BALER: a forbidden love in a time of war

Mark Meily’s war epic film, Baler, is a film based on an actual historical event in our country, “The Siege of Baler” where 57 Spanish soldiers heroically defended Baler for 337 long and gruelling days during the final moments of Spanish occupation in our country.

            Its story focuses on the love of a Spanish soldier, Celso Ressureccion, and a rebel’s daughter, Feliza Reyes. This this story is somewhat inspired by the Romeo and Juliet love story which was given a twist, a love in a time of war. Furthermore, another highlight in the story is patriotism to one’s country, courage and betrayal. Daniel Reyes, father of Feliza, somehow devoted his life to the country. The Spanish soldiers on the other hand strongly defended their country even if it means to give their own life. The Filipinos, although already knew that there is a high possibility of being defeated by the powerful Spanish soldiers, showed courage to fight for their country. On the other hand, the betrayal of a friend a co-soldier caused the tragedy that had happened to Celso.

In this film, although I’m not really a fan of Filipino movies, I can still say that it is one of the best war epic films that I have watched. The extreme long shots in the film helped in giving the audience a feel like they are flashbacked through time. The combination of medium shot and the bird’s eye view shot gave a dramatic effect to the scene where Feliza and Celso met again for the first time after the commotion. The medium shot gave emphasis to the lovers’ emotions. Furthermore, the transitions of the film are really smooth. The texts in between the transitions and the voice over at the start and end of the film helped the viewers understand more about the film.

            All of the characters in the story really gave a great performance. The ones who played as Spanish soldiers were really good in speaking Spanish. On the other hand, the role of Anne Curtis could have been portrayed by other actresses out there who have more “Pinay” features; she was a bit more “meztisa” than the normal young Filipina. But nonetheless, she still had a great job in portraying such role. Jericho Rosales was really convincing in his acting. Every scene, viewers could really see the emotions he was trying to show. On the other hand, Philip Salvador really gave a powerful performance. He could give any emotions, anger, love for the country, concern, etc.

            On the other hand, the symbols in the film that are evident are the puppy, the white flag, the cross, and the church itself. The puppy symbolizes the love of Celso and Feliza for each other. Feliza gave the puppy as a sign of love for Cleso and said to treat the dog like their own son. In the middle part of the story, the puppy was killed by Celso’s co-soldiers. This fatality somehow became the fatality of the couple’s relationship. Next is the white flag, white as we all know symbolizes peace. In the film, the white flag somehow became an instrument to have a ceasefire or when Filipinos and Spaniards send letters or messages to each other. They also used the flag to symbolize that the Spaniards finally surrendered. On the other hand, the cross symbolizes the start of war. The scene when Capt. Enrique Fossi de las Morenas, portrayed by Baron Geisler, was getting ready, the cross fell. Lastly, the church symbolized the Spaniards. We all know that the Spaniards were the ones who influenced us in Catholic religion. The Filipino rebels bombed the church where the soldiers are. This somehow symbolized that the Filipinos want the Spaniards to leave and the courage to defend our country.

            However, one of the cinematic flaws that I noticed in the film is the church. Most of the scenes were shot inside the church and one thing I noticed is that it was shot inside a studio, it wasn’t that realistic.

            To sum it all up, Baler is really a great film. It’s one of the unique movies that don’t only focus on love stories but also patriotism. It also gave a glimpse to the important historical events in the country. 

THE CRIME OF PADRE AMARO: a grave sin

The crime of Padre Amaro is a controversial movie of Carlos Carrera which is based on a novel during the 19^th century, a story about a newly ordained priest who committed a serious sin.

            The film started when a newly ordained priest, Padre Amaro, arrived in the small town of Los Reyes. Padre Amaro will serve as a protégée of the local priest, Padre Benito. Padre Benito, a ruthless political bishop happens to have an affair with a restaurant owner, Sanjuanera.

            On the other hand, another priest in the area, Padre Natalio, is under investigation for supporting a leftist group in his area. While Padre Natalio is fighting for the right of his people, Padre Benito on the other hand is building a large hospital and recuperation centre which is financed by the local drug lords in the local area.

            Meanwhile, Padre Amaro was continuously challenged by pressure, societal problems, and celibacy. Padre Amaro was infatuated to Amelia, the daughter of Sanjuanera and also teaches catechism to the children in their town. What happened to Padre Amaro and Amelia somehow became a repetition as to what had happened to Padre Benito and Sanjuanera. But as Padre Amaro committed a sin, it somehow multiplied for the reason that Amelia got pregnant and they even decided to abort the child which led to the untimely death of young Amelia.

            Seeing this movie, it somehow became an insult to the Catholic Church. That’s why it’s no surprise when I read that before this movie was released, various religious groups tried to stop the film from being screened.

            Padre Amaro himself symbolized the sin of celibacy, lust and untruthfulness. He let lust overpower him. He had a premarital sex with the sixteen-year-old Amelia and kept it as a secret. He was even the one who wanted the abortion in the first place which took the life of Amelia. And lastly, when Amelia died, he was still very irresponsible and even laid all the blame to Ruben, Amelia’s former boyfriend.

            Another thing that I noticed in the movie is when Padre Amaro dressed Amelia in a Vail. He said that Amelia was as beautiful and pure as the Virgin Mary. I find this scene a bit ironic, ironic in a sense that he compared Amelia, a sixteen-year-old girl who already engaged in premarital sex, to the Virgin Mary. Furthermore, on that said scene they were about to engage in yet another sex.

            On the other hand, Gethsemane, the girl who had schizophrenia, was the only one who witnessed how Padre Amaro and Amelia committed the sin. Yet, because of her illness, she can’t tell the truth and shout to the people how sinful the priest is. Padre Benito on the other hand also knows the truth but couldn’t say it all to people for he himself is also guilty of the same sin. He was also blackmailed by Padre Amaro. Both of them somehow symbolized the people, in reality, out there who can’t tell the truth no matter how they would want it. People like these usually face different problems that hinder them from telling the truth.

            On the latter part of the movie, when Amelia was dying, the ray of the sun somehow symbolized the death of the girl.

            As a whole, although the movie was a bit disturbing, I can say that it was still great. Films like these somehow served as an eye-opener to the reality in life. That nobody is perfect to be able to resist from sin. That even a priest could commit celibacy, lust, and even corruption.

JUANA LA LOCA: an obsession

            Mad Love or Juana la Loca is a movie based on a true to life story about love, faithfulness, infidelity, and also a glimpse on the political background of Spain during that time. This character-driven movie focuses on the life of Juana of Castile and her life after her fixed marriage.

            The story begins in a castle where the old Juana was reminiscing and longing for her late husband, Philip. The flashback begins when Juana was already travelling to meet his soon to be husband whom she never even had a glimpse on. This fixed marriage was part of their tradition as a royal family to strengthen their political bond to Flanders. On their first meeting, the two easily fell for each other because of their physical beauties. Juana, on the other hand, became more and more in love with his husband not just because of its good looks but also of its expertise in bed and also, maybe because Juana was so emotionally dependent. This love for her husband grew stronger to the point that she became obsessed with him. Unfortunately, her husband easily fell out of love to her wife and started to become unfaithful to her. Unfortunate events continued to happen to the princess, her sibling and her mother died and to make things worse, that was also the time when she caught her husband having an affair with one of her court ladies, Ines. Hence, Juana’s undeniable insanity. But eventually, Philip’s unfaithfulness to his wife somehow leads to his own death. Of all the things that Philip did to her wife, Juana’s love for Philip still prevailed and forgave his husband.

            Pilar de Ayala who portrayed the role of Juana did a great job. Through her acting, we also felt the emotions that she was trying to convey – love, jealousy, anger, and even lust. Based from what I’ve read from various sites, Pilar’s acting became a huge help in the success of the film. Truly, Pilar de Ayala deserves the best actress award that she gained in this film. On the other hand, Daniele Liotti who portrayed the role of Philip was not that convincing. When he and Pilar have scenes where they have to argue, Daniele’s emotions were not that evident. But I guess he still did a good job in making the viewers mad. Even though the year or era when the events took place was not mentioned, it was still evident that the setting of such film was during the time when Queens and Kings rule. This is all because of the wardrobe, the make ups, and the places the shoot took place.

            One of the symbolisms of the film was the long reddish hair of Ines. When Juana cut her hair short, she was really upset, maybe because long hair somehow symbolizes beauty for them. It is evident in the movie that most of the ladies, especially the queen, during that time had a long and beautiful hair. Red nipples also symbolized beauty for them, especially for men. There was a time when Juana’s friend and confidant, Elvira, said that she would paint Juana’s nipples red so that the king would be more attracted. There was also a scene where the court ladies were painting Ines’ nipples red. Black dress also symbolized grief in the movie. When Juana’s mother died, she was seen wearing black dress. Additionally, Juana was seen playing a small top which symbolized her friendship with Captain Alvar de Estuniga. It is said that they were friends since childhood. And lastly, one of the symbolisms in the movie was when Juana spread her legs whole heartedly which somehow symbolized Juana’s lust, that even if she was pregnant she still wants to have sex with her husband just to fulfil her pleasures.

            Generally speaking, the film was great and a must watch. And also, unlike others, it’s not just a typical historic movie. Its story was great for it emphasized the power of karma. Furthermore, the thing that also made it unique, this movie was based on a true story, a story that would prove to us that there are really people who would do and give everything just for the sake of love.