What you need to know about the Netflix-bound 'Balangiga: Howling Wilderness'

The Balangiga Massacre remains one of the bloodiest incidents in Philippine history.

On September 29, 1901, American General Jacob H. Smith ordered his men to attack in retaliation the village of Balangiga in Eastern Samar.

General Smith wanted a scorched-earth offensive, with soldiers burning the entire village to the ground and killing “everyone over 10 [years old].”

The American general vowed to turn the village into a “howling wilderness.”

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He reportedly told his men: “I want no prisoners. I wish you to kill and burn. The more you kill and burn the better it will please me.

“I want all persons killed who are capable of bearing arms in actual hostilities against the United States.”

Previous estimates put the number of local deaths at around 2,000 to 50,000 - figures that are contested by some historians to this day.

In 2017, an independent movie directed by Khavn De La Cruz revisits the tragedy through the perspective of an eight-year-old child named Kulas.

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Balangiga: Howling Wilderness earned critical acclaim and won awards including Best Picture at the QCinema International Film Festival, Best Original Screenplay and Best Cinematography from FAMAS, Best Film from Gawad Urian, and the Jury Prize at the 5th Bangkok ASEAN Film Festival.

Now, the film will be seen by a wider audience through the popular streaming platform Netflix.

Balangiga: Howling Wilderness will make its Netflix Philippines debut on December 20 alongside other critically-acclaimed films Apocalypse Child and Patay na si Hesus.

Meanwhile, Maine Mendoza and Carlo Aquino's Isa Pa, With Feelings will premiere on December 25.