GALAWGAW... Where's The Funny?

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Galawgaw
The most fascinating thing about this entire enterprise is that the crucial commercial element in Ishmael Bernal's Galawgaw (Regal Films, Inc.), Maricel Soriano playing Olga manages to acquit herself, well, adequately, notwithstanding the heaviest creative burden she was made to bear in her acting career. In her past films, Soriano proved herself inimitable in her capability to draw humor from even the most mediocre lines and situations given her. In fact, her success has given cause for worry among her contemporaries. No other Filipino movie star has had such a reliable record of television performances behind her, save perhaps for Nora Aunor. Soriano is ideal for the versatility once appropriated by Nida Blanca from her current gimmick perhaps  to a foray into Aunor territory or an assumption of dramatic, possibly even sexy role, with her falsies all in place of course,  Soriano seems to consist of far richer potential than anyone before her. But talent can only go so far especially in a medium as inevitably collaborative as film.

On the other hand, the film also signaled the emergence of a reliable competitor to the young-star iconography of Sharon Cuneta. Soriano may not have the same Right-wing political wealth and back-up source but  possesses the additional advantage of prettiness and sincerity. The terrible reality of this kind of image building exercise is that it doesn't matter to what end these young women have opted to devote what little talent they happen to possess, they could probably get away with taking its development for granted as Cuneta managed to do. The ideal entertainment ethic would be for us to relegate those strays to their proper positioning according to their potential contribution to Philippine culture. So in the meantime, that producers and audiences try to upgrade, consciously or otherwise their capacity for intelligence and independence, we remain at the mercy of the dictates of those who couldn't really care less about the quality of our creature comforts. In Galawgaw, we see this principle played out in the manner by which a leading man in a comedy gets handled like a leading man instead of a comedian. Nothing funny that Truman (William Martinez) does is of is own volition, unless it is to emphasize his already obvious pictorial superiority over most young actors. In the end this kind of approach becomes predictable, we get to know when the laughs are coming, indicated as they are by Soriano's presence and when we're only supposed to smile, which is when Martinez is around. And when funny bone responses are determined by factors beyond the work's inner mechanism, then the responses aren't really much fun in the end.

Directed By: Ishmael Bernal
Screenplay: Jose Carreon And Ishmael Bernal
Director Of Photography: Sergio Lobo
Music: Vanishing Tribe
Film Editor: Augusto Salvador
Production Design: Raquel Villavicencio
Produced By: Regal Films, Inc.
Release Date: March 12, 1982

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BAGONG HARI... Hail To The New King

Posted by Jojo Devera , Labels: , , , , ,

Bagong Hari

Bagong Hari (Cineventures, Inc.) is the picture by which all other films of 1986 is measured. The film is director Mario O'Hara's best work showcasing a very exciting performance by Dan Alvaro. Blessed with a good physique and strong features, his characterization of Addon, the cunning street fighter caught in a political power struggle, is memorable for its raw power. He is competent in scenes that call for bone breaking fist fights as well as scenes that require toned down emotions. Underneath a cool exterior, the sheer energy expelled by Alvaro in the film's vicious fight scenes takes the notion of acting with sincere cruelty to a new ecstatic high. In Bagong Hari, Addon becomes the symbol of social rage. He is an angry young man fighting for survival in a community that lives by the gun, where power bestows the privilege of abuse on a select few. In Addon's chaotic world, the police are no longer friends but foes in the service of corrupt officials. Addon is introduced as a dilligent riverboat worker with simple pleasures except for Isagani Labrador (Robert Arevalo), his politically well-connected father. Addon's world revolves pretty much around his environment in the slums. When his mother (Perla Bautista) falls ill, the need for money to settle a huge hospital bill forces him into a a criminal mission that puts him at odds with the towns political kingpins. Because of his skill at weapons, he is admired by the powers that be. In the process, his combat achievements earn the wrath of the Governor Nenuca Lailess' (Elvira Manahan) murderous son, Rex (Joel Torre). Suddenly, he finds himself a pawn in the fight between two warring parties for the governor's office. At one point he is forced to shoot his father, who had been branded as an opportunist by the enemy camp. To cover up the crime, Addon is ordered salvaged but the plan fails. Addon escapes eventually destroying his opponents by fist, gun and knife.

Director Mario O'Hara and screenwriter Frank Rivera have created a fresh character who has neither the wealth nor the influence to assert social control but who has the ability to define his terms against those who trample his domain. Bagong Hari is difficult not to like. It has some of the most haunting images in recent movie memory. One of the film's most striking compositions shows Addon burying his mother by the roadside, owing to their poor state. As he digs a hole in the ground, the camera shows the city lights glittering like gems in the distance. This particular image is one of the film's most interesting allusions to the idea of the city as agent of seduction and death, the city lures people on the promise of financial gain only to leave them in poverty and despair. The use of such expressive images is the key to the film's effectivity. Mario O'Hara's direction is outstanding. His clever use of environment, particularly the riverbank dwellings and the ice factroy which he turns into a visual maze is highly effective in creating feelings of fear and suspense. For sheer visual excitement, Bagong Hari is hard to match. One gets the impression that both Condemned and Bulaklak Sa City Jail, two O'Hara pictures from 1984 were just sketches in preparation for this thriller. The cinematography by brothers Johnny and Romulo Araojo is superb. Antonio Aguilar's music is imaginatively absorbing and the film's editing is just brilliant. To pass judgement on Bagong Hari for the sheer aspect of its violence is unfortunate. Considering its unique qualities and taking its story and direction as a whole, the film merits serious consideration even from the most discriminating Filipino moviegoer.

Directed By: Mario O'Hara
Screenplay By: Frank G. Rivera
Directors Of Photography: Johnny Araojo And Romulo Araojo
Musical Score: Antonio Vidal Aguilar
Film Editor: Efren Jarlego
Production Design: Frank G. Rivera
Produced By: Cineventures, Inc.
Release Date: January 10, 1986


SOFIA (The Society Of Filipino Archivists For Film) will be screening Mario O'Hara's BAGONG HARI on Saturday March 12th at 2pm at the Cultural Center Of The Philippines' Tanghalang Manuel Conde. Admission is free!

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Karapatang Magpalathala 2006-2013. SARI-SARING SINENG PINOY Lahat Ng Karapatan Ay Nakalaan. Disenyo Jojo Devera