Hello. This is my first post to ScreenAnarchy. And so I would like to mention the film that is changing the Filipino movie landscape, Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros (The Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros). It is our very first Sundance feature film entry (Imelda was our first documentary entry), and we are quite proud of it. The Filipino film industry has been in the doldrums recently (like a lot of Southeast Asian film), and so we are hoping the resurrection will come from the indie scene. (though mainstream Filipino films are also well represented here in Twitch) So hopefully, I’ll be able to introduce you slowly to our nascent global film industry and maybe you’ll like it.
And here’s my review, I modified it a little bit to suit the international audience...
Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros
By Joey Fernandez
I was planning not to watch Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros. I was like, oh no, another movie about “baklas” (gays) in the Philippines. How cliché. But APMO, is not your typical Filipino pink film. First of all the movie is not about the expected oppression of homosexuals. In fact, the gay child, Maxie, is quite loved in his squatter colony, even by his macho criminal father and brothers. I am frankly sick and tired of movies about fathers beating the crap out of their sons because they are gay. Yes, global movie industry, there are families who love their children, straight or not.
The movie unfolds and there is a new cop on the block. As expected Maxie falls in love with him and the usual childhood crushing ensues. Though what I found more fascinating is how Michiko Yamamoto, the scriptwriter puts in the details of how a poor Filipino society functions. Jueteng is tolerated. Ending is a cottage industry. (both are illegal numbers games) Maxie with a small piece of paper and a pen can run it. Even the police play jueteng. For an outsider, there are other things that can be quite disturbing. The police captain drinks with petty thieves. The “tambays”(layabouts) show deference to the cops, but curse them after they have passed by. It is also shown it is disrespectful to turn down a drink in a squatter area, I have always wondered if this is true, but I am too chicken to find out. Heck, there was even nakedness shown in the film, that was quite jolting, ah, the joys of having digital effect to block certain things.
I also like the way the film portrays cops that are quite different from how we usually perceive them. Cops do provide order to the neighborhood and we do need them. If we didn’t have cops, the Philippines would be a lot more chaotic than we think. And it is a very difficult job. Plus contrary to popular belief, cops aren’t much richer than the common Filipino. So don’t think those mulcting street cops are raking it in. Their stainless steel jeeps kind of show how much they are really making. But most surprising of all when Maxie’s crush starts investigating Maxie’s family, they retaliate. Destroying the belief that cops are untouchable. Some cops are indeed heroic.
But there was one other character in the film that I would like to give special mention to, Paco (Maxie’s father) played by Soliman Cruz. Paco is a King Learish character (though I’ve never read King Lear). He rages against the injustices of society, when he is too proud to realize that he had actually set-up the tragedies rallied against him. And in the end, he still believes he has the stars lined up for him. When in truth…
Hmmm, so I guess what makes this movie work, is the changing of perceptions we think we know about the urban poor but aren’t necessarily true. This movie is about the shattering of myths and this is why I believe, it is well worth watching.