Hindi ko pa napapanood ang Confessional (Tarrog & Antipuesto, 2008) noong pumasok ako sa screening ng Mangatyanan nuong nakaraang July 19 sa CCP Main Theater kaya nuong lumabas ako rito, I came up with the conclusion that Jerrold Tarog is a very serious filmmaker. Formalist pa nga na masasabi, whose storytelling and directorial choices are though spot on and very film school-awesome, are also so rigorous that at times they fall flat. I've seen Confessional since then, at sa mga nagbabasa nito na nakapanood ng parehong pelikula, alam kong tatango-tango kayo ngayon at ngingisi-ngisi. I know, I deserved it; assuming kasi.
Ambisyoso ang Mangatyanan, isang bagay na hindi na madalas makita sa mga pelikula ngayon sa Pilipinas. Hindi ko na nga i a acknowledge 'yung supposed gap ng mainstream sa tinatawag nating indie films pagdating sa usapin na ito; marami sa mga indie films na lumalabas ngayon ay kasing-dahop din sa imahinasyon at artistic balls ng mga pekilulang isinaksak nina Mother Lily at Charo Santos Concio sa ating mga lalamunan. Digital indie filmmakers keep on going back to the same milieu and themes over and over again: ang mga marurumi at depressing na slums; ang cause-effect na relasyon ng sex at kamatayan/trahedya, at ang sampu-samperang mga lalaking handang ipakita maski ang loob ng butas ng kanilang puwet tungo kuno sa pagbuo ng lGbt (kasi 90% percent naman ng output eh gay lang ang audience, goodluck na lang sa mga lesbian, bisexuals at transgendered) film body sa bansa. Sa totoo lang sa ilang indie films, apparently what passes for artistic credence is cinema that is poorly shot and shocking/vulgar.
Hindi ito ang kaso sa Mangatyanan. Dito makikilala natin si Laya Marquez isang photographer na nabubuhay sa anino ng kanyang estranged, at supposedly mas mahusay at dinadakilang photographer na ama. Kwento niya ito, pero kwento rin ito ng mga Labwanen o Labwanon (note lang: I have zero knowledge about this particular tribe or their practices, for all I know they may have only existed in Tarrog's mind...er, I doubt it, pero zero knowledge talaga, and I'm not gonna hit the Anthro section ng UP library for a blog entry) na unti-unting nilalamon ng mabilis na ngang pag-usad ng panahon ay mas pinabibilis pa ng mga pwersang pang-ekonomiya, globalisasyon at pangkalahatang katangahan ng mga Pilipino sa sarili nilang kultura (this blogger so royally included). Supposedly, ang mga Labwanon (I'll decide on this spelling na lang, nakakapagod mag slash) ay isang indigenous mountain tribe from Isabela na napilitang bumaba sa kapatagan at sa tabi ng dagat a long long time ago sa dahilan na di ko na matandaan. Reduccion? Para matugunan ang mga kahingian sa pang araw araw na pangangailangan gaya ng pagkain? A little bit of both? Ano't ano pa man, ang mga Labwanon ay hindi nagtagal at naging mga taga-patag, nagsipagtanim at nangisda. Ang kanilang harvest ritual: ang mangatyanan (a bloody journey) na sa pagkakaintindi ko ay ginagawa upang sariwain ang mga pasakit ng kanilang mga ninuno sa ginawan nilang pagpapasya na bumaba ng bundok.
Pero pawala na ang Mangatyanan, gayundin ang mismong tribo na nagsasagawa nito. Karamihan sa miyembro ng tribo ay malaon nang lumipat sa Maynila, nangibang-bansa (A Labwanon in Dubai! A Musical!), o kung nasa Isabela man ay halos talikuran na rin ang mga paniniwala at kaugalian ng tribu. Sa katunayan, ang siyang dapat na pinuno ng tribu ay nagdesisyong mag-abdicate (parang English monarch lang) sa kanyang birthright at nagpatakbo na lang ng internet shop. Kaya naman 'yung nakababata niyang kapatid (the great Publio Briones III) ang nag-assume ng role niya, at siya ngayong nagpupumilit na ma i stage ang mangatyanan one last time, complete with a camera crew documenting the whole thing. For posterity's sake ba. Dito pumasok sina Laya Marquez, at isa pang kasamang photographer (Neil Ryan Sese).
May dalawang narrative threads ang pelikula kung gayon: ang unti-unting paglaho ng isang pangkat ng mga tao at ng kanilang way of life, at ang pagresolve ni Laya sa conflicted na relasyon (o kawalan nito) sa kanyang ama. The genius of the script lies in this, and how the two managed to mesh well with each other that the movie ends up commenting on issues that are personal and that we can all relate to (daddy issues, incest, family obligations) and, dare I say, national, that we SHOULD all relate to but don't. Ipinagluluksa ng pelikula ang kamatayan ng isang paraan ng pamumuhay at gayon din ang kamatayan ng isang masalimuot na father-daughter relationship.
Sa dulo ng pelikula, ang dalawang narrative threads na ito ay magpapang-abot at magsasalpukan; malalaman ni Laya ang kinahinatnan ng ama niyang nakaratay sa hospital at hindi matutuloy ang mangatyanan dahil sa kawalan ng dedikasyon ng mismong dapat ay pangunahing tauhan nito, kaya si Laya ang magtutuloy. You cannot fault the movie for this improbable ending because yes, unlikely though it may be, the writer/filmmaker was able to set it up in such a way that it was inevitable. But that's just it, it was a set-up; hindi siya contrived in a way kasi the logic is there, the story makes sense but all the time, you feel the author's hand ever present, prodding things and characters and events. Kung ikukumpara ito sa Confessional, mas malinis ang Mangatyanan, structure-wise, at mas pulido ang kwento, walang unnecessary scenes and asides (may mga pagkakataon sa Confessional na pakiramdam mo nagsisingit na lang ng Sinulog footage si Tarrog para pahabain ang pelikula) pero lilitaw pa rin na Confessional is the better film because of its natural flow. The directors had enough sense to just let the story unfold, sabihin pang uber-quirky at pa-cool nito at some points. Mangatyanan never had that ease of telling the story, it's the cinematic equivalent of having an hour and a half of conversation with an anal-retentive and obsessive complusive.
The end result: a film that was excellent at almost all levels but remained oddly unaffecting and cold. Sayang kasi Che Ramos as Laya Marquez was magnificent in her repressed rage and her quiet implosion at certain scenes (the hospital scene with Adlawan, as her estranged mom, is probably one of the acting highlights of the festival, along with every other scene in Sanglaan), pero nung magdesisyon siyang mag mangatyanan on an impulse, it doesn't feel like the character's impulse but the scriptwriter trying to tie ends together, thus making the climax a huge dud. The techs are also quite wonderful, especially the cinematography and the sound.
Ito ang ikalawang installment sa projected trilogy ni Tarrog na tinatawag niyang Camera trilogy. Minsan na niyang pinabulaanan na hindi bahagi ang Confessional at Mangatyanan at ang susunod pa niyang pelikula ng isang trilohiya dahil lamang sa ang mga pangunahing tauhan dito ay pawang mga may camera. Nais kong sumang-ayon. Kaso, while Confessional was effective in exploring the themes of truth and lies and accepted lies as seen through the camera, sa Mangatyanan, er, not so much. The fact that Laya and her father were photographers was of very litte consequence; they could be anthropologists or journalists and the movie wouldn't really change. Here's hoping that the third one is a return to form for Tarrog.
Ito na siguro ang kanyang Two Towers, o di kaya'y Attack of the Clones.
Sa dulo ng pelikula, ang dalawang narrative threads na ito ay magpapang-abot at magsasalpukan; malalaman ni Laya ang kinahinatnan ng ama niyang nakaratay sa hospital at hindi matutuloy ang mangatyanan dahil sa kawalan ng dedikasyon ng mismong dapat ay pangunahing tauhan nito, kaya si Laya ang magtutuloy. You cannot fault the movie for this improbable ending because yes, unlikely though it may be, the writer/filmmaker was able to set it up in such a way that it was inevitable. But that's just it, it was a set-up; hindi siya contrived in a way kasi the logic is there, the story makes sense but all the time, you feel the author's hand ever present, prodding things and characters and events. Kung ikukumpara ito sa Confessional, mas malinis ang Mangatyanan, structure-wise, at mas pulido ang kwento, walang unnecessary scenes and asides (may mga pagkakataon sa Confessional na pakiramdam mo nagsisingit na lang ng Sinulog footage si Tarrog para pahabain ang pelikula) pero lilitaw pa rin na Confessional is the better film because of its natural flow. The directors had enough sense to just let the story unfold, sabihin pang uber-quirky at pa-cool nito at some points. Mangatyanan never had that ease of telling the story, it's the cinematic equivalent of having an hour and a half of conversation with an anal-retentive and obsessive complusive.
The end result: a film that was excellent at almost all levels but remained oddly unaffecting and cold. Sayang kasi Che Ramos as Laya Marquez was magnificent in her repressed rage and her quiet implosion at certain scenes (the hospital scene with Adlawan, as her estranged mom, is probably one of the acting highlights of the festival, along with every other scene in Sanglaan), pero nung magdesisyon siyang mag mangatyanan on an impulse, it doesn't feel like the character's impulse but the scriptwriter trying to tie ends together, thus making the climax a huge dud. The techs are also quite wonderful, especially the cinematography and the sound.
Ito ang ikalawang installment sa projected trilogy ni Tarrog na tinatawag niyang Camera trilogy. Minsan na niyang pinabulaanan na hindi bahagi ang Confessional at Mangatyanan at ang susunod pa niyang pelikula ng isang trilohiya dahil lamang sa ang mga pangunahing tauhan dito ay pawang mga may camera. Nais kong sumang-ayon. Kaso, while Confessional was effective in exploring the themes of truth and lies and accepted lies as seen through the camera, sa Mangatyanan, er, not so much. The fact that Laya and her father were photographers was of very litte consequence; they could be anthropologists or journalists and the movie wouldn't really change. Here's hoping that the third one is a return to form for Tarrog.
Ito na siguro ang kanyang Two Towers, o di kaya'y Attack of the Clones.
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