent uprisings beyond his control. This is not the myth of Magellan, but the truth of his journey.
The film had its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival and was selected as the Philippines' entry to the Academy Awards for Best International Feature Film.
Lav Diaz (1958) is a Filipino independent filmmaker who works as director, writer, producer, editor, cinematographer, poet, composer, production designer and actor all at once. He is especially notable for the length of his films, some of which run for up to eleven hours. That is because his films are not governed by time but by space and nature. His films are about the social and political struggles of his motherland and through these, he has garnered the admiration of the international festival circuit. Since 1998 he has directed more than thirty films, and won several international awards. Diaz’s last film “Magalhães” (only 2 hours 40 minutes) premiered at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.
Filmography:
(Valik/Selected): Hele sa hiwagang hapis (A Lullaby to the Sorrowful Mystery, 2016), Ang babaeng humayo (Naine, kes läks ära, PÖFF 2016), Ang panahon ng halimaw (Season of the Devil, 2018), Ang hupa (The Halt, 2019), Historya ni Ha (2021), Kapag wala nang mga alon (When the Waves Are Gone, 2022), Phantosmia (2024), Magalhães (Magellan, 2025)