A Social Commentary On The Movie 'In My Life'

A Social Commentary on the Movie “In My Life”

In the film “In My Life”, the story revolves around a romantic relationship between two men. Surrounded with conflict of nature of human relationship, and unwavering theme on love, it encapsulates the exquisite charm of a homosexual relationship of Filipino gay men outside their own native community, and how the Filipino family values persist even in the diaspora: mixed with different social norms across from various cultural realms. The question of sexuality can always be linked to our search for a greater sense of knowing our identity. We tend to ask ourselves about our sexual orientation: Am I really attracted to a girl? Why am I having infatuations with males? Why do I find both men and women

As the world has been entering a modernized and globalized era: modes of practice, lifestyle, as well as beliefs gradually changes the society and individuals, and vice versa. With mobility made easier across local and international area like migration, and immigration, the ubiquity of LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) community in almost every cultural sphere is made possible.

First of all, let us discuss about gay relationships and identity. It’s quite peculiar to think about homosexual romantic attachments especially if an individual is not an avid supporter of same-sex relationship/marriage, or if s/he adheres to a particular religious belief that does not permit this kind of intimate partnership. Here in Philippines, it is full of gay and lesbian individuals. We encounter them every day, some of us have even close bakla (not to demean them) friends. In fact, Philippine is considered as one of the few gay-friendly countries in the world. It is ranked at number 10 among 17 countries that majority accepts homosexuality (Inquirer.net, 2013). However, homosexual rights is not recognized by law (Medina, 2001),

Because we try to adapt the norms of a society we live in, we acquire the culture of the community. Just like in the movie, it is evident how the practice of lamay was different in America. In the Philippines, binggos and card games are practical in night/death vigil but there in America, you just peacefully sit and watched relatives and friends of the person who passed away to go in front of the coffin. This suggest that we have different approach when it comes to death and lost. Ours is a more festive with mourning type. A more noticeable feature is how our fashion changes to suit with the environment. This is an inevitable change in practice because of the temperature of the weather. However, once we go back in our native land, we tend to bring their sense of fashion with us. Hence, we love balikbayan pasalubongs like clothes because it is rather different than in our pop culture. Let’s just hope that these kind of attitudes will not be detrimental enough and cause a cultural decay which in turn will result in deterioration of the Filipino