ELOINDIGOART

Usapang Pelikula

2009-10-22T14:18:00.002+08:00

Some of my essays on digital cinema in the Philippines and Southeast Asia.

Mahilig ka ba sa Pelikulang Pilipino

2008-08-22T11:55:00.000+08:00

Kung oo, punta ka sa http://philippinecinema.multiply.com/

comments naman dyan. :))

at pakikalat na din ang link na ito

Still Life

2008-08-04T16:13:00.000+08:00

Still Life

Eloisa May P. Hernandez

A painter is afflicted with a disease that eventually paralyzes him. He leaves for the bucolic countryside to paint his last painting before he kills himself. A young woman gets pregnant and leaves her child with her doctor. Painter and young woman meet, they strike an unlikely relationship. Both end up in the hospital. Young woman turns out to be the painter’s mother. Young woman saves the painter from suicide. But there’s a twist here, the woman has been dead for years. The story, written by Katski Flores in her directorial debut, is hardly original. Yet Katski Flores’s initial attempt in filmmaking is laudable with a bounty of beautiful imagery, crisp editing, and impressive performances from Ron Capinding as James Masino, Glaiza De Castro as Emma Vaszquez, and John Lloyd Cruz in a brief yet effective role as an actor studying the role of an artist.

The art of painting plays a central and integrative role in Still Life. The title draws a connection between the film and the painting genre of still life. The still life has a long history in art starting from the Dutch stilleven where the term originated around 1650. Still life (plural “still lifes”) refers to painted flowers, fruit, vases, wine, bread, food, and other inanimate objects. Still life is also referred to as nature morte in French, which came into popular use in the 19^th century as a variation of the term peinture des choses inanimees (painting of inanimate objects). (Mariam 4) In Italian it is natura morta while in Spanish it is called naturaleza muerta and bodegon.

The lead character, James Masino (Ron Capinding), is a painter and the film dwells on the psyche of an artist, how he thinks about art, his art making process, and the role of art in his life – much like a portrait of a young man as an artist. Landscapes and seascapes also abound in Katski Flores’s film with beautifully shot scenes on location in Guinyangan, Quezon and Jala-Jala, Rizal.

The title of the film, Still Life, operates on several levels in this film. It alludes to the impending immobility (the Dutch term stilleven, according to Mariam, also means “nature in repose or immobile”) of James’s body due to Guillain-Barré syndrome, a debilitating disease that will eventually paralyze his body, spelling the end of his painting career. James dances with death and grapples with suicide, reminiscent of memento mori, reminders of death and mortality, as seen in countless still life paintings. Vanitas, another term associated with still life, which according to Patrick Flores, is used to refer to still life works which contemplate the transience of life through the iconography of hourglasses, extinguished candles, soap bubbles, and skulls. (22) James is in transition, moving places from the city to the island, preparing to take his own life, eventually finding a second life after art. Emma as well, is in a transient state, as we shall discover at the end of the film.

The film is replete with images of still life. James’s paintings are still life, albeit of the unconventional type, not filled with flowers or fruits, but instead of a broken red stiletto, a dinner table with wine and left-over food, an empty swing in motion, a broken eyeglasses, a bench with a floating trench coat – all devoid of life, as Emma noticed. Katski Flores also paints her own still lifes in scenes such as an empty chair, a drift wood, a bowl of flowers in the garden, and bougainvilleas in the patio. She also literally transforms some scenes into paintings as seen from the eyes of James.

Still life can also allude to the life of James as it is put on hold by his disease, the end of life as he knows it. It can also refer to his life on a stand-still – when Emma comes into his life, all the moments that James and Emma spent together all occurred in just a matter of a few earthly hours, while James bleeds from his attempted suicide, the hours are stilled.

Sadly, the film reinforces some conventional and questionable, notions about art – an artist as a solitary figure, an artist as a wretched angst-filled soul, an artist space as a room-of-one’s one, and an artist as a middle-class male. The film is also unabashedly conservative with its preachy pro-life diatribes on suicide and abortion. Emma’s role is also conventional as a woman, taking care of the house, preparing the food, doing the laundry, and washing the dishes. Still Life also suffers from excess - the repetitive piano score was haunting at first but eventually becomes unbearable; the dialogue is uneven, sometimes witty but turns cheesy at some point; and the symbolisms were contrived and the twist in the plot was predictable.

In spite these excesses, Still Life is nominated for cinematography and visual design for its sweeping panorama of nature in its landscapes and seascapes capturing its transitory nature with almost painterly quality, the attention to details in indoor spaces with almost still life property, transforming the frames into hand-painted paintings and the evocative use chiaroscuro – the play of shadows and light - to create mood. Brian Uhing’s paintings and Christina Dy’s sketches are also vital component to the over-all theme of the film. When Mariam wrote, “As a critic and art historian once so aptly remarked, what could be better explain the phrase “devouring with the eyes” than a still life?” she could be referring to Flores’s Still Life as it is literally a feast for the eyes ready to be devoured.

Glaiza De Castro gives an impressive performance as Emma, the young care-free woman. She emanates an inner beauty on screen and is unpretentious in her role. But it is Ron Capinding’s portrayal of James, in his first on screen performance, who stands out in the film as he turns in an understated yet nuanced performance that shifts from haughty to endearing, desperate to hopeful, and from confusion to enlightenment. Capinding’s restraint and roughness as an actor is a contrapunto to the natural joie de vivre and exuberance of De Castro. In the end, the love between James and Emma becomes palpable, yet both De Castro and Capinding effectively evinced love without the romantic entanglements and sensual frills.

Ultimately, as Still Life shows, there is still life for James even after art.

Flores, Patrick. “The Tradition of ‘Still’ Life: Objects, Faces, and Structures as Culture.” Perspectives on the Vargas Museum Collection: An Art Historical and Museological Approach. Quezon City: University of the Philippines Department of Art Studies, Jorge Vargas Museum and Filipiniana Research Center, 1998.

Mariam, Mariu. Still Life. Madrid: Aldeasa, 2001.

The Photo of the Century!

2008-03-16T16:48:00.000+08:00

Ayan, yan na ang picture of the century (a very young century at that). isama mo na pati na ang lumipas na 20th century at pati na din ang susunod na 22nd century.

In fairness, magkamukha na kami talaga ni Papa Nestor hehehe

baby_chinita, katuwaan lang ha (pero totoo) HAHAHAHA

Amici Obsession

2008-03-12T05:54:00.000+08:00

I've been raving about Amici de Don Bosco (now just plain Amici) for years now. But it's in Makati and we usually get lost or have a hard time going there, so i am ecstatic that they are now in T. Morato.

To be exact: below ratsky, what used to be CPK, in front of Uno (another favorite place), Scout Fuentebella. :)

I learned last Saturday that it's open already, so Sunday i trooped to it immediately. The place was small and packed. the tables were arranged badly, sobrang sikip. But the place looked better than the original in don bosco which is actually a glorified college canteen hehehe

the food: the montanara and seafood pasta was slightly off target for us. but the pizza was great! and the chocolate with nuts gelato was superb, i couldn't get enough of it. the mango tango was also great, not so sweet.

I still did not have enough of Amici and Monday lunch I was there again. the seafood pasta in white wine sauce is soo much better than the previous day's pasta. i loved it. the anchovy and garlic taste was a bit overpowering, but that's the way i liked it. the Tutta Carne pizza was also great, better than the italian sausage with olives pizza. and they serve the pizza really fast. we tried the osso buco with risotto, and it was ok (i've had better version in bellini's years ago before they went really bad) and of course, i had the chocolate with nuts gelato again.

still not having my fill of amici, tuesday night pangga and i went there again for dinner. this time we ordered 2 pizzas - napoli and tutta carne. hey, we've been to napoli (or naples, the place in italy, not the bad resto), the birth place of pizza, and we ate at the oldest and best napoli pizza place where the pizza was simply divine - fresh anchovies, fresh tomatoes from pompeii, and fresh mozzarella - THE BEST!. but let me tell you, the napoli pizza in Amici is the best in the philippines. (i've had better quatro formaggi). the tutta carne was still delicious. and of course, you guessed it- i had 2 cups of chocolate with nuts gelato.

hey, i liked their gelato way better than the ones i had in napoli (naples). it's not so sweet and definitely a whole lot cheaper hehehe

so, have we had our fill? are we satisfied already? is the amici obsession over? well, i hope NOT hahaha because i have yet to try the roasted chicken. and i don't mind having the pizza and gelato again hehehe

just a piece of unsolicited advice for those who like avenetto, italliani's, napoli, and the other "italian" restos and think that the pasta in these restos are good - just dump these restos and go to AMICI. you'll get your money's worth, and the food is so many times better. after Amici (and Galileo) you won't go back to these restos who claim they serve italian pasta.

of course, if you have more money and love pasta and great ambiance, Galileo Enoteca is the place to go. :) but for cheap, fun pizza, pasta, gelato place - AMICI!

18th Annual Circle Citations for Distinguished Achievement in Film for 2007

2008-02-22T11:06:00.001+08:00

Best Film of the Year
Winner: Foster Child

Nominee:
Endo

Best Screenplay
Winner: Foster Child

Nominee:
Endo

Best Achievement in Cinematography and Visual Design
Winner: Death in the Land of Encantos

Nominees:
Tirador
Still Life
Foster Child

Best Achievement in Film Editing
Winner: Endo

Nominee: Tirador

Best Achievement in Sound and Aural Orchestration
Winner: Endo

Nominee:
Still Life
Tirador

Best Performance by Male or Female, Adult or Child, Individual or Ensemble in Leading or Supporting Role
Winner: Jason Abalos in Endo

Nominees:
Cherry Pie Picache in Foster Child
Eugene Domingo in Foster Child
Ron Capinding in Still Life

*more details about the winners and nominees will be released soon

(The awarding ceremonies will be in late April or early May 2008)

Exploring Amsterdam's Red Light district

2008-02-08T10:46:00.000+08:00

ayan, request kasi ni Ton na magkuwento ako about Amsterdam's red light district (or Rosse Buurt). so here it is.

After our flight from Madrid at 6am that arrived in Amsterdam around 10, we slept the whole day in Lenin's house (our gay pinoy host) to prepare ourselves for a wild night in Amsterdam's famous red light district. So, around 9pm, off we go unto our hedonistic ways.

We got of at Waterlooplein station and just walked. First stop, the lesbian bar (didn't get the name). medyo scary kasi uber laki nung mga macho tibams na kasama ang kanilang mga partners. we did not even go inside and just peered through the windows.

next stop, bar where guys get picked up by guys. in other words, pimping station for gays. there is nothing for us there hahaha.

next stop, Lellebel, the only bar in Amsterdam for drag queens, trans, and cross-dressers located at Utrechtsestraat. We immediately loved this small bar with flashy and entertaining drag queens, they were very friendly. One customer, a young trans, who sat beside me even engaged me in a conversation. Some of the trans were very attractive. Lumabas na naman nga ang aking attraction sa mga trans e, pero sympre good girl ako kasi kasama ko si pangga. The music was great and we felt safe in the place. After a drink, we headed off to the red light district.

Yes, women were displayed in windows, in their undies and bras, casually standing or sitting, some were trying to seduce passers-by.It was actually quite sad and scary since we went to the red light district around 12 midnight and most of the people there were drunk men and very few tourists like us. Prostitution is legal in Amsterdam though it is largely concentrated around the Oude Kerk (Old Church). Yes, the oldest church in Amsterdam located in Oudezijds Voorburgwal at Oudekerksplein is surrounded by prostitutes displayed on windows, sex shops, and peep shows. Safe to say that I did not take part in this exercise and limited myself to observer status (sympre kasama ko si Pangga e). Pero ironic talaga kasi nga old church surrounded by prostitutes. tapos kapag nakasara ang window curtain ibig sabihin may client.

After that we went to a pretentious gay bar, no comments here, i did not like the place. But 2 guys tried to pick me up, tapped me on the shoulder and made some attempts. but no, pangga protected ako e hahaha.

So, off we went to the liveliest, noisiest, most popular karaoke bar in Amsterdam - Casablanca. My gash it was so jampacked we literally had to fight to get to the coat check (50 cents) and toilet (1 euro). it was so smoke-filled sakit sa mata. the dutch are bad singers and are quite rude when drunk, they just bang and bump and crash into people just to pass. so, i couldn't take the place and had to go out. then a huge macho tibam tried to engage me in a conversation, small time pa-cute. pero sympre naman ako smile lang. sa isip ko, "huwag po lola, butch din po ako" hahaha.

so, after so many bars, we ended up at Lellebel again where we stayed til around 3am. met some more gay pinoys, Lenin's friends. enjoyed conversation with more trans. saw Sugi, the star of the night. an indonesian dressed up so flamboyant it would give priscilla queen of the desert a run for her money. her hair was so huge she had to squat a little to get into the toilet (free toilet here).

on the taxi home, the driver was a gringo honasan look-a-like. type siya ni lenin, so when we went down from the taxi, lenin signalled for us to go ahead so he could make a move on the driver. after a few minutes, lenin arrived and said that the taxi driver actually wanted to have sex with pangga, and not with lenin. the driver also said that he would only have sex with lenin if it's a three-way with pangga. HELL NO! is he crazy? Pangga is mine, all mine lang. oh well, ganun lang ang sex sa amsterdam, casual casual lang.

so, next time na ang kuwento about the museums and canals of amsterdam hahaha...

New York New York

2008-02-08T10:43:00.002+08:00

wrote this blog when i came back from the gay games. post ko lang dito sa multiply.

New York City is seedy, hot, fast, smelly, sexy and steamy. I did not fall in love with it but I did have some good memories there. Again, how I wish Pangga was there with me. I'm sure I could have enjoyed New York more if she was with me.

Here are ten things you can do in New York, forget the Statue of Liberty and all those touristic stuff, you can look at their pictures in postcards and photobooks. Here is the action:

10. Go to Circuit City, Target, and BJ's and shop til you drop.

9. Get lost in the subway. I actually felt like a beaver in New York, spending a lot of time underground and just surfacing for air.

8. When you surface from the subway, look at all the buildings that you've seen in movies and commercials, except of course The World Trade Center.

7.Walk around 5th Avenue, Avenue of the Americas, Lexington Avenue. Just walk around and feel very New Yorker. Eat hotdog in the middle of the street, everybody does.

6. Go to Greenwich Village and feel the bohemian spirit, even if it is full of expensive shops.

5. Go to Christopher Street, home of the famous Stonewall Inn, the site of the Stonewall Riot in 1969 that is instrumental to the LGBT Rights movement and is commemorated with the yearly Pride marches all over the world. Walk around this historic street, a mecca for gays and lesbians. And don't forget to visit the sex shops and buy pasalubong for your partner/s.

4. Stand in Times Square and feel that you are in the middle of everything. I was actually wondering aimlessly, looking for the International Center for Photography, when I realized that I was in the middle of Times Square.

3. Get a lapdance in Splash Bar New York (SBNY for short), the hippest, most popular gay bar in New York. The lapdance was a lot of fun, he was so cute and smelled so good, irresistable yummy yummy yummy boy!

2. Go to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art, Whitney Museum, International Center for Photography, and Guggenheim Museum. I saw my most favorite painting, Salvador Dali's The Persistence of Memory. For an art history professor, this is big deal. Imagine, everything I studied before, art works i saw in books and slides, I was in front of them. I was in their presence. And they were in my presence. Wow, that was great.

1. Watch the New York Yankees at the Yankee Stadium. Feel the love for Jeter and the disappointment for A-Rod. (i have to edit this because A-rod is having a phenomenal season). Cheer for every play, go nuts over Bernie Williams" homeruns and Derek Jeter's hits. Thanks, Vergel, for the unforgettable night of Yankees fun. This is the best experience ever.

Things to do in bangkok

2008-02-08T10:43:00.001+08:00

repost from multiply

I just love Bangkok, it's my favorite place in Southeast Asia. It's noisy, polluted, filthy, crowded, flooded - yet, it is full of life, exciting, sexy, and spicy (in all aspects).

Here are some things you can do in Bangkok when are alone (like I was):

1. eat all the tomyum, curry, thai sweets you can find in the karinderyas. if you can't take the spice, say "no prik" (means no spice)

2. drink chilled buko from the carts, believe me, the best bj :)

3. go to patpong (the red light district) and roam the streets and look around (i can look but can't touch). if you are brave, go inside one of the bars and watch the famous pingpong pussy show

4. go to pratunam, buy all the cheap stuff and eat tomyum in one of the side streets

5. go to chatuchak for the weekend where half of bangkok is, buy the cheapest stuff and eat sesame fried chicken at din pao (stall 4 -1 )

6. visit the malls (paragon, isetann, zen, emporium), there are unbelievable sale in the middle part of the malls. i got 3 original lacoste shirts and a couple of socks for a bargain (40% off)

7. NEVER ride the tuktuk (they will rip you off)

8. learn how to count in thai and ask "how much?" (taw raey, or something like that)

9. do at least one touristic tour, like go to the Grand Palace (no shorts or short skirts there)

10. buy "I Love the King" shirt and feel the love

11. talk to locals (good luck, their English is still bad) and share notes on how bad their PM Thaksin is (have to edit this again, thaksin has been forced out of power via a coup)and compare him to how bad GMA is

12. get stuck in the famous Bangkok traffic, have a chat with your taxi driver, and say "thank God, traffic is not this bad in Manila)

13. go to Watson's or Tesco and buy Colgate Herbal and Lux Shower Creme Lavender

14. eat Rotiboy, the best coffee bun in the whole wide world. Kopi Roti is a cheap copycat.

15. and the best, watch out for the baby elephant that walks around in the streets of Bangkok, buy 20 baht of sugar cane, feed the elephant, you can pet him/her, take video or photos with the elephant. he/she is so damn cute, you'd want to take him/her home (if your luggage permits). DUMBO comes alive. and the baby elephant has the best soulful eyes i've seen in animals. the best experience.

GGOOOOOOOOOOOO and Enjoy!!!!

Palawan Paradise

2008-02-08T10:40:00.000+08:00

wrote this blog entry when we just arrived from my 7th trip to palawan last year so i'm just re-posting here in blogspot.

Palawan still has its charm. the first time i went there was in 1996 and i fell in love immediately. i've been going back regularly since. In fact, i'm buying some land to build my small retirement house there. Pangga and I decided that we will retire in Palawan.

things to do:
1. stay at casa linda. very cheap. 750 per night for 2 pax. matthew mendoza (former movie actor) might even pick you up at the airport. his family owns the place. he gets cuter everytime.

2. eat at kalui's, the best resto in puerto. go for the lobster, crabs, seafood sisig (the best). enjoy the ambiance. it is the place to be.

3. go to honda bay. feed and swim with the fishes in snake island. visit a coral reef nearby. skip to starfish island for, what else, but starfish. walk the sunbar. we saw nemo (the clown fish) and patrick (the starfish) don't forget your snorkel, sunblock, and godiva safe sea lotion.

4. eat at vietville. the best beef stew noodles in the philippines (and very cheap). the fresh lumpia is also great. look for thelma, very good service.

5. go on a day trip to the underground river. the land travel is very bumpy but the boatride from sabang to the underground river has wonderful views of mountains. the lagoon outside is spectacular. you must insist on riding with mang jun as the boatman, he is simply the best boatman/comic there is. warning: do not swim in sabang beach. i was attacked by sand fleas there years ago. warning again: be careful of the monitor lizard roaming freely. shopping tip: there is a small store there where an old manang sells handmade celphone holders and bags out of native (i dont know the material). she sells it dirt cheap so don't make tawad. it's also good to help the local economy especially those who make the products themselves.

6.go to kamarikutan kape at galeri for the best palawan chicken and tuyo (yup, they go together). stay awhile. savor the art and the surrounding. have a chat with the nanay ng bayan, "nanay dayang." and you must meet palawan's version of darna, dinggot. and the very handsome young man and tennis champion named anito. these three are my family in puerto. they make sure i am safe and well-fed in puerto. i love these three happy people.

7. go to market mall for the cheapest pearls. stall 70-71 (or 71-72) look for ilonggas dindin and maricel. converse in Ilonggo, "Tagpila ini?" (*how much?)

8. if you have time, visit san vicente. geann (the mayor's wife) of caparii resort is the most gracious host. you'll have the beach all to yourself.

9. stop at roxas in the corner vietnamese carinderia for the "dreaded shrimp." yes, you read right- "dreaded." i got so scared of it, i ordered and ate it all because it might eat me.

10. eat at avegon for the best bulalo your body is allowed eat. don't worry, there are 2 mercury drugstores nearby.

11. before leaving puerto, don't forget to buy cheap crabs and lobsters at the market to take home. try lamayo, it's very good. they'll pack it so you can bring it on the plane.

12. and the best way to enjoy palawan is to go with your partner, you can hold hands while walking into the sunset. This is my second trip with Pangga and she had a great time snorkeling with the fishes. I enjoyed the trip immensely because of i was with her.

I'M BACK!

2007-10-10T22:06:00.000+08:00

Finally, after 5 countries (The Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, France, Spain), 12 european cities (Amsterdam (twice), Antwerp, Naples, Rome, Florence, Pisa, Venice, Milan (twice), Paris, St. Denis, Barcelona, Madrid), 7 plane rides (KLM, Easyjet, Vueling), 7 train rides (amsterdam to belgium and back, and all around Italy), hundreds of miles, I am soooo glad to be home.

We missed our baby dogs terribly and our basketball boys. We missed the UP Pep Squad winning the CDC and the judo and swim teams winning the gold medals. We miss our bed, our room, our house, our garden. and of course we missed our friends.

saka na ang pictures at videos ha, jetlag pa. kaya nga gising pa ako ng 2am manila time kasi 8pm pa lang ng gabi sa mga bansang pinanggalinangan namin.

see you all soon.

SAMABABITSMADERPAKERSHET - Carlo Vergara ang galing mo!

2007-08-16T12:29:00.000+08:00

Ano ba yan? ilang beses ko ng binasa ang Zsa Zsa Zaturnnah ay tawa pa din ako ng tawa. Para akong tanga dito sa office of the vice-chancellor for community affairs dahil dito ko scan yung Zsazsa para sa aking Euroseas powerpoint presentation, pero eto ako tawa ng tawa mag-isa.

"BWAKANANGINANG BUWISET NA MALDITANG BURIRAK NA YAN" hahahaha

CARLO VERGARA, you are a genius! kuhang kuha mo ang pop culture. IDOL!

oh well, the Zsazsa Zee Moveeh is another matter. I was forced to watch it 2 nights ago, SAMABABITSMADERPAKERSHET that was one bad movie. Way to go, Joel Lamangan, you have successfully ruined a great story by Carlo Vergara. More on my review for the film later.

Resto in the Metro: Galileo Enoteca

2007-07-03T07:29:00.000+08:00

My friends know that I love good food, and I also love to eat out. So, I've decided to blog about my favorite restos in the metro. and the honor of my first post foes to GALILEO ENOTECA!

My bestfriend Jokla has been recommending this place so many times before. and finally, last May, we all trooped to Galileo Enoteca to find out what the buzz was all about. and WE LOVE IT!

great cozy ambiance, great service (look for jhammy or JB), great food, cheap good sweet red wine, wonderful cheese platter, great pasta.

Set Menu A is i think cheese and cold cuts.

Set Menu B is chicken with capers and eggplant parmigiana. (i forgot how much, i think 350 or 400 din)

Set Menu C consist of pasta of the day, soup, wine, cheese, cold cuts, coffee (and freebies you can ask for like hot choco). P 400.00++ per set, super worth it.

They don't have a staple pasta menu, it depends on what the pasta of the day is. We've tried the anchovies with capers (LOVE IT) and the carbonara (LOVE IT as well). The bacon and mushroom and italian corned beef pasta is ok too.

first time i came here i got a lot of freebies like: free glass of wine, free plate of cheese, free 2 hot chocos. don't forget t order the hot choco, it is one of the best i've tasted.

The sweet red wine is very cheap also, 300 per bottle only. and for cheap wine, their house wine is really good.

I love their cheese platter especially the Asiago. the cold cuts, im not really fond of, so no comment.

the place is designed like a wine cellar (enoteca in italian) and each space/table feels like an exclusive space.

If you are craving for great pasta, cheese and wine, go to Galileo Enoteca. I've been here about 6-7 times after, and the service and quality of food is consistent.It is for me one of the best Italian resto in the metro (the other being Bellini's). It will put the cheap bad pseudo-italian restos like a veneto and napoli to shame.

oh, don't forget to reserve. 534-4633/532-0482

Yehey! Got the Doctoral Studies Grant

2007-06-15T08:27:00.000+08:00

Just got word that my Doctoral Studies Grant was approved by UP System. This means I have 1 year off again and extra money from U.P.

Yehey! I PASSED my PhD comprehensive exams

2007-06-04T09:59:00.000+08:00

I PASSED all my PhD comprehensive exams

I want to thank my Maroon Maniacs and peyups friends (batchoy, ashchi, astro_boy, prinsesa_ako, blue_spirit, vodkamartini, bingkatorts, and all) for their encouragement through this process.

salamat sa peyups community because it has kept me sane during the insane studying i went through. peyups was a large part of the process, since i spent most of my non-studying time on peyups :laugh:

thanks to great friends Jo, Ellen, Ai, Roselle, Fama, Patrick, Daki, Maydats, Shine and all my ates at the CAL Dean's office. Special thanks to Pearl, Art, Bing, Libeth and Marlon - your company kept me sane. :)

SALAMAT SA LAHAT!

salamat kay Lord at sa lahat ng guardian angels ko especially Archangel Michael who did not abondon me.

salamat sa aking baby boys beryl, cocoy and dale who kept telling me huwag na akong mag-aral at maglakwatsa na lang kami dahil wala namang nagagawang mabuti ang pag-aaral, the 3 biggest BI in my life. :laugh:

special thanks kay Pangga who was with me all throughout the process, who bore the brunt of my frustrations and insecurities, whose healing hands cured my aching body, and loving touch and warm embrace kept me alive. I LOVE YOU.

and now, on to the dissertation. :)

On to Naples with Zsazsa Zaturnnah

2007-04-02T00:37:00.000+08:00

Constructing gender: Zsazsa Zaturnnah – from Graphic Novel to Stage to Film
Eloisa May P. Hernandez

Carlo Vergara’s Ang Kagila-gilalas Na Pakikipagsapalaran Ni Zsazsa Zaturnnah (The Spectacular Adventures of Zsazsa Zaturnnah) is about an effeminate male homosexual hairdresser named Ada who transforms into Zsazsa Zaturnnah, a sexy and strong heroine, by swallowing a mysterious stone that fell from the heavens. Initially self-published as a 2-part graphic novel published in 2002, it won the Manila Critics’ Circle National Book Award in 2003. In early 2006, Tanghalang Pilipino, one of the country’s leading theater groups, staged Zsazsa Zaturnnah Ze Muzikal directed by Chris Millado. It represented the Philippines in the International Theater Festival in June 2006. In December 2006, Zsazsa Zaturnnah Ze Moveeh, directed by Joel Lamangan, opened in the 2006 Metro Manila Film Festival. Comedian Giselle Sanchez developed a monologue about Zsazsa. Zsazsa Zaturnnah has made the transformation from graphic novel to musical theater to film and to stand up comedy.

The paper will explore how Zsazsa Zaturnnah construct gender and gender relations in the Philippines? How does its transformation as a literary text into visual texts (on film and stage) affect gender constructs in the Philippines? Are there changes in the characterization of Zsazsa that ultimately change gender constructs? Are there changes in the narrative structure of Zsazsa from the graphic novel to stage to film? The paper will not only focus on the transformation of literary texts into visual texts but also train its attention on how gender is constructed through these different genres.

My abstract for the 5th EUROSEAS Conference in Naples, Italy, September 12 to 15, 2007 was accepted! So, Zsazsa Zaturnnah and I will fly to Napoli! And of course, my pangga will join me. We will go to Antwerp, Belgium first for a chemistry conference, then to Naples. Then go to Rome, Florence, Venice, Milan, Pairs, Madrid and Barcelona! Excited!

short comments on BABEL

2007-03-23T11:12:00.000+08:00

as a film, i appreciate it, maayos ang pagkagawa. magaling ang acting. madaming gustong sabihin including how our globalized world is actually making our worlds smaller and more difficult to move in with borders, air space, etc. how fate and human agency clash every single day/moment.

cate blanchett reminds me of kristin scott thomas in the english patient, so helpless, yet still dignified.

loved the disco scene and the pissing/kissing scene.

inarritu's amores perros had a more raw and visceral feel than babel.

gael garcia bernal. :) the performances of rinku kikuchi and adriana barraza are tour de force.

pero as a control freak, i felt helpless for the characters and their situations. i don't like films that put its characters in such hopeless situations.but it's just me.

YCC citation for Best Performer - Maricel Soriano for Inang Yaya

2007-03-23T01:46:00.000+08:00

Mga Nominado para sa Pinakamahusay sa Pagganap

Cherry Pie Picache – Kaleldo
Binangga at binago ni Cherry Pie Pichace sa pelikulang Kaleldo ang talamak, gasgas at maling representasyon ng lesbiana sa pelikulang Pilipino. Mahusay at matalino ang pagbuo ni Picache sa karakter ni Jess bilang lesbiana – malakas ngunit sensitibo, palaban ngunit mapagmahal, at matapang ngunit mapagkalinga. Dahil sa masusing pagganap ni Picache, buo ang karakter ni Jess bilang tao, babae, anak, kapatid, at partner. Isa ito sa pinakabuo at makataong representasyon ng isang lesbiana sa pelikulang Pilipino.

Buong Cast – Inang Yaya
Maingat na binuo ng mga aktor sa Inang Yaya ang kanilang mga karakter kaya naman kumikilos sila hindi ayon sa mga gasgas na karakterisasyon sa melodrama kundi ayon sa maingat at matalinong paghimay sa iba’t-ibang tensiyong kinakaharap ng mga kanilang mga karakter.

Balanse at buo ang pagganap ni Lisa Lorena bilang Lola Toots na sa simula’y mapangutya at mapag-bintang ay siya pang magiging “confidante” ni Ruby at makakatuklas sa kabutihan ng puso nito.

Ang papel na Louise at Ruby ay mahusay at matalinong naganpanan nina Erika Oreta at Tala Santos. Sa murang edad, nailarawan nila na kahit bata ay may kakayahang umarok at umunawa, mag-isip at dumama, magpasiya at kumilos tungkol sa iba’t ibang hamon ng kanilang munting mundo.

Ganap din ang karakterisasyon ng ibang mga nagsiganap tulad nila Zoren Logaspi at Sunshine Cruz bilang mga kareristang magulang ni Louise at Marita Zobel bilang nanay ni Norma.

(ang ilang bahagi dito ay mula sa sinulat ni Leo Zafra)

Maricel Soriano – Inang Yaya
Sa taong 2006, ang pinakamahusay na pagganap ay iginagawad kay Ms. Maricel Soriano sa kanyang pagganap bilang Inang Yaya. Pinamalas ni Ms. Soriano ang matalino at sensitibong pag-unawa at paghimay sa karakter ni Norma bilang yaya sa maluhong Louise at ina sa nangungulilang anak na si Ruby. Ramdam natin na sagad sa pagod ngunit puno ng pagmamahal si Norma habang pilit niyang hinahati ang pagmamahal na ito sa dalawang bata na para sa kanya ay pareho niyang anak. Batid tayo sa pagkimkim niya ng pighati sa pagkamatay ng kanyang ina. Saksi tayo sa pagninilay ni Norma sa desisyon kung sasama abroad sa piling ng alaga o mananatili sa sariling bansa at sa piling ng anak. Sapat at akma ang mga emosyon, damdamin at karanasan na ipinakita ni Ms Soriano sa pagtalakay niya sa karakter. Sensitibo, matalino, maingat, at may dangal ang ipinamalas na pagganap ni Maricel Soriano bilang Inang Yaya.

Hindi na iba si Ms. Maricel Soriano sa Young Critics Circle Film Desk. Dalawang beses na siyang nagawaran ng Pinakamahusay sa Pagganap – una, para sa Ikaw Pa Lang ang Minahal noong 1992, at pangalawa ay para sa Vampira noong 1994. Ilang taon na din ang nakalipas, at masaya ang YCC Film Desk na makapiling muli si Ms. Maricel Soriano para gawaran ng kanyang ikatlong Pinakamahusay sa Pagganap para sa pelikulang Inang Yaya.

Inang Yaya blog: http://inangyaya.blogspot.com/

shameless plug for HOMEBOUND

2007-03-21T15:26:00.000+08:00

HOMEBOUND: 19th century Women Visual Artists in the Philippines by Eloisa May P. Hernandez

buy a copy of my book at the U.P. Press and other bookstores. P300 yata. it's on second printing already. may libreng kiss! :)

Some random thoughts about Rome and Juliet

2007-03-21T14:15:00.000+08:00

halatang baguhan ang director. handling ng elements ay amatuerish pa. plus, attempt at poetry hindi masyado swabe. minsan out of place na sa mga eksena. parang ginamit na ang poetry as some sort of background music na nasobrahan. of course, yung tunog lata at peripheral sounds na panget ay dala na din ng paggamit ng natural sound sa pelikula at minimal dubbing.

sa screenplay naman, wala matinong resolution dun sa family problem ng isa e. deus ex machina - masagasaan siya at ma-coma para ma-resolve. walang totoong understanding at acceptance mula sa pamilya, forced na kasi coma siya, pag tinakwil pa siya, evil na nanay. at deadma na sa nakasagasa o sa incident na iyun. ginamit lang iyon to enact a resolution at maging palatable ang ending.

hindi lang ako solved sa idea na nung nagmahalan ang 2 babae ay sobrang daming masamang nangyari. matanggal sa trabaho, bastusin, ikahiya, mamatay ang tatay, blame sa pagkamatay ng tatay, itakwil, masagasaan, ma-coma etc etc. parang lahat na lang ng masamang pwedeng mangyari at nangyari nga. at bakit dun sa mas "mahirap" sa kanila? kay mylene dizon, ano nangyaring masama sa kanya? ano ang point? na kapag naging tomboy ka na mahirap ka ay talaga namang kulang na lang kidlatan ka? at kung maging tomboy ka na mayaman ka ay wala namang gaanong mangyayaring masama sa iyo? na-dichotomize lang masyado ang gender issue at malabong na-fuse sa issue ng class. again, directorial and sceenplay problem ito.

mylene dizon is the bright spot in this movie. Mylene gives a nuanced and sensitive performance here. she handled the character with respect and understanding. mylene dizon exudes charm and is absolutely sexy in this movie.

Kaleldo (Summer Heat) Loses Steam

2007-03-21T14:00:00.000+08:00

Sizzling summer heat loses steam in Brillante Mendoza’s Kaleldo (Kampanpangan for “summer heat”). Mendoza’s directorial skills turn arid Pampanga into a beautiful setting for a family drama hampered by a problematic screenplay. A story about the Manansala family of Guagua, Pampanga, it stars Johnny Delgado as Rudy Manansala, a woodcarver and father to three daughters: Jess, wonderfully played by Cherry Pie Picache, is the eldest daughter and a lesbian who suffers the scorn of her father; Lourdes, played by Angel Aquino, is the favored middle child who is married to a weakling of a husband, Andy (Alan Paule); and the youngest daughter, Grace, played by Juliana Palermo, who is married to a mama’s boy Conrad (Lauren Novero).

Kaleldo is a movie in three parts; each daughter’s story is prefigured by an element. The first part, Wind, is Grace’s story and how she tries but fails to integrate with her husband’s family. Fire prefigures the story of Lourdes, her failing marriage and costly indiscretion. Water, the last part of this trilogy of elements, is the story of Jess and her girlfriend Weng (Criselda Volks), and is highlighted by the death of the father and ends with Weng walking out of Jess during the father’s wake. The fourth element, Earth, is the landscape of Pampanga. The importance and purpose of these elements in the narrative is never clear. Are these just devices to divide the narrative? Or are there stereotypical characteristics of the elements that are present in the stories of each daughter? Are the daughters’ personalities akin to the elements? The screenplay is out of its element. The three parts are not woven tightly and is far from seamless; the division is more disruptive than unifying. It is safe to say that the sum of the three parts did not achieve a cinematic whole.

Kaleldo created a buzz in the public’s imagination with a lesbian, Jess, as one of its central characters. Once marginalized and close to invisible, there has been an abundance lately of lesbian representations in Philippine cinema with Joel Lamangan’s Sabel, Connie SA.Macatuno’s Rome and Juliet, Auraeus Solito’s Tuli, and Babae by Sigrid Andrea Bernardo. Though films with lesbian characters offer a deeper understanding of the woman-loving-woman relationship, some representations are problematic (Carlos Siguion Reyna’s Tatlo…Magkasalo comes to mind as one of the most). Even if these films render lesbians visible in predominantly patriarchal representations in Philippine cinema, the discourse about lesbians that these films generate leaves much to be desired. Most lesbians are represented as drunkards (Jess’ lesbian friends in Kaleldo spend most of their screen time drinking or drunk), confused, criminals, evil, violent, and spurned by men they love and so turning them into men-hating lesbians.

Most films also dichotomize lesbians into butches and femmes (for lack of more appropriate terms). The butches are depicted as very macho and patriarchal, and the femmes are depicted as very feminine and subservient. At the end of the film, the lesbians are turned straight, made to go back to the altar of heterosexuality, and married off to the next available bachelor, thereby fulfilling the heterosexual happy-ever-after plot. Kaleldo places itself in this quandary. After exposing the flawed heterosexual relationships between Lourdes and Andy and younger sister Grace and Conrad, and portraying the lesbian relationship between Jess and Weng as a stable, loving, caring, and supportive partnership between two women, it chooses to break up and destroy the lesbian relationship and marry Weng off in a church wedding. Why deny lesbian love its much-needed and deserved happy-ever-after? Why succumb to the heterosexual and patriarchal notion of relationship?

A voice-over narration feebly attempts to explain that Jess had to let go of Weng because she loves her, unlike the kind of love her strict father had for them that left her scarred. Whatever happened to fighting for one’s love? Where is redemption here? Where is empowerment? Instead of liberating Jess from the scarring and stifling patriarchal love of her father, she succumbs and is defeated by it.

Brillante Mendoza, winner of last year’s Young Critics Circle Film Desk awards for his first film Masahista, creates some stunning picture-perfect scenes with sparkles of cinematographic brilliance that turns lahar-stricken Pampanga into a beautiful setting, albeit some scenes are devoid of context.

The acting is uneven and inconsistent, making it difficult for us to empathize with the characters. Johnny Delgado’s acting during his daughter’s wedding seems more lustful than loving. Angel Aquino, Alan Paule and Lauren Novero render forgettable performances. Liza Lorena is over the top. Juliana Palermo and Criselda Volks are competent.

The bright spot in this acting ensemble is Cherry Pie Picache who turns in the most subtle yet searing portrayal of a devoted and dutiful lesbian daughter that still does not command the love and respect she deserves from her father. Picache’s transformation is effective and detailed - in small quiet gestures, a painful look, a longing stare. Her characterization is intelligent and void of histrionics. Picache inhabits Jess in a convincing manner and blends with the landscape that is Pampanga. We ache as she strives for her father’s respect, acceptance, and ultimately, his love. We cringe as she is constantly berated and publicly embarrassed by her father for how she dresses. We cheer as she defends her sister from a rampaging husband with a leg of pig as a weapon. We experience her love for her girlfriend Weng with her intimate caresses. We flinch as she is slapped by her father for answering back and standing up for herself and Weng. We sense her fear as she ever so slightly recoils in the presence of her domineering and violent father. We empathize with her vulnerability as she mourns his death.

Contrary to prevalent, albeit erroneous, representations in film and other mass media where the lesbian is typecast as macho, brusque, uncouth, and abrasive, Picache’s portrayal of a lesbian is strong yet sensitive, willful yet tender and loving, and impenitent yet compassionate. Defying pervasive filmic and societal lesbian constructs, she intelligently captures the nuances of Jess’ character portraying her as a dutiful, hard-working and responsible daughter, a protective sister, and a loving partner. Picache does not characterize Jess solely as a lesbian, but more importantly, as a person. This is reminiscent of Jeanette Winterson’s musings on being a lesbian in Art Objects, “I am not a lesbian who happens to write. I am a writer who happens to love women.” Cherry Pie Picache’s Jess renders more depth and humanity into a lesbian character than most of lesbian representations in recent Philippine cinematic history.

Cherry Pie Picache is the saving grace of Kaleldo, and yet it is her character, Jess, that suffers the most tragic loss as lesbian love wilts under the sweltering heat of summer in Pampanga.

Zest and Zany Zsazsa Zaturnnah Ze Muzikal

2007-03-21T13:18:00.000+08:00

He is not faster than a speeding bullet, nor is he more powerful than a locomotive and he cannot leap tall buildings in a single bound – he becomes a she, and she is Zsazsa Zaturnnah, the Philippines newest, zaniest, and funniest superheroine. Zsazsa Zaturnnah Ze Muzikal has put back the zest in the theater scene in the Philippines.

Based on Carlo Vergara’s Manila Critics’ Circle National Book Award winning Ang Kagila-gilalas Na Pakikipagsapalaran Ni Zsazsa Zaturnnah, a 2-part graphic novel about a parlorista gay named Ada who transforms into Zsazsa Zaturnnah by swallowing a mysterious stone that fell from the heavens. Zsazsa defends her small town from a giant frog, rampaging zombies, Queen Femina Suarestellar Baroux together with her Amazonistas from Planet X, and while doing all these, she captures the heart of the handsome debonair, Dodong.
Zsazsa Zaturnnah Ze Muzikal is as zany and witty as the comic book. Once you hear the famous line “Yu get yor big prag en go hom en plant kamote, yu samababits, maderpaker shet!!”, you are definitely hooked. Zsazsa Zaturnnah Ze Muzikal is one of the best laugh you will get this year – this is the ROTL (rolling on the floor laughing), LOL (laughing out loud), and DDF (drop dead funny) play of the year.

Eula Valdez is perfect as Zsazsa Zaturnnah - her strong singing and speaking voice, sexy body, irresistible lips, and competent acting brings Zsazsa Zaturnnah to life. Her arch enemy Queen Femina Suarestellar Baroux is played with less zest and energy by Agot Isidro. Isidro often sounds like she is losing gas and oxygen while singing. Tuxqs Rutaqio’s Ada, though competent, is eclipsed by the delightful performance of Ricci Chan as Didi, Ada’s best friend and parlor assistant. Chan’s Didi emerges as the unexpected star of Ze Muzikal, with her laugh out loud, drop dead funny lines delivered in sometimes deadpan manner and perfectly timed adlibs, almost stealing the show from Zsazsa and Ada. Arnold Reyes as Dodong has the perfunctory sexy body complete with noodles for abs but his singing voice is weak and his characterization bland. Wilma Doesnt, Deeda Barretto, Mayen Estañero and Tess Jamias are all fabulous as Amazonistas Dina B., Vilma S., Sharon C., and Nora A. Mia Bolanos is hilarious as Aling Whitney.

Directed by theater veteran Chris Millado, Ze Muzikal is held together by the music of Vince de Jesus and the adaptation of Chris Martinez. Clearly, they wanted to stay true to Vergara’s graphic novel but still managed to effectively update the lines to respond to present day situations, but the Ze Muzikal proves too long for comfort with too many songs as fillers that do not really move the story.

Thankfully, Carlo Vergara’s oeuvre remains intact and complete with the “Pagoda Cold Wave Motion Gun” and “Transmorphication Execute.” These famous lines and the unforgettable characters certainly make Zsazsa Zaturnnah Ze Muzikal one of the best and delightful plays of the year.

Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros/The Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros

2007-02-21T14:18:00.000+08:00

Ang Pagdadalaga Ni Maximo Oliveros (The Blossoming Of Maximo Oliveros)
Eloisa May P. Hernandez
For ICON Magazine

Growing up as a preteen in a slum area in one of the more under-privileged communes in Metro Manila with a family of criminals sounds like a typical story. Spice it up with a love angle between a young boy, Maxi, and a handsome rookie policeman, Victor. Maxi’s brother commits a murder; Maxi tries to cover up for his brother, whom Victor already suspects of the crime, leaving Maxi torn between filial piety and the throbs of first love in his young heart.

Directed by Aureus Solito (his first full-length feature), written by Michiko Yamamoto (who also wrote Magnifico), and produced by Raymond Lee, it features Nathan Lopez in the title role. Since its premiere in the 1st Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival 2005 in Manila where it won the Special Jury Prize, Best Production Design and Special Citation for Performance (for Nathan Lopez), Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros has won Best Picture in the First Films World Competition of the Montreal World Film Festival 2005, participated in imagiNATIVE Film Festival in Toronto, Canada, and will compete in the World Cinema Feature Competition of the Sundance Film Festival on January 19-29, 2006 (a first for any Filipino filmmaker).

The film starts out promising. Though, technically, sound still is a problem for Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros, just like the other digital films in Cinemalaya. The production design is subdued and subtle - a poster of Romeo and Juliet made by Brenda Fajardo prefigures the doomed love affair of Maxi and Victor. Nap Jamir’s cinematography is competent considering the lighting conditions. Sampaloc, Solito’s old neighborhood, offers a good background to Maxi’s crime-filled world.

Albeit some boring scenes, the film has touching moments balanced with witty lines. The scene of young boys from the neighborhood parading around in gowns fully made up evoke memories of beauty contests enacted in countless living rooms, though I personally think the scene is not essential. Nathan Lopez’s portrayal of Maxi is believable but his sashaying tends to be distracting. It also boasts of competent acting from dependable Soliman Cruz as Maxi’s father with Ping Medina and Neil Ryan Sese as Maxi’s two older brothers.

The film hardly offers new insights on gender issues in the Philippines, though there are attempts. For instance, Maxi’s very macho father and brothers do not beat him up; but rather treat Maxi lovingly. Maxi’s brothers even beat up a couple of neighborhood thugs who harassed him. Maxi’s family seems to counter the stereotype of gay-bashing fathers and brothers. In return, Maxi serves them dutifully by cooking, cleaning, sewing, washing clothes, and tending the house – practically fashioning himself as the “woman” of the house, equating the roles of women and gays in Philippine society. It reinforces the stereotypical and patriarchal notion that the role of women, and now even gays, in society is to serve the men in their lives.

Unpunished crimes (the murder committed by his brother and the murder of his father) served as impetus to the blossoming of Maxi. Both murders spiral the film into its denouement – the loss of innocence of his paramour, Victor, and Maxi’s own blossoming into a life filled with hope amidst a world full of crime.

Back to the Closet in Brokeback Mountain

2007-01-19T12:43:00.000+08:00

One of the most hyped and talked about films these days, Brokeback Mountain elicits varied reactions. Most heap praises for its twist on the old Western genre, some express dismay over the ending, others were surprised that it did not take home the Best Picture Award in the recently concluded 78th Annual Academy Awards. Based on the short story by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Annie Proulx, it is set against the mountains and plains of Wyoming and Texas in the 1960s.

Brokeback Mountain features two of Hollywood’s sexiest and most sought after actors - Jake Gyllenhaal (of The Day After Tomorrow and Jarhead) plays Jack Twist, a rodeo cowboy wanna-be, and Heath Ledger (of A Knight’s Tale and Casanova) plays Ennis del Mar, a quiet and reserved ranch-hand. Though touted as a “gay cowboy movie,” Jack and Ennis proclaim they are not “queers” and they take care of sheep, not cows. While tending the herd of sheep in Brokeback Mountain, the Jack and Ennis strike a friendship that turns into a life long affection.

After their summer in Brokeback Mountain, both men return to the usual grind of their lives – Jack marries the rich and feisty rodeo queen Lureen Newsome (played by Princess Diary’s Anne Hathaway) and Ennis marries the reserved and homely Alma (played by Dawson’s Creek’s Michelle Williams). As both men struggle to live their “normal” lives with their respective wives and children, they continue to see each other in their “fishing” trysts reminiscent of the film Same Time Next Year (Ellen Burstyn and Alan Alda’s 1978 classic). The two men’s love story tragically ends in heartbreak with Jack’s death.

The film took a long time to develop its narrative – at times plunging viewers into boredom. But the film is salvaged by a formidable ensemble of performers. Michelle Williams strong performance is worthy of an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress – haunting, controlled, desperate and poignant. Heath Ledger’s portrayal as Ennis is most mature and subdued, deserving of the Academy Awards nomination for Best Actor. Jake Gyllenhaal’s acting shows his range, at times childlike then shifts to desperate. He does not merely rely on his doe eyes to elicit emotions – when he is begging for Ennis to spend more time, he is irresistible. Barely noticeable is Anne Hathaway who exhibits spunk and zest at first but quickly faded into the background. Rodrigo Prieto’s (of Amores Perros and 21 Grams) cinematography wonderfully captures the vista of Wyoming and Texas.

Ang Lee’s direction is restrained and calculated showing just enough fervor between the two men, their desperation of being apart, their painful longing to be together. But Ang Lee (of The Hulk, Eat Drink Man Woman and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) does not give us enough to go on with – not enough intimate moments to make us believe that their feelings for each other are growing deeper and not enough passion (except for their first night together and the famous kiss) to make sparks fly. While we are witnesses to their first intimate encounter, we did not witness furtive glances or special touches between Jack and Ennis before that could lead us and them to that moment. It makes it difficult to fall in love with the characters, to feel what they felt, and to long for what they longed for.

Brokeback Mountain is a film afraid to come out – it failed to show us the depths of emotions between the two men and the heights of their passion. It is also worthy to note that for supposed a gay movie, it is the women who bare their clothes in several frontal scenes and the sex scenes are mostly heterosexual in nature - maybe to appease to the dominant white, straight, male movie audience

In an unimaginative last scene, Ang Lee brings us back to the closet - figuratively and literally, with Ennis crying with Jack’s shirt, and then stuffing it back to his closet. Disappointingly and ultimately, Brokeback Mountain is a closeted movie.

*I wrote this for ICON magazine's April to May issue but they did not print it, hmmm. Guess they did not agree with me. Oh well.

Transsexual Transformation in Transamerica

2006-12-21T14:25:00.000+08:00

Step aside Thelma and Louis, pull over Sideways, make way for Transamerica - one of the most bizarre yet compelling road trips in recent cinematic history: a man driving to an operation to make him a woman, a father/mother driving his son to become a porn star, a son riding with his father/mother he does not know, a son unwittingly hitting on his father/mother.

Wonderful Felicity Huffman, of Desperate Housewives fame, plays a pre-operation male-to-female transsexual Sabrina “Bree” Osbourne (also known as Stanley). Bree’s preparation for the final stages of her physical transformation is encumbered by the discovery of a son from a previous heterosexual encounter. Toby (played by Kevin Zegers) is in jail and New York authorities call his father, Stanley/Bree, to bail him out. Bree’s therapist withholds the written permission for the sex-change operation unless Bree resolves the situation with her newly discovered son. Bree heads to New York and is mistaken by Toby as a Christian missionary. Both decide to take a road trip back to Los Angeles, Bree to have her operation, Toby to pursue his dreams of being a superstar in the porn film industry. Their road trip is full of twists and turns – a scheming hitchhiker who stole their car, a kind-hearted cowboy of Native American descent who fell for Bree, an accidental and revealing penis exposure, dysfunctional parents becaming dysfunctional grandparents, a sibling rivalry turned sister act, and a heart wrenching confession of a father turned mother to a surprised and confused son.

The heart and soul of Transamerica is undoubtedly Felicity Huffman who should have brought home the Best Actress trophy from the 78th Annual Academy Awards. Huffman’s physical transformation, vocal scoring, subtle yet powerful acting coupled with unmistakable compassion for the character elevate her performance to new heights.

Though the film does have its pitfalls and contrived scenes such as the unnecessary stopover in a house full of pre-op and post op transsexuals, Duncan Tucker’s first film proffers a sensitive but not mushy, funny but not degrading, informative but not preachy story about a woman born in a man’s body. As we take a ride with Bree and her transformation, Transamerica hopes to transcend intolerance and ignorance towards understanding transsexuals.

Minsan Pa: The Camera Obscured and Luna’s Vision

2006-03-21T14:38:00.000+08:00

At the heart of the film Minsan Pa is a camera, a repository of visions, in the realms of real and symbolic, of Luna (Ara Mina): her past, present, and potentially her future.

Filmed entirely in Cebu, it stars Jomari Yllana as Jerry, a tour guide to the “Queen City of the South” for local and foreign, mostly Japanese, tourists. He sells not only the sites and sounds of Cebu, but also pimps the women and eventually prostitutes himself. He sustains his role as the patriarch of the family through commissions and tips, and has mastered the art of bartering favors. There is goodness in Jerry as he sacrifices his own needs and wants for his mother and two siblings. But there is no such thing as a free lunch for him; everything has a price, including how much he helped his younger brother. Jerry, the tour guide, knows the landscapes of Cebu but is misguided in the landscapes of the heart.

Luna is a pre-school teacher who joined one of Jerry’s tours and is apparently running away from her philandering boyfriend, Alex. The whole trip, she holds her camera almost all the time, like a security blanket, ready to shoot (and even used it to shut up an irritating boy). Alex follows her to Cebu to woo her. On a boating trip, the camera accidentally falls off the boat (which could have been avoided if she had the good sense to put the strap around her neck). Alex proposes marriage but reneges on his marriage proposal as he is blinded, physically and emotionally. Luna goes back to Cebu and, with the help of Jerry, goes on a mission to recover the camera.

Jerry’s affection for Luna grows as he misinterprets Luna’s trip as a sign of reciprocal affection. Thinking that Luna is weakened when Alex left her, Jerry professes love and protection to Luna. Sadly, for Jerry, his love is unrequited. He is weakened by his inability to give, to help, and to love without expecting anything in return. His selfish notions about love blind him.

To be photographed is to bear witness to one’s presence, as Pierre Bourdieu posited. Luna photographs Alex, to affirm his presence in her life, to affirm a time of happiness, as Luna’s presence in Alex’s life is also affirmed. The camera is a witness of, and an affirmation, of Luna’s visions of happiness and the potentials of a future. As the camera is symbolically obscured underneath the deep dark sea, the vision grows dim. The loss of Alex’s vision is symbolic of his loss of power and the ability to gaze. Alex thinks that his blindness weakens him, and he doubts Luna’s love for him. For Luna, the recovery of the camera, and the images of their happiness it contains, is evidence that they shared a past and have a chance for a future.

Luna’s strength shines through the movie despite the very macho Jerry who thinks she is a damsel-in-distress to be saved. She who stands at the door of the hotel, deciding whether to invite Jerry to dinner, or not; she who has the strength to repel the advances of Jerry. It is the same strength that remains steadfast in her vision of a life with Alex, with or without his sight. It is Luna who holds the camera; the woman is the bearer of the gaze.

Luna’s name (moon as light source, photography as “light writing”) bears her vision: to shed light on two blind and weak men. Luna sheds light on the obscured goodness in Jerry’s heart blinded by selfishness. Her love shines bright through the blinded heart of Alex. It is Luna who enables the two men to regain a vision of themselves, and inevitably, to “see” again.

Defying the laws of probability and even of possibility that the camera and the film will survive the ravages of the sea, it is the audience, who will behold the visions of Luna - images etched on the silver coated negative, projected on the silver screen of the cinema house at the end of the film. In Minsan Pa, cinema revisits its predecessor and pays homage to the camera (and the camera obscura) as it embarks on a journey of enlightenment, on a fulfillment of a woman’s vision, of a truth it wanted to reveal: what is essential is invisible to the eye.

(Appeared in Young Critics Circle Film Desk’s Sine-Sipat: Recasting Roles and Images-Stars, Awards and Criticism for 2004, March 2005.)

Angels in America

2006-03-21T14:26:00.000+08:00

It was a cold, rainy night in 1995; I was feverishly watching Monique Wilson in a Philippine theater production of Tony Kushner’s Angels in America: Millennium Approaches, the 1st part of a 2-part, 6-hour epic. Angels in America is set in 1980’s America as it deals with living, and ultimately dying, with AIDS. The story revolves around Prior and Louis, a gay couple torn apart due to AIDS, Louis’ cowardice and Prior’s hallucinations. They are surrounded by friends, lovers, bosses, and families whose lives are intertwined more than they know or would like them to be. I was captivated for three hours and I vowed to come back the week after for next 3-hour installment. But, alas, my bronchopneumonia got the better of me and I, instead, languished in bed wondering what happened to Louis, Prior, and the rest the Angels in America.

After a decade of wondering and waiting, I would like to thank HBO for finally completing my Angels in America experience. HBO produced Angels in America in 2003 with Mike Nichols at the helm with a dream cast including the triumvirate of Al Pacino (playing Roy Cohn, a powerful homophobic gay lawyer), Meryl Streep (playing multiple roles as a mother, a ghost, and a surprise unrecognizable character), and Emma Thompson (as an angel and a nurse). This marks Pacino’s first foray on the television and the first time Streep and Pacino work together. My 10 years of waiting finally ended on December 1 and 2 as HBO aired the Philippine cable television premier of Angels in America: Millennium Approaches and Perestroika.

Millennium Approaches, though, was a bit of a disappointment as it rambles aimlessly through prophetic pronouncements, AIDS-induced hallucinations, middle-class depression, and closet gay Republican nightmares. Uneven, uninspired, incoherent and confused, it badly needs an editor. Bordering on boring, it wallows in its own decadence and excesses. Angels in America: Millennium Approaches, at its worst, plunges to the depths of narrative purgatory. Part I is truly a test of patience.

But I suggest you sit through it faithfully. For the faithful shall be rewarded with the full force of Perestroika, the 2nd installment, packed with the full might of Tony Kushner’s pen, Mike Nichol’s deft directorial touch, Pacino’s last tremors and gasps, Streep’s subtle yet seamless character transformations, and Thompson’s angelic apparitions. The less popular but equally brilliant actors such as Mary Louise Parker (as Harper, depressive wife of Joe Pitt), Justin Kirk (as Prior Walter, a young man dying of AIDS and proclaimed as a prophet), Ben Shenkman (as Louis Ironson, a guilt-ridden Jewish gay guy), Jeffrey Wright (as Belize, a flamboyant drag queen yet compassionate nurse to Roy Cohn), and Patrick Wilson (as Joe Pitt, a gay Mormon Republican Mr. Clean reincarnate and husband to Harper), do not let the triumvirate of Pacino, Streep and Thompson eclipse and overpower them. All the characters shine brightly in Perestroika, each one of them getting the compassion and closure they needed and deserved. Perestroika makes me forgive, and unfortunately, forget Millennium Approaches. Perestroika is engaging, thought-provoking, intense, and totally captivating.

Angels in America: Perestroika is a riveting, exhilarating and unforgettable cinematic experience on television. Like the angels, it soars to the heights of narrative redemption.

The Hero in Let The Love Begin

2006-03-21T14:00:00.000+08:00

On the surface, Let the Love Begin appears as a run of the mill romance movie. A pretty actress and a handsome actor comprise the love team in a typical rich girl-poor boy story. There are the staple accoutrements of the genre: comic sidekicks for friends, a scheming and not so charming prince pretender, a popular song for the movie’s title, and the perfunctory celebratory scene in the end complete with raindrops falling on the protagonists’ heads. However, despite this rather stereotypical mix of plot, characters, and events, the film succeeds in that it provides a rather refreshing take on what it means to be a “hero” or “savior” in this day and age.

Our hero in the story has a mission – to win the heart of the girl he loves. He tries to do this by helping her out with schoolwork, specifically by leaving finished homework under a school chair they share, she by day and he by night. The girl is enamored with her “savior,” yet his true identity remains obfuscated from her. He is hesitant to reveal himself and his intentions, so he takes his time until events overcome him: she leaves for the United States after graduation. A few years transpire and they meet again; she is now a corporate executive, while he as a janitor in her office. A friendship develops between them, yet she remains ignorant of the fact that the janitor used to be her “savior.” In a moment of desperation, she prays for her “savior” to save her again. And once again, our hero comes to save the day. Finally, our hero decides to divulge his identity and intentions to his beloved, but a prince charming pretender steals the glory. As our hero’s beloved finally recognizes that the pretender is not heroic, she realizes that she loves the janitor. She sees in the janitor the heart of a true hero, ultimately realizing that the janitor is her “savior.” With this realization, our hero’s identity and intentions are finally revealed.

Working within the confines of the romance genre, the film triumphs in the characterization of our young hero. He is a typical teen-ager with teen-age concerns and angst, coupled with the fact that he is poor and orphaned. Yet, he is intelligent enough not to allow his poverty to deprive him of a good education. What he lacks in material things, he makes up for in kindness in that he is always willing to help, albeit anonymously, his beloved. His heroism shines in his willingness to sacrifice his chance to study in a top university abroad for his grandmother. He is a diligent, hardworking young man who, at the same time, is a conscientious and intelligent student. His heroism is in his every day life—in his capacity to overcome the temptations and vagaries of youth, in his efforts to educate himself out of poverty. No, he may not be our typical knight in shining armor on a white steed; but his intelligence and kind heart shine through, making him a knight in an armor all his own.

He is not faster than a speeding bullet, nor is he more powerful than a locomotive and he cannot leap tall buildings in a single bound – he is as human as he can get but is an everyday hero, a savior, who fulfills his mission set at the beginning of the film. Let the Love Begin ends with what most of us yearn for in life – a happy ever after.

(Appeared in Young Critics Circle Film Desk’s Sine-Sipat: Recasting Roles and Images-Stars, Awards and Criticism for 2005, March 2006)

Malikmata and the search for justice

2005-03-21T14:35:00.000+08:00

Billed as a horror thriller film, Jose Javier Reyes’s Malikmata is more than meets the eye. At the heart of movie is the search for justice. Justice is supposed to be blind. However, in Malikmata, the poor and marginalized look for justice elsewhere. It is found in the visions of a reluctant heroine.

Sarah (Rica Peralejo) is a young woman with the gift of seeing and hearing things before they happen. As a child, she sees her father’s death before it happens. A gift she inherited from her grandmother, Sarah is reluctant to use her gift (she gets a nosebleed every time she has visions) as her mother and her auntie Felicitas Joaquin (Madeleine Nicolas) tell her not to use it since it a curse and “mala-demonyo.” She perceives the gift as “labag sa Bible” and denies herself to use it.
Two women, a rich and prominent civic leader Mrs. Ellen Saavedra (played by Barbara Perez) and house helper Ditas (played by Ana Capri) are murdered. Sarah has visions of the murder but is told by her auntie to keep quiet and not to interfere with the investigation. Mrs. Saavedra’s family deals with the police in their search for the murderer so that justice can be done. However, the police investigation is focused only on the murder of the rich socialite. It is as if Ditas was not murdered or her murder did not matter. Who is seeking justice for Ditas? Justice, in Malikmata, is not for all.

To add insult to Ditas’s fatal injury, her carpenter boyfriend Rodolfo Magsilang (played by Wowie De Guzman) is accused for her and her employer’s murder. The police investigators assume that Magsilang, a poor young man trying to seek a better life abroad, was trying to steal from the rich Saavedra. In reality, Magsilang was the one robbed of the love of his life. As Saavedra’s family grieves for her in an opulent air-conditioned Funeraria Paz, Magsilang grieves alone and silently for his lost Ditas in a small decrepit rain drenched funeral parlor.

Is justice done? As a young man is accused of murder, the real murderer appears to have one-upped the inutile and one-track mind of the police investigators. Who helps the house helper seek justice? Ditas haunts Sarah to hunt for her murderer. Ditas turns to Sarah whose conscience cannot accept that an innocent young man will go to jail for a crime he did not commit, a great injustice. As Sarah is transformed, she realizes that she can use her gift to help other people. She uses her gift to help find the elusive justice for Ditas. She goes to the police to tell her about her visions but is dismissed as a “sira-ulo.” She turns to Patrick (Marvin Agustin), grandson of Mrs. Saavedra, and a group of fellow clairvoyants (the film digresses into some sort of a Spirit Questors cum Voltes V at this point) to find the real murderer.

More than a horror detective thriller, Malikmata also offers a searing commentary on the justice system in the Philippines. Narding Mojica (Ricky Davao), an estranged relative of Saavedra, criticizes the police investigators as “imbestigador na pulpol at nagdudunong-dungungan.” As he is also suspected of murder, Narding insinuates to Patrick that his grandmother’s lawyer is suspicious and that all lawyers are untrustworthy.

In Malikmata, justice is not for all. Where does the poor marginalized sector of society search for their justice? In Malikmata, they turn to the visions of a young clairvoyant. It is Ditas who continues her search for justice through Sarah. Ditas cannot rest peacefully until her real murderer is brought to justice. It is notable that it is not Mrs. Saavedra who “shows” herself to Sarah. It is Ditas, the one who feels the injustice. Malikmata is Ditas’s search for justice that eludes her. Justice for Ditas is found through the gift of Sarah’s vision. Justice is served and Sarah is transformed. A gift once reluctantly perceived now gracefully received.

(Appeared in Young Critics Circle Film Desk’s Sine-Sipat: Recasting Roles and Images-Stars, Awards and Criticism for 2003, March 2004)