Gripping and socially relevant, Cinemalaya's Bwakaw discusses the delicate business of dying and living, choice and its tragedies--an ultimately rewarding cinematic experience bolstered by Garcia's veteran acting skills paired well with ultra-realistic cinematography.
The Good
- Great performances by Eddie Garcia and Rez Cortez
- Realistic atmosphere
- Great script
- Has enough sense of humor and bitterness to not drown people with pathos
The Bad
- Can prove to be heavy
- The resolution is good but reminds me much of Franzen's The Corrections, and while not exactly derivative, I wanted tragedy or a great sense of hope
Synopsis
Rene has accepted that at his age, there's only one place to go but 6 feet under. Other than a stray dog he adopted and fondly calls "Bwakaw," (Filipino for glutton) Rene is basically alone, and more often than not bitter with life. He has already boxed up his belongings for distribution in case Death knocks unexpectedly. His friends, who are much less than his fingers, are quick to remind him that there is life and there is happiness that comes along with it, but having never really fallen in love, and having accepted that he is gay at a very old age, Rene is jaded beyond repair. As he tries to live his numbered days, his life is thrown for a spin after meeting a number events that makes him rethink about life.
*** Spoilers Begin Here ***
*** Spoilers Begin Here ***
God Hates F*gs
The Filipino brand of Christianity, especially the rural and conservative offshoot, believes that God condemns all homosexual men and women to hell, and Rene believes in this bitterly that he tried to keep his identity from himself and from the world until he is 60. By which time, he has gathered enough bitterness and hate towards himself that it is outwardly expelled towards everyone around him everytime he speaks to them. The sort of character treatment for the aged homosexual Rene is unusual for a Filipino film. Filipino filmmakers have a perpetual need of portraying gay men as effeminate and terribly cross-dressed salonistas (in fact, there are two of this kind in the film). Jun Lana's Rene is not the sort, in fact far from it. He is just like any old straight men, save for his choice of flower-printed polo shirts and his often throwing shade at the people around him. The sort of treatment done to Rene's character, and with the subtle changes in him as the movie progresses, makes for an interesting 2 hours.
Everything is Broken
Everything is Broken
The screenplay and set design is spot-on for the story that Bwakaw wants to tell. The way Rene's boxed up estate looks--dark, musty, and falling apart--depicts old age in a very depressing light. Even the post office he works at is effective at bringing out raw sadness simply by not having enough work to do and not being in top shape. The setting of the movie, I felt, is intergral to the overall effect that Lana wanted to depict: old age and the hopelessness / misery that comes with it and with growing alone. There is no more happiness and all the sort of life has evaporated leaving nothing but remnants of what it was. In this sense of fulfilling its role, the cinematography, set design, and screenplay were all effective and beautiful. The depiction of growing old but not maturing meshed with it beautifully to create one depressing atmosphere that becomes absorptive more so as the dialogues start rolling.
The dialogues are very plain, just like any vernacular language, but are effective in conveying emotion and developing the characters. There are scenes where the dialogues become intense that you feel the words piercing through. The scene where Alicia (Armida Siguion-Reyna) was talking to Rene after she recovered clarity from senescence was particularly powerful enough to summarize how growing old in a foster home is. Garcia's dialogue with the local priest on how he detest his being gay and a coward was particularly strong, too, and basically sums up the conflict in Rene that he carried for years and is continuing to carry.
Pacing was fluid, albeit a little slow, and at times you just don't know where the movie is going anymore until it hits a plot bump and sends the story elsewhere, albeit in as paced as it possibly could. The shifts from misery to humor to drama are done in a very fluid manner that the movie does not drown in its own pathos or loses substance from too much humor. It had the right amount of everything it needed to convey its message of the difficulty of growing old alone, even if with a little exaggeration.
The acting showcase of Eddie Garcia is top-notch. The way he fleshed out Mang Rene, the bitter and miserable gay man at his twilight is something that is both memorable and affecting. Affecting because I couldn't say his is a character I'd love or one I'd find endearing. His was a character that wouldn't evoke your sympathy, but still shares you the delight or the hope in his personal redemption. The roles of Soxie Topacio as Zaldy the salonista with mismatching pink hair and his sidekick Tracy played by Joey Paras were the much needed comic relief of the film. Rez Cortez who played Sol, a local tricycle driver with an appetite, was detestable and lovable in equal amounts. I say he did his part justice, but not enough to outshine Eddie Garcia or the rest of the supporting cast. He was, like most of everyone, another plot device for Rene, and in that way he worked well.
The titular animal, Bwakaw, is a Golden Retriever pup and worked just like how the neighbor's dog worked for Melvin Udall in As Good As it Gets. Bwakaw is the humanizer, the one that made sure the audience sees Rene's human and endearing side, one that affirms Rene's ability to love even if everything he does seem toward people seem contradictory. Bwakaw, played by Princess, a puppy Golden Retriever, was good in disguising herself as a typical stray dog that does not do its job, but eats food anyway. In a sense, Bwakaw was the only light in the dreary world that Rene lives in, and as such ends up as a plot device to move the story forward to the resolution.
Lastly, and most regrettably, the movie closes rather too openly when Sol's speeding tricycle passed Rene without any hint of noticing him, as if in disgust, and Rene just walks along anyway towards the highway. This happens after he unboxes every single item he was to give away when he dies--a possibility he has accepted, prepared for, and grew miserable over. But the unwrapping was symbolic. It stood for the truth that it is ourselves that keep us from our happiness, the way that he did with boxing up his belongings. But the fact that he still pines for Sol sort of negates this self-empowerment, in a sense. Though it does affirm another moral lesson, that it is impossible to be human and not love, and such is never too late. While the message is sent and can be easily received, I feel that for the pain it took the movie to develop its characters, I would have wanted a more tragic ending, or one that is glowing with hope to enforce the idea--something that does not only show a subtle change in Rene, but a full on transformation, an acceptance of his own fate of dying alone and still managing to find what is joyful in life, and I feel that Lana missed this opportunity for such showcase. Had he done, I'd say I've seen the best movie of the year, but as it stands, he merely wanted to deliver a message, and it's up to the audience to enforce it in themselves.
The dialogues are very plain, just like any vernacular language, but are effective in conveying emotion and developing the characters. There are scenes where the dialogues become intense that you feel the words piercing through. The scene where Alicia (Armida Siguion-Reyna) was talking to Rene after she recovered clarity from senescence was particularly powerful enough to summarize how growing old in a foster home is. Garcia's dialogue with the local priest on how he detest his being gay and a coward was particularly strong, too, and basically sums up the conflict in Rene that he carried for years and is continuing to carry.
Pacing was fluid, albeit a little slow, and at times you just don't know where the movie is going anymore until it hits a plot bump and sends the story elsewhere, albeit in as paced as it possibly could. The shifts from misery to humor to drama are done in a very fluid manner that the movie does not drown in its own pathos or loses substance from too much humor. It had the right amount of everything it needed to convey its message of the difficulty of growing old alone, even if with a little exaggeration.
The acting showcase of Eddie Garcia is top-notch. The way he fleshed out Mang Rene, the bitter and miserable gay man at his twilight is something that is both memorable and affecting. Affecting because I couldn't say his is a character I'd love or one I'd find endearing. His was a character that wouldn't evoke your sympathy, but still shares you the delight or the hope in his personal redemption. The roles of Soxie Topacio as Zaldy the salonista with mismatching pink hair and his sidekick Tracy played by Joey Paras were the much needed comic relief of the film. Rez Cortez who played Sol, a local tricycle driver with an appetite, was detestable and lovable in equal amounts. I say he did his part justice, but not enough to outshine Eddie Garcia or the rest of the supporting cast. He was, like most of everyone, another plot device for Rene, and in that way he worked well.
The titular animal, Bwakaw, is a Golden Retriever pup and worked just like how the neighbor's dog worked for Melvin Udall in As Good As it Gets. Bwakaw is the humanizer, the one that made sure the audience sees Rene's human and endearing side, one that affirms Rene's ability to love even if everything he does seem toward people seem contradictory. Bwakaw, played by Princess, a puppy Golden Retriever, was good in disguising herself as a typical stray dog that does not do its job, but eats food anyway. In a sense, Bwakaw was the only light in the dreary world that Rene lives in, and as such ends up as a plot device to move the story forward to the resolution.
Lastly, and most regrettably, the movie closes rather too openly when Sol's speeding tricycle passed Rene without any hint of noticing him, as if in disgust, and Rene just walks along anyway towards the highway. This happens after he unboxes every single item he was to give away when he dies--a possibility he has accepted, prepared for, and grew miserable over. But the unwrapping was symbolic. It stood for the truth that it is ourselves that keep us from our happiness, the way that he did with boxing up his belongings. But the fact that he still pines for Sol sort of negates this self-empowerment, in a sense. Though it does affirm another moral lesson, that it is impossible to be human and not love, and such is never too late. While the message is sent and can be easily received, I feel that for the pain it took the movie to develop its characters, I would have wanted a more tragic ending, or one that is glowing with hope to enforce the idea--something that does not only show a subtle change in Rene, but a full on transformation, an acceptance of his own fate of dying alone and still managing to find what is joyful in life, and I feel that Lana missed this opportunity for such showcase. Had he done, I'd say I've seen the best movie of the year, but as it stands, he merely wanted to deliver a message, and it's up to the audience to enforce it in themselves.
My verdict:
A dreary depiction of rural life and of growing old alone and miserable that slowly gains color, bolstered by the top-notch performance of Eddie Garcia is something that I'd give a passing and recommended mark of 4.25/5 stars. Must watch.
Bwakaw ended its commercial run last September 12, 2012. You can catch it on DVD in case it comes out.
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