Christian Candelaria | Why Do Birds Suddenly Disappear? / 2019

fear

by Douglas Messerli

 

Christian Candelaria (director) Why Do Birds Suddenly Disappear? / 2019 [7 minutes]

 

In this short horror film from The Philippines, director Christian Candelaria brings together two young men (Matthew Gador and Teddi Avelino) for quick car sex.

     One seems inexperienced and clearly a bit frightened about the entire activity. Even if he has previously had sexual experience, you can tell that he prefers the gentle “old fashioned” methods of meeting up with someone and taking him back to his house, even if for someone his age that is impossible.

      The other is clearly experienced in on-line sex, and dares to park near a street-light in a place the other feels is not at all appropriate. He even makes the other promise that their sex will be “just for pleasure” and that there will be no emotions attached, clearly a student of what he later describes as the KKK school—sex in which the other is “liked, banged, dumped.”

     In the back seat, however, they seem to both enjoy quite sensual sex, and afterwards, while taking a smoke the experienced boy seems to be trying to get to know his new conquest. They exchange their real names and the second, more experienced boy, even admits regret for following the KKK method of sex. Yet he still wants no commitment, in part because he fears for his later sexual desires others and rejection from anyone he truly loves.

      The fearful boy wonders how long they will be hanging around the place, but the other reassures him that there is no hurry, suggesting that he has some beer in the truck, and asks him to retrieve it.

      To his horror, the fearful boy encounters mason jar after mason jar of what appear to be pickled penises. Like the boy, the audience must immediately jump to conclusions: the other boy is a serial killer who collects his sexual partner’s penises as reward for his sexual prowess.

      When the now perceived killer approaches, our young innocent attacks, eventually picking up a rock and hitting the apparent assailant again and again, blood everywhere.

      The KKK’s boy’s phone rings, and in a daze, the now killer picks it up only to hear a worried mother say, “Where have you been? I’ve been trying to contact you for hours. Why haven’t you been answering my calls? Where are the mason jars?  Direk is pissed off already! He wants to see the props.”

      Suddenly the boy and audience together comprehend his terrible mistake, the horror of his reaction, and the reality he will have to face for the rest of his life. The innocent boy’s fear has overtaken his reason, as it has the viewer’s logic as well.

      Although one may well wonder what kind of stage play or movie—except for this one—might have several jars filled with what look like penises as a prop. In this short film we once more see the hysteria that emanates from fear.

 

Los Angeles, June 20, 2025

Reprinted from My Queer Cinema blog (June 2025).