“Death Has a Schedule—and Apparently, a Jeepney.”
There are horror movies that creep under your skin, and then there’s Sundo—a film that drives up to your front porch in a van full of ghosts and honks until you open the door. Directed by Topel Lee and starring Robin Padilla (whose brooding glare alone could make the Grim Reaper reconsider his job), Sundo takes the old-fashioned “cheating death” formula and marinates it in Pinoy melodrama, dark humor, and existential dread.
It’s part supernatural thriller, part family soap opera, and part “Death’s to-do list.” If Final Destination and The Sixth Sense had a baby that grew up watching Filipino telenovelas, it would be Sundo—loud, emotional, and filled with more ghosts than your ex’s Messenger inbox.
Romano: The Soldier Who Sees Dead People and Still Needs a Hug
Our hero is Romano (Robin Padilla), a retired military operative whose close brush with death leaves him with a special gift—or curse, depending on your tolerance for the supernatural. He can see ghosts. Not just any ghosts, mind you, but the ones assigned to pick up souls on Death’s behalf—think of them as the Grim Reaper’s personal Uber drivers.
After a near-fatal mission, Romano goes full hermit until his blind sister Isabel (Rhian Ramos) guilt-trips him into returning to Manila. Because in Filipino movies, emotional manipulation is stronger than any exorcism. Their reunion is assisted by Louella (Sunshine Dizon), Romano’s childhood friend and resident doctor-slash-emotional-support-love-interest. Together, they head back to the city in a van full of the most eclectic bunch of strangers since The Breakfast Club from Hell.
Among the passengers are an aspiring actress (Katrina Halili), a grieving widow (Glydel Mercado), her unlucky nephew (Hero Angeles), and a driver named Baste (Mark Bautista), who feels suspiciously expendable from the moment he smiles too much.
Road Trip with the Reaper
It all starts innocently enough—just another road trip down a scenic, ghost-infested Filipino highway. But Romano, being the unlucky medium he is, starts seeing spooky figures trailing the van: an old man, a creepy child, a woman with hair that says “I haven’t seen conditioner since 1987.” Naturally, this doesn’t bode well for anyone with a pulse.
When Romano dreams of an accident, wakes up screaming, and saves everyone just in time, it feels like a victory. Unfortunately, Death is not a fan of schedule changes. As a local elder later explains, Romano has messed with “the balance.” Those who were supposed to die will still die—because apparently, Death runs a tight operation with zero tolerance for cancellations.
From there, Sundo becomes a delightful horror buffet of creative demises. We get impalement by rail spike, electrocution, suffocation, and the occasional balcony fall. It’s as if Death decided to binge-watch Final Destination and take notes. Each death is preceded by Romano’s signature “wide-eyed ghost panic,” which Padilla delivers with the same intensity he brings to every role—half saint, half scowling action hero.
Meet the Deadliest Supporting Cast
Each member of the ensemble gets their own death escort, or “Sundo,” usually a deceased loved one with a flair for the dramatic. The film’s lore—that your Sundo is the soul of someone close who comes to fetch you when your time is up—is genuinely creepy and also deeply Filipino. After all, what’s scarier than being haunted by your relatives after death, only to have them show up and say, “Anak, it’s time to go”?
Driver Baste is fetched by his lolo (grandfather), Kristina is stalked by her ghostly twin sister (because horror movies love twins almost as much as funeral scenes), and Louella’s Sundo turns out to be her aborted child. That last one adds an emotional gut-punch wrapped in Catholic guilt, making it possibly the most Pinoy horror twist of all time.
Death Has No Chill
While most Western horror films treat Death as a metaphor or a mysterious figure, Sundo gives it a full-time job and a bad attitude. You don’t just die here; you get fetched, scheduled, and emotionally blackmailed by spirits who look like they’ve been waiting in line since the Marcos era.
And when Romano and his gang try to cheat Death again, things get personal. Ghosts stop being creepy background extras and start demanding results like angry government employees. The message is clear: Death may be patient, but it also has paperwork to file.
Ghosts, Guilt, and Great Hair: The Filipino Horror Trifecta
What sets Sundo apart from your run-of-the-mill ghost story is its deeply emotional undertone. Beneath the blood and spectral jump scares, this is a movie about guilt, grief, and the futility of trying to outrun fate. It’s Final Destination with a side of spiritual angst and familial regret.
Romano’s relationship with his sister Isabel anchors the story, and Rhian Ramos gives a surprisingly tender performance as the blind yet spiritually perceptive sibling. Sunshine Dizon, meanwhile, brings her trademark telenovela intensity—she can make the act of crying in slow motion look like an Olympic sport.
And then there’s Robin Padilla, who somehow manages to make stoicism sexy. His Romano is part hero, part tragic figure, and part “guy who looks like he just walked out of a cigarette commercial in purgatory.”
Topel Lee’s Grim Playground
Director Topel Lee, known for his slick visuals and love of shadowy corners, gives Sundo a glossy, doom-soaked atmosphere. The cinematography bathes every scene in ominous fog and Catholic iconography, as if the Virgin Mary herself is judging everyone for their life choices.
Lee understands that Filipino horror works best when the supernatural collides with everyday life—jeepneys, hospitals, provincial houses, and funeral parlors. Here, Death doesn’t stalk you in dark alleys—it finds you mid-merienda.
And to his credit, he delivers several genuinely effective scares. The ghosts appear suddenly but meaningfully, never as cheap jump scares. When they show up, they don’t scream—they stare, which somehow feels worse. It’s that classic Pinoy horror stare that says, “I’m dead, but I still think you owe me money.”
The Ending: When Death Comes Full Circle
Without spoiling every gruesome detail, the ending delivers a deliciously cruel twist worthy of a Greek tragedy—if the Greeks had been obsessed with karaoke and religious guilt. Romano dies (again), but in a poetic twist, becomes the Sundo for Louella, the woman who betrayed him. It’s karma with a supernatural payroll.
The Grim Reaper itself even makes a cameo, lunging at the audience in a wonderfully cheesy meta moment that feels like the film saying, “Boo! Gotcha! Thanks for watching!” It’s ridiculous, audacious, and somehow perfect.
Verdict: Death Becomes Them
Sundo may not reinvent the horror wheel, but it definitely spins it faster, louder, and with a Filipino flair. It’s a supernatural road trip that combines Catholic guilt, family drama, and ghostly bureaucracy into a surprisingly heartfelt horror experience.
It’s messy, melodramatic, and occasionally absurd—but that’s part of its charm. Every death feels earned, every ghost looks like it needs a hug, and every line of dialogue could double as an existential Facebook post.
In the end, Sundo isn’t just about seeing the dead—it’s about accepting that no one cheats Death, especially when it’s wearing barong Tagalog and has impeccable timing.
Grade: B+ (for “Beautifully Bleak and Brimming with Buwis-Buhay Drama”)
Watch it for the scares, stay for Robin Padilla’s brooding stare, and remember: if you see a ghost waving at you on the highway, maybe it’s not just traffic. It might just be your Sundo—and it’s probably not here to carpool.
