The Healing

Chito S. Rono's 2012 Filipino film opens with a woman said to have been cured of a serious illness by a faith healer. When word spreads through the neighbourhood her neighbours go to the same person; soon those who were healed begin dying strangely. The idea is the cost of being healed. The cure is presented not as a gift but as an exchange; who dies in whose place is the central question and the community falls apart from within. Vilma Santos leads. Rono builds the horror through local belief systems and the use of effects is limited; the tension comes largely from repeated images. The film succeeded at the box office in the Philippines. Who it's for: those who like Filipino horror and thrillers grounded in belief. Who it's not for: viewers uncomfortable with blood and jump scares; the film uses both often.