'Sunshine' among highest-rated Letterboxd films in 2025

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January 14, 2026 | 10:24am

MANILA, Philippines — Antoinette Jadaone's "Sunshine" starring Maris Racal figured in several year-end charts of social platform Letterboxd, a leading go-to service for people to log and rate films they've seen.

The movie stars Racal as the titular young rhythmic gymnast who dreams of joining the national team but she finds out that she is pregnant days before her tryout.

The athlete considers abortion, which is illegal in the Philippines, even as she is hounded by a young girl on the streets of Manila.

Co-starring with Racal are Elijah Canlas, Xyriel Manabat, Jennica Garcia, Annika Co and Meryll Soriano.

"Sunshine" was No. 5 on "Highest Rated Narrative Film by a Female Director" list, No. 6 on the "Highest Rated Asian Film" list, No. 7 on the "Highest Rated Drama" list and No. 9 on the "Most Hearts to Views" list.

Overall, "Sunshine" was No. 17 on Letterboxd's "Highest Rated" movies, a list topped by anime film "Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc" of directorial debutant Tatsuya Yoshihara.

Racal celebrated her film's milestone by posting a screenshot of the "Highest Rated Narrative Film by a Female Director" list on her Instagram account.

"Pagmalaki lang kita direk!! Paldo," Racal wrote in her post's caption, tagging Jadaone as the actress who also shared photos with her.

Other features. Elsewhere on Letterboxd's list, the platform featured a review by user mnchrbndct for the late Mike de Leon's 1981 classic "Kisapmata," which Letterboxd included on its online film-rental platform Video Store.

"'Kisapmata' is terrifying not because anything loud happens, but because everything is so controlled," wrote the user. "Mike de Leon turns the family home into a pressure cooker, where love, authority and fear are all tangled together. The way the camera just sits there, watching, makes every silence feel heavy and every small action feel dangerous."

"What really gets me is how subtle it is. No theatrics, no dramatic outbursts, just power slowly tightening its grip. It's the kind of film that makes you uncomfortable without ever raising its voice, and that restraint is exactly why it hits so hard."

Outside of movies, Korean drama "When Life Gives You Tangerines" was deemed the highest-rated narrative miniseries and second to fellow Netflix show "Adoloscence" on the "Most Popular Limited Series" list.

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