HOPI HEIRLOOM CORN:

THEORETICAL CROSSES WITH PHILIPPINE MAIZE STRAINS

Food security is something that should concern us as a people. Dependence on rice, without the corresponding ability to grow a sufficient amount of it, will render us vulnerable to international rice price increases and availability.  

Rice is notoriously unsuited to our geography—there simply aren’t enough, wide open flood plains.  Where they do exist, irrigation is inadequate. With our growing population, it is simply too difficult to support it using rice alone.  It is thus in our interest if we found a crop that we could use to partially replace rice.

How about corn?

The Philippines is self-sufficient in corn (zea Mays). We grow lots of it and it is the second most important crop here next to rice.

Corn here is generally used to make animal feed. Very little of it goes into our diet compared to rice. * I estimate that if more corn were used for human consumption (or if it would be used to replace rice altogether), then it’s very possible that we won't need to import rice from other countries.

Corn Fit for Human Consumption

Part of actually getting people to eat corn directly, rather than to grow it as an animal feed is to actually have varieties of corn fit for human consumption—this is where Hopi corn comes in!

This is also a flour corn, which means that this is very suitable for making corn flour or cornmeal.  It is also very good for gritting.  The corn we normally grow for feed is flint corn, which as the name implies is very hard and is simply not suitable for human consumption.

Desirable traits

The Hopi Indian tribe has been growing a specific variety of Maize (Zea mays) in the Arizona desert for thousands of years. Their agricultural techniques are very well suited to the dry and hot desert (with its occasional flashfloods!) climate of the American Southwest.

Hopi Corn

(Source: azcentral.com)

Years of selective breeding has created a corn variety which can withstand heat and flashfloods.  It grows a very deep root system and its seeds are necessarily rich in energy.  The Hopi grow their corn by burying the seed 1 feet deep in the arid soil.  The video below shows how the Hopi cultivate their corn.

(Source: this video was originally found in Encarta encyclopedia)

Amazingly, the plant is still able to sprout in spite of being buried so deep.  These adaptations give this strain a great many advantages specifically:  

1. Because the seed was buried so deeply, the roots have access to moisture locked deep within the subsoil.

2. Because the root system is buried so deep, the plant can withstand harsh winds and flashfloods that happen in the desert.

3. The roots do not compete for nutrients with other plants.

These are highly desirable traits which if crossed with Philippine varieties of corn could very well produce a very well-adapted hybrid.  Specifically, this can potentially be the basis of a maintenance-free strain of corn—one that doesn’t need irrigation or weeding and can withstand typhoons!

This hybrid will also fit in with the corn culture in the Philippines.  Philippine corn often grow corn during the dry season in a dried up rice paddy—the corn is harvested before the rains come and after which, rice will be replanted. Hopi corn will suit this kind of crop rotation superbly. The corn is planted deep in the soil, so the roots are getting their nutrients from the subsoil. This means that the corn will not compete for nutrients with the next crop of rice which has shallow root systems and thus get their nutrients from the topsoil. This way, the rice paddy's topsoil gets a full season's rest before the next crop.

El Niño

It goes without saying that the world is due for a massive drought caused by this weather anomaly called El Niño.  A corn variety such as this will be able to thrive in the changing climate that we are experiencing today.

Conclusion

I understand that rice is culturally ingrained in the Filipino psyche—we all understand that a meal isn’t a meal if there isn’t rice on the table—but sometimes, solving problems such as food security may require some dietary changes.  Corn, as a rice replacement holds some potential, indeed, the Philippines is already more successful in self-sufficiency when it comes to corn than with rice.  The introduction of corn which is fit for human consumption, and which contain traits that would suit it to adverse climates can go a long way to solving our food security problems.  To that end, I strongly recommend conducting hybridization experiments with Hopi heirloom corn.

-----

*Filipinos do have some tasty corn-based treats like roasted corn, binatog and a local favorite is baye-baye.  I hear Boholanos also mix corn into their rice as a filler.

REPUBLIC vs. CFI MANILA and MAYER STEEL PIPE CORP.

Citation:  G.R. No. 43747; September 2, 1992; Ponente:  Nocon

Doctrine:  Application of the Doctrine of Primary Jurisdiction – The question of forfeiture of the properties sought to be imported is for the Collector of Customs to determine and then by the Commissioner of Customs.  Thereafter, appeals must be brought to the Court of Tax Appeals.

FACTS:

In November 13, 1975, the CFI of Manila issued an injunction enjoining the Collector of Customs (Collector) from enforcing an order to seize some packages of machinery from the Private Respondent, Mayer Steel Pipe Corporation. 

The complaint with the CFI alleged the lack of due process in the proceedings leading to the order.

ISSUE:

Whether or not the CFI has the jurisdiction to issue an injunction over the order of the Collector.

HELD:

The mandate of the law is very specific.  Section 2312 of the Tariff and Customs Code provides:

"SEC. 2312. Decision or Action by Collector in Protest And Seizure Cases. — When a protest in proper form is presented in a case where protest is required, the Collector shall issue an order for hearing within fifteen (15) days from receipt of the protest and hear the matter thus presented. Upon the termination of the hearing, the Collector shall render a decision within thirty (30) days, and if the protest is sustained, in whole or in part, he shall make the appropriate order, the entry reliquidated if necessary."

On the other hand, Section 2313 of the same law states:

Review by Commissioner. — The person aggrieved by the decision or action of the Collector in any matter presented upon protest or by his action in any case of seizure may, within fifteen (15) days after notification in writing by the Collector of his action or decision, give written notice to the Collector and one copy furnished to the Commissioner of his desire to have the matter reviewed by the Commissioner. Thereupon the Collector shall forthwith transmit all the records of the proceedings to the Commissioner, who shall approve, modify or reverse the action or decision of the collector and take such steps and make such orders as may be necessary to give effect to his decision.

Section 7 of R.A. No. 1125 (An Act Creating the Court of Tax Appeals) also provides:

Jurisdiction — The Court of Tax Appeals shall exercise exclusive appellate jurisdiction to review by appeal, as herein provided —

x       x       x

(2) Decisions of the Commissioner of Customs in cases involving liability for customs duties, fees or other money charges; seizure, detention or release of property affected: fines forfeitures or other penalties imposed in relation thereto; or other matters arising under the Customs Law or other law or part of the law administered by the Bureau of Customs.

Clearly then, the question of seizure and forfeiture is for the Collector of Customs to determine in the first instance and then the Commissioner of Customs. This is a field where the doctrine of primary jurisdiction controls. Thereafter an appeal may be taken to the Court of Tax Appeals. A court of first instance is thus devoid of competence to act on the matter.

Lastly, in the case of Enrile vs. Vinuya, it was held that “the prevailing doctrine is that the exclusive jurisdiction in seizure and forfeiture cases vested in the Collector of Customs precludes a court of first instance from assuming cognizance over such a matter.”

As regards to the allegation that there was violation of due process, the Court noted that there was a hearing with 6 witnesses and for the purposes of administrative proceedings.

Wherefore, the order of injunction issued by the CFI of Manila was annulled.

FUJIKI vs. MARINAY

Citation:  G.R. No. 196049, June 26, 2013

Ponente:  Carpio; SECOND DIVISION

Doctrine: 

Recognition of foreign judgment declaring nullity of marriage – A recognition of a foreign judgment is not an action to nullify a marriage. It is an action for Philippine courts to recognize the effectivity of a foreign judgment, which presupposes a case which was already tried and decided under foreign law.  Article 26 of the Family Code further confers jurisdiction on Philippine courts to extend the effect of a foreign divorce decree to a Filipino spouse without undergoing trial to determine the validity of the dissolution of the marriage. The second paragraph of Article 26 of the Family Code provides that “[w]here a marriage between a Filipino citizen and a foreigner is validly celebrated and a divorce is thereafter validly obtained abroad by the alien spouse capacitating him or her to remarry, the Filipino spouse shall have capacity to remarry under Philippine law.”

FACTS:

Petitioner Minoru Fujiki (Fujiki), a Japanese national married respondent Maria Paz Galela Marinay (Marinay) in the Philippines on January 23, 2004.  Sadly, petitioner Fujiki could not bring respondent Marinay back to Japan and they eventually lost contact with one another.  In 2008, Marinay met Shinichi Maekara and they married without the earlier marriage being dissolved.

Marinay suffered abuse from Maekara and so she left him and was able to reestablish contact with Fujiki and rekindle their relationship.  The couple was able to obtain a judgment in a Japanese court that declared Marinay's marriage to Maekara void on the ground of bigamy in 2010.  Fujiki then filed a petition in the RTC entitled:  “Judicial Recognition of Foreign Judgment (or Decree of Absolute Nullity of Marriage)”.  In this case, petitioner prayed that:

(1) the Japanese Family Court judgment be recognized; (2) that the bigamous marriage between Marinay and Maekara be declared void ab initio under Articles 35(4) and 41 of the Family Code of the Philippines; and (3) for the RTC to direct the Local Civil Registrar of Quezon City to annotate the Japanese Family Court judgment on the Certificate of Marriage between Marinay and Maekara and to endorse such annotation to the Office of the Administrator and Civil Registrar General in the National Statistics Office (NSO).

The trial court dismissed the petition on the ground that it did not meet standing and venue requirements as prescribed on the Rule on Rule on Declaration of Absolute Nullity of Void Marriages and Annulment of Voidable Marriages (A.M. No. 02-11-10-SC), specifically, only the spouses (i.e. Marimay or Maekara) may file an action for declaration of nullity of marriage.  Petitioner in a Motion for Reconsideration claimed that the case should not be dismissed as the above rule applied only to cases of annulment of marriage on the ground of psychological incapacity and not in a petition for recognition of a foreign judgment.  Notably, when the Solicitor General was asked for comment, it agreed with the Petitioner stating that the above rule should not apply to cases of bigamy and that insofar as the Civil Registrar and the NSO are concerned, Rule 108 of the Rules of Court provide the procedure to be followed.  Lastly, the Solicitor General argued that there is no jurisdictional infirmity in assailing a void marriage under Rule 108, citing De Castro v. De Castro and Niñal v. Bayadog which declared that “[t]he validity of a void marriage may be collaterally attacked.”

ISSUE:

Whether or not a husband or wife of a prior marriage can file a petition to recognize a foreign judgment nullifying the subsequent marriage between his or her spouse and a foreign citizen on the ground of bigamy.

HELD:

YES.  Firstly, the Rule on Declaration of Absolute Nullity of Void Marriages and Annulment of Voidable Marriages (A.M. No. 02-11-10-SC) does not apply in a petition to recognize a foreign judgment relating to the status of a marriage where one of the parties is a citizen of a foreign country.  Moreover, in Juliano-Llave v. Republic, this Court held that the rule in A.M. No. 02-11-10-SC that only the husband or wife can file a declaration of nullity or annulment of marriage “does not apply if the reason behind the petition is bigamy.”

The Supreme Court further held that:

For Philippine courts to recognize a foreign judgment relating to the status of a marriage where one of the parties is a citizen of a foreign country, the petitioner only needs to prove the foreign judgment as a fact under the Rules of Court. To be more specific, a copy of the foreign judgment may be admitted in evidence and proven as a fact under Rule 132, Sections 24 and 25, in relation to Rule 39, Section 48(b) of the Rules of Court. Petitioner may prove the Japanese Family Court judgment through (1) an official publication or (2) a certification or copy attested by the officer who has custody of the judgment. If the office which has custody is in a foreign country such as Japan, the certification may be made by the proper diplomatic or consular officer of the Philippine foreign service in Japan and authenticated by the seal of office.

x x x

A petition to recognize a foreign judgment declaring a marriage void does not require relitigation under a Philippine court of the case as if it were a new petition for declaration of nullity of marriage. Philippine courts cannot presume to know the foreign laws under which the foreign judgment was rendered. They cannot substitute their judgment on the status, condition and legal capacity of the foreign citizen who is under the jurisdiction of another state. Thus, Philippine courts can only recognize the foreign judgment as a fact according to the rules of evidence.

x x x

There is therefore no reason to disallow Fujiki to simply prove as a fact the Japanese Family Court judgment nullifying the marriage between Marinay and Maekara on the ground of bigamy. While the Philippines has no divorce law, the Japanese Family Court judgment is fully consistent with Philippine public policy, as bigamous marriages are declared void from the beginning under Article 35(4) of the Family Code. Bigamy is a crime under Article 349 of the Revised Penal Code. Thus, Fujiki can prove the existence of the Japanese Family Court judgment in accordance with Rule 132, Sections 24 and 25, in relation to Rule 39, Section 48(b) of the Rules of Court.

A recognition of a foreign judgment is not an action to nullify a marriage. It is an action for Philippine courts to recognize the effectivity of a foreign judgment, which presupposes a case which was already tried and decided under foreign law.  Article 26 of the Family Code further confers jurisdiction on Philippine courts to extend the effect of a foreign divorce decree to a Filipino spouse without undergoing trial to determine the validity of the dissolution of the marriage. The second paragraph of Article 26 of the Family Code provides that “[w]here a marriage between a Filipino citizen and a foreigner is validly celebrated and a divorce is thereafter validly obtained abroad by the alien spouse capacitating him or her to remarry, the Filipino spouse shall have capacity to remarry under Philippine law.”

Petition was granted and the RTC was ordered to reinstate the proceedings.

RONULO vs. PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES

Citation:  G.R. No. 182438, July 02, 2014

Ponente:  Brion, SECOND DIVISION

FACTS:

On March 29, 2003, Joey Umadac and Claire Bingayen were scheduled to marry one another.  On the day of the wedding, at the Roman Catholic Church of San Nicolas, Ilocos Norte, the priest refused to marry them when he learned that the couple did not have a marriage license. Instead, the couple, already dressed in their wedding attire and with their parents and friends, proceeded to the Aglipayan church and requested Petitioner, an Aglipayan Priest to marry them to which he proceeded to marry the couple. 

An information for violation of Article 352 of the RPC, was filed against the petitioner before the MTC of Batac, Ilocos Norte for allegedly performing an illegal marriage ceremony.

The petitioner pleaded “not guilty” and while he admitted that he conducted a ceremony, denied that his act of “blessing” the couple was tantamount to a solemnization of the marriage as contemplated by law.

The MTC found petitioner guilty of violating Art. 352 of the Revised Penal Code for conducting an illegal marriage ceremony.  The RTC affirmed as did the Court of Appeals.

ISSUE:

Whether or not petitioner conducted a “blessing” and not an [illegal] marriage ceremony.

HELD:

Petitioner conducted an illegal marriage ceremony.  The crime as provided for in Art 352 of the RPC refers to the performance of marriages under Articles 3 and 6 of the Family Code which reads:

Art. 3. The formal requisites of marriage are:

x x x

(3) A marriage ceremony which takes place with the appearance of the contracting parties before the solemnizing officer and their personal declaration that they take each other as husband and wife in the presence of not less than two witnesses of legal age.

x x x

Art. 6. No prescribed form or religious rite for the solemnization of the marriage is required. It shall be necessary, however, for the contracting parties to appear personally before the solemnizing officer and declare in the presence of not less than two witnesses of legal age that they take each other as husband and wife. This declaration shall be contained in the marriage certificate which shall be signed by the contracting parties and their witnesses and attested by the solemnizing officer.

. . .

 The Supreme Court explained that what made the petitioner's act a marriage ceremony and not just a mere blessing was that while there is no prescribed form or religious rite, all that was required was “for the contracting parties to appear personally before the solemnizing officer and declare in the presence of not less than two witnesses of legal age that they take each other as husband and wife.”

As to the first requirement, the petitioner admitted that the parties appeared before him and this fact was testified to by witnesses. On the second requirement, we find that, contrary to the petitioner’s allegation, the prosecution has proven, through the testimony of witnesses, that the contracting parties personally declared that they take each other as husband and wife.  Thus, it is clear that petitioner conducted a marriage ceremony and not a mere blessing.

The marriage ceremony was also illegal.  The Supreme Court stated that:

Under Article 3(3) of the Family Code, one of the essential requisites of marriage is the presence of a valid marriage certificate. In the present case, the petitioner admitted that he knew that the couple had no marriage license, yet he conducted the “blessing” of their relationship.

Undoubtedly, the petitioner conducted the marriage ceremony despite knowledge that the essential and formal requirements of marriage set by law were lacking. The marriage ceremony, therefore, was illegal. The petitioner’s knowledge of the absence of these requirements negates his defense of good faith.

We also do not agree with the petitioner that the lack of a marriage certificate negates his criminal liability in the present case. For purposes of determining if a marriage ceremony has been conducted, a marriage certificate is not included in the requirements provided by Article 3(3) of the Family Code, as discussed above.

Neither does the non-filing of a criminal complaint against the couple negate criminal liability of the petitioner. Article 352 of the RPC, as amended, does not make this an element of the crime.

The decision of the Court of Appeals was affirmed.

WORST INK STILL BETTER THAN THE BEST MEMORY?

When you snap a picture with your cellphone or digital camera, what do you do with it?  Do you still have it “developed”?  When your company asks for a report, do you still print it out or would it exist only in some computer or backed up in Dropbox or some cloud storage?    When you read a book, “do you read it off the screen just like everyone else” or do you still flip through pages like they did in days of old?

Argentine Humanist Alberto Manguel had this to say:

Even the newer electronic technologies cannot approach the experience of handling an original publication. As any reader knows, a printed page creates its own reading space, its own physical landscape in which the texture of the paper, the colour of the ink, the view of the whole ensemble acquire in the reader’s hands specific meanings that lend tone and context to the words. (Columbia University’s librarian Patricia Battin, a fierce advocate for the microfilming of books, disagreed with this notion. “The value,” she wrote, “in intellectual terms, of the proximity of the book to the user has never been satisfactorily established.” There speaks a dolt, someone utterly insensitive, in intellectual or any other terms, to the experience of reading.)

But above all, the argument that calls for electronic reproduction on account of the endangered life of paper is a false one. Anybody who has used a computer knows how easy it is to lose a text on the screen, to come upon a faulty disk or CD, to have the hard drive crash beyond all appeal. The tools of the electronic media are not immortal. The life of a disk is about seven years; a CD-ROM lasts about ten. In 1986, the BBC spent two and a half million pounds creating a computer-based, multi-media version of the Domesday Book, the eleventh-century census of England compiled by Norman monks.

More ambitious than its predecessor, the electronic Domesday Book contained 250,000 place names, 25,000 maps, 50,000 pictures, 3,000 data sets and 60 minutes of moving pictures, plus scores of accounts that recorded “life in Britain” during that year. Over a million people contributed to the project, which was stored on twelve-inch laser disks that could only be deciphered by a special BBC microcomputer. Sixteen years later, in March 2002, an attempt was made to read the information on one of the few such computers still in existence. The attempt failed. Further solutions were sought to retrieve the data, but none was entirely successful. “There is currently no demonstrably viable technical solution to this problem,” said Jeff Rothenberg of the Rand Corporation, one of the world experts on data preservation, called in to assist. “Yet, if it is not solved, our increasingly digital heritage is in grave risk of being lost.”  By contrast, the original Domesday Book, almost a thousand years old, written in ink on paper and kept at the Public Record Office in Kew, is in fine condition and still perfectly readable.

The director for the electronic records archive program at the National Archives and Records Administration of the United States confessed in November 2004 that the preservation of electronic material, even for the next decade, let alone for eternity, “is a global problem for the biggest governments and the biggest corporations all the way down to individuals.” Since no clear solution is available, electronic experts recommend that users copy their materials onto CDs, but even these are of short duration. The lifespan of data recorded on a CD with a CD burner could be as little as five years. In fact, we don’t know for how long it will be possible to read a text inscribed on a 2004 CD. And while it is true that acidity and brittleness, fire and the legendary bookworms threaten ancient codexes and scrolls, not everything written or printed on parchment or paper is condemned to an early grave. A few years ago, in the Archeological Museum of Naples, I saw, held between two plates of glass, the ashes of a papyrus rescued from the ruins of Pompeii. It was two thousand years old; it had been burnt by the fires of Vesuvius, it had been buried under a flow of lava—and I could still read the letters written on it, with astonishing clarity. (footnotes omitted)

The Beauty of Books 

Manuscripts and typescript drafts can easily be read if they are found.  You will also be able to find a wealth of meaning by examining various versions of the manuscript versus the published version.  But the ephemeral nature of electronic word processing makes it difficult to find the same level of textual analysis from authors.  With the advent of electronic composition and storage of books is the elimination and disappearance of drafts.  In the past, an author would make a series of drafts before coming up with a final manuscript.  Historians, hagiographers, biographers and other academics would find these drafts a very rich source of what the author was trying to write and what he was trying to say.  Remember José Rizal's lost chapter in the Noli Me Tangere, a chapter thatwas later included in some critical editions.  Jefferson's drafts of the declaration of liberty have been examined over and over again by historians and political scientists seeking to “get into Jefferson's brain.”  In this blog, I have an ongoing project to write a study guide of Los Pájaros de Fuego, the “lost novel” of José Balmori, is based on the critical edition of Isaac Donoso which contains glosses of previous drafts of the novel.

There are legal implications as well.  In the Philippine setting, legal instruments are, without exception, paper documents.  For example, there is no such thing as a “video will”.  In other legal traditions, we have the UK Parliament, where a law is only formally passed once it is printed in parchment.  Indeed, the durability of parchment and ink and paper and ink is not something we can easily replicate with the electronic medium.

What is the legal status therefore, of so called “electronic titles”?  Of late, the Land Registation Authority (LRA) has been digitizing the land records of our country.  Basically, all physical titles on file with the LRA are scanned and kept in a server somewhere in Scandinavia.¹  A law professor discussed that these electronic titles have no legal status.  The only title to land in the Philippines is the physical certificate of title on file with the LRA, and thus the title can still be physically destroyed and the scanned copy on file somewhere in Norway cannot simply replace the physical title. 

Imagine also if something were to happen to the hard drive in Norway, and everything up in the cloud were to suddenly disappear—all of the precious digital-only land title system would be in complete disarray.  People had a big row if Facebook or Instagram would suddenly go down and all of their precious pictures and memories with it, how much more the indefeasibility of a person’s ownership of a parcel of land?

The Feared Blue Screen of Death

What do you guys think?  Paper or electronic?

Footnotes:

[1] This is just an example, but many servers are located in Scandinavia to take advantage of cold weather to save on airconditioning costs.

HENERAL LUNA: CRITICAL REFLECTIONS

Many people before me have written about Heneral Luna and they have generally found it to be a breath of fresh air in Philippine cinema.  We have a local film industry that is generally devoid of critical fare, the industry being flooded with infidelity movies and slapstick comedies.  

That said, I must admit that when I first saw the billboard for the film along EDSA before it came out, I knew that it was going to be a compelling film—Heneral Luna is simply a very compelling and controversial character in our history.  He was a renowned tactician and able general, educated in Europe, hotheaded and outspoken.  Lived violently and died violently under mysterious circumstances (read: assassinated.  And by whom?  We may never know).  My interest was piqued.  

Then the film came out and the reviews came pouring in.  Due to my busy schedule, I wasn’t able to watch the film right away.  But I’ve read enough good reviews that when I stepped into the theater, I had incredibly high expectations for the film. Thankfully, the film didn’t disappoint.

Some other interesting reviews and critical reflections

CNN Philippines – Heneral Luna Review

Asian Journal – Heneral Luna the Movie

The Daily Tribune – The Untold (hi)story in Heneral Luna

Rappler iSpeak – The problem with Heneral Luna

This is my reflection and review.

Overview

At the outset, the film stated that it took liberties with some facts and with the timeline, so some suspension of disbelief was needed.  And lets be frank, this film was a political and social manifesto directed towards the Filipino at large.   Viewed in this light, the message and the delivery of the message makes sense.

Reflections

The film immediately admits of multiple interpretations.  One may consider it a call for patriotism and heroism.  My takeaway from the film however is more basic:  It is a call for excellence and a call to turn away from the petty pride that afflicts our society and nation.  There was a point early on in the film where Luna tried to distribute uniforms to the regular soldiers saying: “Kakaunti lang ang salapi ng sandatahan ngunit kailangan na ipakita natin sa Amerikano na kagalang galang tayo.”  This is part of a larger message about striving for excellence as a people.

Throughout the bulk of the film, Luna was shown trying to command a united front, trying to keep the Americans in Manila and trying to prevent them from breaking out into the North.  The work ethic and strict discipline he imposed quickly earned him the ire of other commanders who were content to siesta and fiesta their way even in the midst of a military campaign.  The portrayal, and rightly so, was in favor of Luna’s disciplinarian style and tactical and strategic competence.  Competence, efficiency and results orientation, in Tarog’s world, trumps petty rivalries, pride and regionalism—all the more so when the stakes are LIBERTY or DEATH.  This is how it is in the real world and in the movie world.

When was the last time we saw such a stirring sight as an army of laborers off to a civil engineering project?  Our country it seems, has never had the experience of implementing public works on a grand scale

Another clear message in the film is that Family isn’t everything.  Luna goes on the claim that the Philippines cannot progress from what it currently is if the people can’t think beyond the family.  I understand that Filipinos are a family-oriented people, however, this is a crutch.  Because we see the family as a support-system, it hinders us from thinking and acting independently.  It also makes us prone to nepotism as a culture.  On one hand were shown the family-oriented Buencamino and Paterno trying to protect their businesses in order to maintain their family’s standard of living.  On the other hand, we have Luna allowing his brother to rot in jail because he knows that nobody is above the law even if he could have used his influence to have his brother freed.  Oh and don’t get me started on the officers taking their families’ along for a train ride on a train meant to transport soldiers.

Speaking of the law, the film also makes it clear that in order to have a progressive society, we must allow the law to apply to everyone equally, no matter how rich or powerful they are.  This message is unequivocal.

No one is higher than the law! - Not even sidewalk vendors.

Characterization

I am glad that the film tried to portray Luna as more than just a one dimensional character.  He, like his rivals Buencamino and Paterno had a family to take care of, has his own desires and temptations.

I must say though that the historical Luna, from what I already knew about him, would probably have approved of the message of the film--he had a conception of the “Filipino Nation”.  Note that he was educated in Spain and rubbed shoulders with the propagandists during that period.  

Aguinaldo was also portrayed as a divided character.  He won’t hesitate to purge his ranks of malcontents (he was practically a dictator after all!), but he didn’t have to like it.  Ghosts of the past haunted him all throughout.

The Americans portayed at film I think served as proxies for how the international community views us.

“You killed the only real general you had.”

They had to show Luna the respect he deserved as a foe, but you can see that they had little respect for any other Filipino.

Treatment of gore

I know that Filipino movies generally shy from depictions of gore.  This film though was not shy about showing a guy’s head getting blown off or a man’s severed leg. Luna’s death was also a bloodfest.  

The gore had a place in the story however:  One, it goes to show that war is not a pretty or glorious thing but in spite of this, Luna continues to lead his men and tries to keep up to date on the situation on the frontlines--not an easy thing; another is that it sets the audience up for one of its most iconic scenes.

I especially liked this shot.

A Filipino Child Brutally Murdered

Definitely this one.

But this shot is the most poignant.

This shot is a recreation of the Spoliarium, which we know was painted by Heneral Antonio Luna’s older brother, Juan.

See the resemblance?  Everything practically led up to this.  

The Spoliarium depicts corpses of slain gladiators being dragged from a Roman arena to the wails and moans of women onlookers.  According to José Rizal, the Spoliarium “embodied the essence of our social, moral and political life: humanity in severe ordeal, humanity unredeemed, reason and idealism in open struggle with prejudice, fanaticism”.  Makes you think.

Cinematography and overall production quality

This film was surprisingly good as we can see from the Spoliarium recreation shown in the picture above.  Sure we have cardboard props, balusters whitewashed in Boysen enamel and some bits and bobs that look out of place, but it didn’t distract and it didn’t detract from its beauty and politico-social message that the film had to offer.

The film had some very beautiful shots.

I learned from some forum that this battlefield promotion may have been that of Major Torres Bugallón

It’s been a long day without you, my friend / And I’ll tell you all about it when I see you again / We’ve come a long way from where we began / Oh, I’ll tell you all about it when I see you again

Points for improvement

The film has its flaws and if I worked with Jerrold Tarog,  I would have suggested that he did a few things differently.

One is the battle where Janolino was disciplined.  The Filipinos were not on the defensive in this battle.  This incident took place during the Second Battle of Caloocan, a Filipino offensive with the aim of dislodging the American’s from Manila.  This was the last Filipino offensive and the last shot at winning the war.  

The offensive was planned as a coordinated offensive:  An attack against the American’s on several fronts as well as from behind their lines.  Needless to say, the attack failed with many historians blaming the lack of coordination among Filipino Units.  History and public opinion hasn’t been kind to Col. Janolino and his Kawit Batallion, in fact, no one can say what exactly happened to him after that incident.

Needless to say, this incident should have taken place during the offensive—at the very moment of victory—in order to highlight the dangers of insubordination, hubris and pride.

Lastly, the film could have further gone into the time when Luna lived in Europe and rubbed shoulders with the propagandists.  It would better highlight the philosophy of Philippine nationhood if ever there was one.

Conclusion

The film was not shy about being a political and social manifesto.  It struck the chords of so many Filipinos.  This must be the reason why it was successful [enough to break even] at the box office.  Even more impressive was the fact that the film was patronized by the country’s intelligentsia.  That said, I sincerely hope the audience does not miss the message about competence and excellence.  

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