Lav Diaz's nine-hour drama Heremias stars Ronnie Lazaro as the title character. He is a traveling craftsman who, early in the film, decides to separate from the group of fellow merchants with whom he has been traveling. During his time alone, a vicious hurricane leaves him without his ox or any of his goods. As he wanders, he learns a great deal about the various people he meets upon his travels. He eventually sees a group of drug-fueled teenagers plan to rape a young woman. Although he attempts to tell several people about the plan, nobody listens. He eventually reaches an agreement with God that if he goes 40 days without food, the girl will not be harmed. Heremias is the first half of a two-part story. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
