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Four values in Filipino drama and film by Nicanor G. Tiongson summarized
History of Philippine Cinema INTRODUCTION…
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Sometimes you really have to ask yourself; is the change worth the price?
Contemporary Filipino cinema had been asking that very question for the past few years. Realistic social dramas such as Manila Skies, The Arrival and The Mountain Thief, all portray individuals in varying states of stagnation, longing for a way out. We are told to leave our hometowns and seek our fortunes where is grass is greener. Homegrown innocence is often outmatched by urban competition. Although these films are nowhere near as graphic as the ones by fellow countryman, Brillante Mendoza, the overall effect of how reality hits the characters is startling. Ranging from the subtle innocence of The Arrival, to the devastating hopelessness of a scavenger community from The Mountain Thief, the current flux of Filipino cinematic realism can relate to everyone.
The starkest contrast of the lives between the rich and the poor cannot be denied. In Raymond Red’s, “Manila Skies”, the main character, Raul (portrayed by Raul Arellano), is sick and tired of begging for jobs. Being at the bottom of the economic ladder does not give you much room for advancement. Raymond Red’s cinematography takes you into the heart of the slums of Manila. The colors are brown and grimy. Everywhere you see in Raul’s world is filled with decay and claustrophobia. Privacy is a luxury for the privileged. The poor guy can’t even enjoy his spare time without being harassed by his slumlord. Raul tried to stay to true to his roots by doing the right thing, but it got him nowhere. We can identify with Raul’s character, thanks to the current global economic forecast. How many people do we know who are struggling to find a job but only to reach a dead end? Raul is not alone: his friend...
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... main characters from each film escaped from their hometowns and former lives. Raul left his rural home to seek better prospects in Manila. Leo leaves Manila to search for the love of his life. Julio just wants to save the only family he has left from his war torn hometown. Have they all found what they were looking for?
It should be noted there was a national election in The Philippines recently. If you look at the political fabric of the country, prominent families rule it. The country’s new president, Benigno Simeon "Noynoy" Cojuangco Aquino III, is the son of Corozon Aquino, who overthrew the Marcos’ regime in the 1980’s. Former first lady, Imelda Marcos won a seat in the Philippine congress. Such change offer little comfort to the Philippine citizens who have witnessed the political turmoil with very little improvements in their lives as a result.
Enrique’s Journey is a book that I would never read for fun. It is completely different from most of the books I have read, and intrigued me because the story was about a boy. Most of the books I have read in school are about a girl who goes through many hardships, and difficulties but I felt I could relate more to this one because it is about a boy who struggles. While I may not have been left thousands of miles away by mother so she could send money back, it was great to see what life was like on the other side. In this paper I will be talking about the micro and macro cultures of Enrique’s town Tegucigalpa. The situation and context of the characters decision making and how they adapted.
In The Pathos of Failure, Thomas Elsaesser explains the emergence of a new ideology within American filmmaking, which reflects a “fading confidence in being able to tell a story” (280) and the dissolution of psychologically relatable, goal-oriented characters. He elaborates that these unmotivated characters impede the “the affirmative-consequential model of narrative [which] is gradually being replaced by another, whose precise shape is yet to crystallize” (281). Christian Keathley outlined this shape in more detail in Trapped in the Affection Image, where he argued that shifting cultural attitudes resulted in skepticism of the usefulness of action (Keathley). In Robert Altman’s McCabe & Mrs. Miller and Roman Polanski’s Chinatown, this crisis of action is a key element of the main characters’ failure, because it stifles the execution of classical narrative and stylistic genre conventions.
Throughout one’s life, he or she will encounter an opportunity that will likely impact his or her perspective on a given situation. In Waste Land, Vik Muniz embraced the opportunity to travel to Jardim Gramacho in Brazil in hopes of making a difference with the pickers by incorporating the pickers as assistants for the art projects. While at the landfill in Rio de Janeiro, he experiences the life of the pickers which helps him to create the art that will transform the lives of the workers; these experiences allow Muniz to develop as a person (Walker). Vik Muniz’s perspective regarding the landfill and the pickers evolved from expressing pity to embracing the pickers as a group of friends.
One could easily dismiss movies as superficial, unnecessarily violent spectacles, although such a viewpoint is distressingly pessimistic and myopic. In a given year, several films are released which have long-lasting effects on large numbers of individuals. These pictures speak
Slick showed Rios the “hotspots” where life shapes these youth environments. The structure, as well as the constraints, that shape these young boys life in the neighborhood, slick points out a corner where one of his best friends got shot by a drive-by shooting. The lifestyle of these young boys is tragic.
Growing up poor in the Dominican Republic strongly influenced the choices Yunior makes later in his life. In “Aguantando” Yunior recalls about how poverty was a part of his life. Díaz writes, “We were poor. The only way we could have been poorer was to have lived in the campo or to have been Haitian immigrants…We didn’t eat rocks but we didn’t eat meat or beans either” (Díaz, 70). This depiction of Yunior’s early childhood sets the stage for what is to come. Yunior’s choices as an adolescent proves that he either chooses not to or cannot better his situation instead he turns to drugs and alcohol. Yunior’s decision to partake in drugs and alcohol shows that people in poverty have nothing to live for and just live for the next best thing.
Since the creation of films, their main goal was to appeal to mass audiences. However, once, the viewer looks past the appearance of films, the viewer realizes that the all-important purpose of films is to serve as a bridge connecting countries, cultures, and languages. This is because if you compare any two films that are from a foreign country or spoken in another language, there is the possibility of a connection between the two because of the fact that they have a universal understanding or interpretation. This is true for the French New Wave films Contempt and Breathless directed by Jean-Luc Godard, and contemporary Indian films Earth and Water directed by Deepa Mehta. All four films portray an individual’s role in society, using sound and editing.
Over the years, the Philippines has gone from being one of the richest countries in Asia to being one of the poorest. It has experienced growth and development since World War II. The current administration under President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is aiming for a more rapid growth in the coming years. In 2004, the Philippine economy grew by 6.1% surprising everyone. In 2005, the Philippine peso appreciated by 6%, the fastest in the Asian region for that year. At present, the administration is meeting its expected target growth and is continually looking positive for the future.
The Philippines has long been a country with a struggling economy. Ever since World War II, they have struggled to have a steady government and labor system. Independence did not bring any social changes to the country. The hacienda system still persists in the country, where large estates are farmed by sharecroppers. More the half the population are peasants and 20 percent of the population owns 60 percent of the land. Although the sharecropper is supposed to receive half of the harvest, most of the peasant's actual income goes to paying off debts to the landowner. Poverty and conflict strained the industrial growth of the country with many Presidents trying to fix the problems, but failing to do so. Factors that have faced the country are there is almost 9 percent unemployment, and the country suffers from the consequences of a balance of trade deficit. With the resources that the Philippines have, they are capable of pulling themselves out of the economical hole they are in and being up to par with their successful neighboring countries.
The Philippines is known to have been through a lot of corruption especially during the Marcos era. Tyranny was prevalent. Absolute power, whether is a king, president or a protector is not only alien to our idea of “democratic decision” but without fail, gets to be arbitrary despotic and corrupt. Tyranny was at its height during martial law, which began September 1972.
Over the years, many names of the candidates in government elections, both national elections and local elections, have sounded familiar. During elections, well-known surnames are never gone. On the other hand, even though these politicians who seem to have “good” platforms during the campaign period and always tell, as redundant as this may sound, “iaahon ko ang Pilipinas sa kahirapan”, there are really no significant changes in our country during the previous years until now. The things the candidates have said just remain as broken promises. Therefore, political dynasty in the Philippines should be prohibited because it adversely affects the progress of our country.
In conclusion, FM faced the truth that his term was over. Even the US was persuading him to leave the country. Finally, FM accepted the situation, and he did not wanted also to have civil war so he concede and flew to Hawaii with the help of US forces. “People were laughing, waving, and hugging each other, singing songs. It was a moment in Filipinos life that never happened before and hopefully will never happen again.” (McGeown, 2011)
A. A. The Philippines People, Poverty and Politics. New York: The New York Times. St. Martins's P, 1987. 1-225.
Perhaps Sison is missing a point in this one simple thing: that this world is not perfect, and in every aspect of the society, there would always be a weakness. It is true that a revolution could end the situation, but how many revolutions? In this state of frailty and weakness, the Philippines could no longer afford another radical revolution.
As a Cebuano, I would say that the lessons Jose Rizal showed in his novel, "Noli Me Tangere” are still noticeable in today’s generation. The book showcased abuse of power, greed and sorrow. The Filipino oppression from civil guards, friars and other government officials was visible. Stressing our latest news on media, these characteristics are still being practiced by many. Senators, congressmen and other public officials abuse the power and authority vested to them by the people and by the constitution. They steal millions or even billions of public money for their own interest. Not just officials with higher positions, even the many employees of the government tend to waste their time doing meaningless tasks rather than doing their job well.