Nora Aunor returns to big screen as a terrifying healer in ‘Mananambal’
Nora Aunor in “Mananambal” | Image: Screengrab from YouTube/Viva Trending
Superstar Nora Aunor is set to make a comeback to the big screen as she takes on the role of a traditional medicine practitioner who dabbles in sorcery in the upcoming mystery thriller film “Mananambal.”
The official trailer for the film was released on Friday, Jan. 24, offering a glimpse of the star’s haunting transformation as a mysterious healer.
The trailer opens with a group of male vloggers visiting a secluded town in Siquijor for their content “Witch Hunt,” hoping to secure an interview with Aunor’s character.
“Kailangan mapapayag natin ‘yung matanda. Kasi nakita mo naman kahapon nung nagpost ako nandito tayo, 500,000 views na. What more kung mainterview natin siya at makita natin ‘yung actual sorcery? I’m sure more than one million views ‘yon,” said one of the guys.
Aunor’s character refused to give the vloggers an audience after they asked her not just about her healing practices but also her alleged sorcery employ.
The trailer also introduces Bianca Umali’s character, hinting at a significant role in the story.
As the trailer reaches its end, the vloggers are mysteriously harmed one by one, with one of the guys captured ripping his two eyeballs, implying Aunor’s character as the culprit behind the attacks.
Aside from Aunor and Umali, the film also stars Kelvin Miranda, Edgar Allan Guzman, Jeric Gonzales and Martin Escudero. It is directed by Adolfo Borinaga Alix Jr.
After having its world debut at the Jinseo Arigato International Film Festival in Japan last year, “Mananambal” is set to open in Philippine cinemas on Feb. 19.
“Mananambal” is set to mark the third collaboration between Aunor and Alix Jr. after they previously worked together in the 2021 film “Kontrabida” and the 2023 drama-thriller “Pieta.”
“Kontrabida” competed at the 6th Hanoi International Film Festival, winning the Network for the Promotion of Asia Pacific Cinema (NETPAC) Prize for Best Asian Film.
Meanwhile, Aunor was conferred the title National Artist of the Philippines for Film and Broadcast Arts in 2022.
