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Maria Labo is a 2015 Philippine film which is based on an actual woman rumored to be an aswang who killed and ate her own children.

In the movie, Maria started out as a normal human who was forced to work overseas to help her financially poor family. During her stay in Dubai, she was a victim of abuse and had to be repatriated back home but not before being turned into an aswang, a humanoid monster in Philippine folklore.

Back at home in the Philippines, Maria began exhibiting aggressive and irritable behavior as she gradually become fully an aswang and became the terror of her neighborhood.


Maria Labo contains examples of the following tropes:

  • Back from the Dead: In the ending sequence, the body of Maria Labo lies at a morgue. The embalmer was later shocked to find out the body missing even though he's sure the corpse was there a few seconds ago. It was revealed that Maria is still alive ready to continue her rein of terror.
  • Best Friend: Nanay Leng, when Maria was still a migrant worker in Dubai who later turns out to be a False Friend who cursed her to become an aswang.
  • Heroic BSoD: Ermin when he found out that Maria is an aswang and ate their children. To make matters worse, he realized that the food he just ate WERE his children. He then proceeds to hit his wife's face with a bolo knife.
  • Insane Equals Violent: When Maria's children were playing rowdily, she went ballistic and threatened them with a knife.
  • The Mentally Disturbed: Maria when she was presented to her husband after she was brought back from abroad. She was sitting on a chair unkempt and talking to herself.
  • I'm a Humanitarian: Maria even ate her own children.
  • My Instincts Are Showing: Maria still has some remnants of her humanity left but gradually gave in to her instincts as an aswang to crave for humans as food.
  • Rape as Drama: Maria becomes a victim of this while in Dubai.
  • Roman à Clef: Roi Vinzon, the director of the film, said that the film is Based on a True Story. He heard about an Urban Legend in Bacolod of a woman rumored to be an aswang who ate her own children. The real name of the woman was not used in the film to avoid legal issues.
  • Was Once a Man: Maria was just an ordinary human at the start of the movie.
  • Would Hurt a Child: Maria threatens her children with a knife becausethey were playing noisily.


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