All of life’s ironies in Santa Niña

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Scene from Santa Nina (Photo courtesy of Cinemalaya)Ten years after the town of Bacolor was buried in lahar, Pol (Coco Martin) unexpectedly finds the lost coffin of his two-year-old daughter Marikit at the lahar quarry he works in. Her remains are unchanged, perfectly preserved a decade after she died from meningitis.

Pol takes the coffin home, not knowing what to do. But his ignorance vanishes after a chain of events  makes him think  Marikit has done enough miracles to be called a  saint.
Director Emmanuel "Manny" Palo's strength lies in telling a story about family, death, life, the Filipino's inherent adherence to religion, and faith's ironies as beliefs are placed next to tragedies and pain.
Coco Martin, Alessandra da Rossi and Anita Linda make up a powerhouse cast capable of the subtleties that make the person disappear and the character to take over.
Faith and personal gain
"Santa Niña" asks the question, "do I dare?" in juxtaposing  faith and the faithful's innocent attempt at personal gain. Pol wants Marikit canonized because