Lav Diaz’s Magellan Rewrites Colonial History on Film

Produced and directed by Lav Diaz, one of the most influential figures in Filipino independent cinema, Magellan continues the filmmaker’s decades-long examination of Philippine colonial history, power, and socio-political identity. Diaz is widely regarded as a pioneer of the slow cinema movement, celebrated for his meditative storytelling, extended runtimes, minimal dialogue, and long, unbroken takes that emphasize reflection over spectacle. His internationally acclaimed films include Norte, The End of History, Evolution of a Filipino Family, and The Woman Who Left. In addition to directing, Diaz is also a writer, poet, composer, and producer, and a major presence on the global film festival circuit.

Magellan stands apart within Lav Diaz’s filmography in several significant ways. Shot entirely in color, the film marks his first color feature in more than a decade, departing from his signature black-and-white aesthetic. With a runtime of approximately 160 minutes, it is considered one of his most accessible and concise works. The film also stars Gael García Bernal in the title role, marking the first collaboration between Diaz and a major international movie star.

Set at the dawn of the modern era, Magellan follows Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan, portrayed by Gael García Bernal, as he leads a perilous fleet toward Southeast Asia in pursuit of the first voyage across the Pacific Ocean. As the expedition reaches the Malay Archipelago, the crew descends into exhaustion and madness, battered by unforgiving seas and unsettled by the raw, overwhelming beauty of the islands. Magellan’s escalating obsession with conquest and control triggers rebellion among his men, exposing the destructive consequences of unchecked ambition and authority.

A sweeping, globe-spanning historical epic, Magellan radically reframes the European Age of Discovery through a decolonial lens. Rather than celebrating exploration as a heroic triumph, the film portrays the colonization of the Philippines as a violent and destabilizing encounter with the unknown, directly challenging traditional Western narratives of discovery, empire, and progress.

Historically, Ferdinand Magellan planned and launched the 1519 to 1522 expedition that achieved the first successful circumnavigation of the globe. During the journey, he discovered the Strait of Magellan, the crucial passage at the southern tip of South America connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. He also became the first European to cross the Pacific Ocean, naming it for its seemingly calm waters. After failing to secure support from Portugal, Magellan persuaded King Charles I of Spain to finance the expedition, sailing under the Spanish flag.

Magellan’s voyage resulted in the first documented European contact with the Philippines, a turning point that would permanently reshape the region’s history. In 1521, he was killed on Mactan Island during a clash with native warriors led by Chief Lapu-Lapu. Although Magellan did not survive, his expedition continued, offering the first concrete proof of Earth’s spherical shape and revealing the immense scale of the Pacific Ocean, fundamentally expanding European knowledge of the world.

Most provocatively, Magellan embraces a revisionist approach to history. Rather than portraying Lapu-Lapu as a traditional historical figure, Lav Diaz reimagines him as a mythic, vampiric presence invented by local leaders to intimidate European invaders. Diaz has openly described this creative decision as deliberate revisionism, underscoring the film’s mission to dismantle colonial myths and reclaim Filipino narratives from centuries of European domination.