My mom used to say that life at the time of Martial Law was peaceful at the most. Life was prosperous. But despite that, there are nuggets of stories from her that cast darkness from the stories she often tells. I grew up in a small barrio up North of Luzon. The stories of the families portrayed in the film are close and real for me. They are part of me growing up as I toil in our farm and help out with the harvest as young as five to six years old. I’d often hear stories of brutality from the military and the justice enacted by the Guerillas in the mountain who’d go down to strike to balance the scale. How the military would often shoot at farmers, plant them a gun and label them as Guerillas to be able to collect bounties. I can still recall the face of a dead man brought to the plaza and see the gunshot wounds on its face. People would openly say, this one’s from the mountain, mouthing it off with added caution. Our relatives, in the south of Luzon, fares better but succumb to the glittering promise of gold from the river. They’d spend all their fortune for that sliver of hope of getting rich quick influenced by stories of individuals who have struck gold. Sadly, not all of them are lucky. Most are bankrupt and lost their families in the city of Manila finding new ways to elevate their status. But the city offers a different kind of story too. I wonder why the stories are told casually as if it's something that can only happen on movies. As my mom would say to me, "If you'd done nothing wrong then there is nothing to fear about."

Lav Diaz' The Evolution of a Filipino Family serves as a magnum opus to unlocking his succeeding films. It serves as a compendium for viewers who are lucky enough to experienced Lav Diaz body of work that covers the struggle of the past, present, and future of the Philippines.