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| ON THE OTHER HAND |
| Desperately Poor?; Brokeback Molehill By Antonio C. Abaya Written Feb. 07, 2006 For the Standard Today, February 09 issue One of the weirdest reactions to the Ultra stampede last Feb. 04 is the conclusion in much of Philippine media that it was caused, ultimately, by poverty, on the grounds that most of those who flocked to Ultra to watch the game show raffle were "desperately poor." This spin has unfortunately been picked up international media (CNN, BBC) in their reportage of the accident. But this interpretation is flawed, colored as it is by some people's knee-jerk reaction to blame every single bit of bad news on the Arroyo government. This is dumb. All or most of the people who crowded outside and into Ultra, for a chance to win one of the prizes, owned at least TV sets. Otherwise, they or most of them would not have become faithful followers of Wowowee and would not have learned of the prizes that were being given away. I would hazard the guess that they, or most of them, also owned refrigerators, stereos, cell phones, electric flat irons, rice cookers, LPG gas burners, etc. Some of them no doubt also owned VCRs or DVD players. These are not the accoutrement of the "desperately poor." These are the accoutrement of the working proletariat these days, who either hold regular jobs or run small businesses here, and/or are the direct beneficiaries of family members working abroad. One of those who were (almost) crushed to death in Ultra - she merely fainted and was fortunately immediately carried away - was the mother of our 13-year old alaga and wife of our driver. They do not earn enough to vacation in Baguio or Boracay, but they are not "desperately poor" either. They own a motorcycle, TV set, cell phone, refrigerator, stereo, VCR, etc. We pay him almost double the going entry level wage for drivers, plus free food and lodging during the work week, plus full scholarship for their eldest child (who is handicapped) and half scholarship for their second (who is normal). Yet, despite her more comfortable station relative to her siblings', she still felt compelled to try her luck at the game show, in a bid to improve even more their economic status. So do hundreds of millions of others around the world who take part in raffles, bingos and lottos. The vast majority are not "desperately poor", but they, including myself, do not hesitate to invest modest sums in the hope of winning a million bucks or more. Of course, tragic accidents do happen. Everyday and everywhere. On or about the same day as Ultra, five Brazilians were trampled to death in a stampede in Sao Paulo during a rock concert. And some 800 Egyptians drowned when the ferry they were sailing in sank in the Red Sea. Yet I did not hear or read international media accounts of these accidents as being due to the "desperate poverty" of Brazilians out to escape for a few hours the squalor of their favela slums. Or the "desperate poverty" of Egyptians forced to work in Saudi Arabia because they could not find jobs in their own country. It seems to be only Philippine media (and the perennial critics whom they like to quote) who love to feast on the carcasses of accident victims, just to be able to score political or ideological points against the incumbent government. And since our media is largely in English, international media are able to quickly and obligingly echo their ghoulish tendencies. ***** BROKEBACK MOLEHILL. Many of those who eagerly await the release of Brokeback Mountain may be in for a big disappointment. Having seen this film win best film and best director awards at the Golden Globes, they may be expecting some kind of epiphany in the history of cinema for its graphic treatment of homosexuality. But, in my opinion, it is a boring film, from start to finish. It is one of those films which you wish would end soon, but which you keep watching in the hope that it would redeem itself in the last five minutes. It doesn't. Why it has generated so much buzz can only be attributed, I think, to clever press agentry that induces in viewers the psychological need to feel "with it" or au courant with Hollywood's fad-du-jour, which this year is homosexuality. Brokeback Mountain has little plot, based as it is on a mere short story. There is virtually no character development. And it has all the dramatic tension of a herd of sheep crossing from one patch of pasture to the next. Which is the actual setting for the film: two unemployed cowboys are hired to herd sheep in the spectacular valleys and mountains of Wyoming. Within a short time, with only the slightest hint of a growing camaraderie, the two are groping and buggering each other in their tent. Purely for the shock value, it would seem. If the two had groped and buggered one of the sheep, instead of each other, there might have been more human interest in the plot. The two hours that I wasted on this film would have been better spent if it had shown nothing but the dramatic mountain scenery of the locale. In 1954, Marlon Brando was widely criticized in his film debut (in On the Waterfront) for delivering his lines as if he had marbles in his mouth. In Brokeback, Heath Ledger, who plays one of the cowboys, delivers his lines as if he had marshmallows in his. I had to turn on the English subtitles to try and understand what he was mumbling about as he masticated his marshmallows. But the English subs, it turned out, were equally incomprehensible. They read like they had been written by Fu Manchu before he passed the English proficiency test at Immigration. So back to lip-reading. It is a mystery to me why and how the talented Taiwanese director Ang Lee was conned into directing this nothing film, or why he won the best director award for it in the Golden Globes, or why he is the hands-down favorite for the Oscar. In 1993, Ang Lee directed The Wedding Banquet, with a more innocent and light-hearted treatment of homosexuality. In it, a (male) Taiwanese real estate developer in New York - who has an Anglo boyfriend - is pestered by his parents in Taiwan to marry and start a family. To get his parents off his back, he lies to them that he is engaged to a nice Taiwanese girl in New York, not anticipating that they would fly right away to New York to meet their future daughter-in-law and plan the wedding. And so the charade begins. A more serious view of homosexuality can be found in the 1995 British film Priest, by Antonia Bird. In it, a young Catholic priest (played by Linus Roache) ministers, with limited success, to his new parishioners in a working class neighborhood of Liverpool by day, and then indulges his homosexual urges at night. Priest has far more dramatic tension and far more character development than Brokeback. And its angst is more profound as the characters grapple with hypocrisy, betrayal, forgiveness and redemption. For my money, the most compelling film about homosexuality is the 1993 Cuban film Strawberry and Chocolate, by Tomas Alea Gutierrez. It examines the relationship between two university students, one straight, the other gay who schemes to seduce him . Parallel to the sexual sparring is an ideological one, between a faithful Party member and a free spirit. Jorge Perrugorria is oustanding as the gay student, with his sensitivity, his love of life and his instinct for creative freedom. In Brokeback, hopelessly shallow Hollywood has unconvincingly made a Mountain out of an insignificant molehill. ***** Reactions to [email protected]. Other articles in www.tapatt.org. OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO |
| Reactions to �Desperately Poor?� I agree 100% with your piece on the Ultra stampede victims and participants. One victim even was reported to having P50,000 with her. I believe there was stampede because people lacked discipline and the authorities there were not strict in enforcing lines. Ang Pinoy ayaw maunahan, kaya ayaw pumila. Look at the buses specially during Lenten break-they scramble to get inside buses and even climb through windows. Rosario Billano, [email protected] Feb. 10, 2006 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Tony, the statements from the survivors who were interviewed by TV Patrol runs contrary to your assumption. One even lamented when told that the show will be shut down, that why would they, the poor be deprived of laughter which is the only thing that lightens them up from the hardship of life. Narciso Ner, [email protected] Feb. 11, 2006 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Mr. Abaya Your definition of who the 'desperately poor' is betrays your utter ignorance of people surrounding your ivory tower. Where in the cosmos are you from? No wonder you've got your political economy all wrong Ferdinand Anno, [email protected] Union Theological Seminary Dasmarinas, Cavite, Feb 13, 2006 MY REPLY. It is you who is living in an ivory tower and has no idea of the real world. Your Communist Ideal is a Theoretical Ideal that does not exist and has never existed in reality. Of the 29 countries that have had the misfortune of falling under communist regimes, name me one, JUST ONE, that has become democratic and prosperous. You can�t because there isn�t any. They are all failures, and 24 of those 29 countries have rejected Communism, two (China and Vietnam) have re-embraced capitalism and the profit motive. So you have only North Korea and Cuba left, plus inconsequential Laos, none of which is democratic or prosperous. You have an Ideology of Failure, as attested to by the European Russians, the East Germans, the Poles, the Hungarians, the Czechs, the Slovaks, the Latvians, the Estonians, the Lithuanians, etc who are some of the most educated, the most disciplined and the most industrious people in the world. If they could not make Communism work in 74 or 45 years, what makes you think the laid-back, unpunctual, poorly educated, easy-going quarelsome and undisciplined Filipinos will succeed? Your political economy is based entirely on a Fairy Tale. What planet are you from? wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Hi Kuya Tony! The tragedy at Ultra is sad indeed but for the Philippine press to tag it as a result of the desperate poor is utterly preposterous! Deaths globally occur every second, it's the law of nature and part of the daily chronicles of life. We'll be crowded in misery if we'll all stay in this earthly realm. Why don't we look at the logical explanation of what really happened on that disastrous day? The way I've seen it on TFC, after I received the news from my family members back home, it was caused by extremely poor event planning! The committee should have considered the capacity of that stadium in ratio to the crowds who arrived. Months prior to the show, they should have given post entrance tickets to intending game players, well wishers and guests. In that way, the TV station and the stadium executives could make announcements on the air and could have prevented the mishap. As opposed to rails which are used to control the lines in the States, cones or straps attached to poles should have been strategically placed and a good number of security people deployed. Obviously, the chain of command was overlooked and now they're pointing fingers at each other. Last year, like in the case of the TFC Kapamilya show at the Rose bowl Stadium in Pasadena, California,. I arrived early with a group of Fil-Am press around 8AM and I was surprised to see many of our kababayans already flocked at the gates in great numbers! The police had to be summoned because they we're getting all cranky at 11AM (shouting slurs like GMA! GMA! GMA! or "Let us in!" "Let us in!" while shaking the gates!) but to think that it's until 12 noon that they're allowed to get in. It is really an embarassing sight considering that I'm a fellow Filipino! Luckily there was no stampede! On the spot I made a reflection that yes, Filipinos do possess unique traits but have forgotten the virtue of discipline. We simply lack discipline and the guiding norm to be able to uplift ourselves and our country's current situation. I was asking my mom what she thinks would happen to that show, she said that it might be axed as it has already created a negative energy and jinx because of the accident. May that fateful day inflict a lesson not only to big companies, law enforcers and event planners and the masses but to the media as well, and that is to value human life and dignity, minimize if not totally eradicate negligence and unclassy and non-sense style of writing which damages more the image of our politically and economically besieged country. Cristina Sempio, [email protected] Feb. 12, 2006 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Mr. Abaya, The "Desperately Poor" spin was quite a stretch. As shown from almost all indications, those who died at ULTRA, were neither the Wretched of the Earth or the lumpen-proles GMA's critics pictured them to be. In fact, one was found to be carrying 59,000 pesos in cash. Is that the new standard for poverty income levels? Carrying huge sums to go to one of ABS-CBN's extravaganza shows? What the tragedy highlighted was the insane rivalry TV ratings game between the two giant networks in furthering the idiotization of the masses in the name of edutainment. Auggie Surtida, [email protected] Tigbauan, Iloilo, Feb. 12 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Mr. Abaya : The following is the email I wrote to my sister - a physician who has lived in Wisconsin for almost 40 years. Albeit a long read, it does give additional "insights" to my perception, shared by many with whom I have discussed the subject, on the many factors that were the causes for the stampede. Antonio B. Elica�o, [email protected] Feb 12, 2006 ___________________________________________________________ This will be kinda long because a mere comment about the desire for some quick cash to alleviate their hardships will be true but will not be accurate since it will not provide you with an adequate overview of the situation. It would be misleading to give an overly simplistic statement that the stampede was caused by the desire to get tickets that would : (1) entitle one to the lottery to become a participant in the game show that will give the participant the chance (mind you - he/she loses if she doesn't make the right choice based purely on luck) to win the sole jackpot prize of roughly $18,900, or (2) allow the ticket holder to be among those in the audience whose tickets will qualify them to be part of draws for 100 (or was it 300 consolation/door) prizes, each for less than $200 (not $300). Yes, this was part of the problem but there were several causes, among which are : 1. The intense rivalry between the 2 leading television channels - ABS-CBN, Channel 2 of the Lopez (Meralco) empire, and GMA, Channel 7 - the recent upstart that in the past 2 or 3 years has claimed (perhaps rightfully) that it has up-ended Channel 2 as the TV station with the largest viewer counts. This rivalry has taken on ludicrous proportions - (a) when one channel comes up with a hit program, whether these be local shows or Mexican telenovelas or more recently, Chinese even Korean telenovelas, the other will within weeks come up with another with a similar theme or format; (b) one channel came up with a successful singing star search - so the other channel had to try to outdo it; (c) ABS-CBN dubbed its channel - "Ka Pamilya" - and immediately thereafter, GMA became the "Ka Puso" channel; ABS-CBN then named its sister channel "Ka Barkada"; (d) newscasters and "talents" are pirated left and right - one by the other, and vice versa; (e) anyone supposedly affiliated with or "belonging" to one channel is strictly prohibited, under fear and pain of expulsion, to even breathe a word about the other channel, much less guest in a show of the other channel. Well, GMA has had a long-time (they say 28 years - I really wouldn't know) hit noon-time show, "Eat Bulaga" (the one hosted by one of the Sotto brothers). ABS-CBN has had a similar one, but without as much of a crowd draw, until it retained a twice-suspended/fired personality to host basically the same format of a show, but renamed it Wowowee. For many reasons, this show became a similar huge hit - aside from the game show that had the one chosen after a silly, convoluted system of answering inane questions, would be eligible for a P1 million cash prize if he/she chooses correctly from a variation of the old "kwarta o kahon" game, it introduced a new gimmick, a segment allowing audience participation from among the visiting balikbayans in having these people get TV exposure (even if literally just 2 or 3 seconds) while greeting their relatives and friends back home (mostly in the U.S.) Well, the event that led to the tragedy was supposed to be the 1st anniversary of this Wowowee show, and ABS-CBN. pulled out all the stops in making it a grand event - more cash prizes, a long list of TV and movie celebrities guesting, and thus scheduling the show to be held at a football stadium for the expected huge turnout. This venue was the ULTRA footbal stadium in Pasig - the area is located at a hilly portion. People camped outside the stadium as early as Wednesday night - for the show on Sat noon. By 5:00 a.m. of Saturday, the stadium was full, and the gates were closed but thousands were still left waiting outside. Someone at the back must have been getting restless and started shoving. The incline of the road makes even plain walking quite difficult - but when pushed, it is easy to fall. That caused the stampede. The organizers were clearly remiss in not having provided adequate security personnel all thruout the area - and safety measures like ropes to allow orderly queuing. But the lack of discipline (termed unruly by the organizers' security staff) of the poeple (this is an hourly/daily occurrence shown by the chaotic driving habits of taxi drivers, jeepney drivers, bus drivers, truck drivers and even private vehicle drivers who do not patiently wait for their turn but will run counter-flow - basta maka-una lamang) also had much to do with this. How tragic talaga that the quest for "ratings" ended like this. Poverty and a desire to alleviate this - again, yes these were causes. But the desire for the quick or mega -buck, without working for it is the greater culprit, evidenced by : 1. the fact that jueteng and its other forms (masiao in the Visayas, and then the "ending" numbers for baskteball games) cannot be eradicated; 2. the hundreds if not thousands of of off-track betting stations all over the country for horse racing; 3. there are now maybe dozens if not hundreds of casinos - again all over the country; 4. the success of the lotto,; 5. the hundreds of thousands of mga sabungan; 6. the many bingo parlors in malls and 7. the sakla in every small-town fiesta or even at wakes at every corner. Then, poverty and squatters - my goodness, Nens - if these people were to go back to the provinces and till even a tiny portion of land, they could grow vegetables and raise a few chickens and pigs and they will most certainly ensure that their families will never starve. But no, they are lured by the lights and attractions of of the big city, and consequently also enjoy the few moments of "entertainment" when celebrities are paraded for them in these shows. Are we surprised that tragedy would be lurking in the background? The surprise is that it did not happen earlier. What a mess, hindi ba? wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Hello Mr. Abaya, I have read your Mission as Tapatt Organization. How far have you gone so far? Here is my sister's response to one of the articles I have sent her. There are many who are like her. Kelangan untugin ng konti...but we've been in a stupor too long since 1972 when our country's constitution adopted after the USA constitution was irreverently thrashed by Marcus and his cronies. Little did we know that that was just the beginning. We became an English Tongued waging Penoys. Great at speeches....but paralyzed by our own misdirected sense of right and wrong. She said, "What has been done by these people other than talk, talk, talk? Have they thought of investing in the philippines instead of buying Mercedes cars and pataasan ng ihi? Have they helped schools and provided scholarships or develop businesses so Filipinos can find jobs in the Philippines instead of going away?" You are at home, if I am not mistaken. Kudos to you. BTW, I just read that article by Dr. Eugenio A. Pulmano, PHIL. ECO. DEV.: CONSCIOUSNESS, SPIRIT AND VISION.... Do you have any idea how to start a furnace to produce steel and manufacturing capability to produce resins to produce plastics? No wander we can only engage in assembling parts for foreign car manufacturers. Maybe we should shift the engagement into economic know how. Thanks. Ms. Ott, [email protected] Feb. 13, 2006 MY REPLY. You asked: �Do you have any idea how to start a furnace to produce steel and manufacturing capability to produce resins to produce plastics?� Are you for real? I have a degree in Chemistry, so I have an understanding of the science involved. But to set up factories like these, people take courses in chemical and industrial engineering that last years, which I cannot possibly summarize in one or two internet pages. Best to confine our discussions to things we can really chew and are really familiar with. wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww. Dear Mr. Abaya, Have just read your recent article "Despreately Poor?". That's very true... some people who have nothing much to do than blame the government for every conceivable tragedy, couldn't let this particular incident in the Ultra pass. It's good for their ego. But as you said these people who flocked to Ultra for the WOWOWEE show are not desperately poor. Those coming from the provinces surely had spare money, otherwise they could just have spent it for food. A good number of them are balikbayans who like to be seen on TV boasting of their dollars, yen, pounds, riyals, etc. Napoleon P. Serrano, [email protected] Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Feb 13. 2006 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Hi Tony.. You are right that most of the people in Ultra do not suffer from grinding poverty. They have TV, cellphones, vcr, dvd... etc.... But these do not replace the poverty that emanates from lack of hope for a better future, lack of role models, lack of that real thrill of living a good life not dependent on crumbs thrown by the powers. So they seek this kind of thrill, this kind of alleviation. This is the problem .. not the lack of "door" prizes so they had to fight for those raffle tickets... Roger Olivares, [email protected] Feb. 13, 2006 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Tony, I wish to thank you for your objectivity in dealing with the Ultra Stampede. I am already back from Switzerland and I am assigned in Baguio hoping to find a job as a professor in philosophy in one of the universities here. In my own little way, as an educator how I wish to contribute to developing the critical minds of our young people specially on such matters like this stampede and even with some films which are making to the blockbusters but not so insightful at all Thanks for your critical analysis and reflections. It helps a lot to be objective in dealing with our situations today as a nation. Jose Aranas, [email protected] Baguio City, Feb. 15, 2006 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Tony, Having read and agreed with your analysis re Ultra tragedy, I just want you to know that Nandy Pacheco who joined our family for Sunday lunch yesterday in WackWack related that he had a vivid dream of you the night before that he saw you as the leader of our country, probably in a transition council. I personally would subscribe to that, having known you for many years since our PRP days in 1992. Being your friend, though, I would not want you to suffer the loss of your privacy and comfort zone which you and Marica have attained all these years. Jun Magsaysay, junmag38 Philippine Senate, Feb. 15, 2006 MY REPLY. Nandy also called me about his dream. We two just had a big laugh over it. wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww I�d like to say hooray to you because you are absolutely right. I hope that you've published that truthful message of yours in the nationwide newspaper in the Philippines. We need more people like you. Me, I don�t have wisdom of words All I can do is shake my head and wait for somebody to come forward, like you, with the hope to reach those people who think they are gods. Thank you. (no name given), [email protected] Feb. 19, 2006 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Hello, Mr. Abaya! As usual, you are correct. I can't believe Binay could go that low to mouth something I know he himself knows to be untrue (that Gloria is to blame for the Ultra tragedy). He allges that the government is exploiting the poor yet, it is he who is exploiting the ignorance of the poor. And the poor? Frankly, I have little sympathy for them. They grab other people's land and cry injustice when they are asked to leave. They do not pay taxes and are a burden to fixed income earners like me whose monthly pay gets deducted automatically for tax. They raise more children more than they can afford, use governmentt. hospitals, public schools, at our expense. Large companies close shop and pack to leave because of never-ending strikes by the "oppressed poor." Angelo de la Cruz gets hostaged in Iraq and GM A (or whoever sits as president) is blamed. The truth is, he had to work there because he had eight (!) children to feed! The poor remain ignorant or choose to be because politicians exploit their feigned ignorance and the communists mouth slogans hoping to win the poor's sympathy...The poor choose to remain ignorant. It is more convenient - you get to enjoy free everything, get to blame others for your miseries and even have the numbers to vote stupid actors into public office. 40 million Pinoys own mobile phones, spend 150 million pesos a day for texting, bought 1 million aircons and 1.5 million washing machines (mind you, these are luxuries) per DTI 2004 records. San Miguel Corp. remains the top earner. What bothered me about Ultra was that the crowd there continued to smile gleefully for the cameras and eager for the show to proceed despite the deaths. They no longer feel guilty about anything, thanks to trapos who blame GMA for everything, including the poor's stupidities by choice. Jojo Labayen, [email protected] Feb. 19, 2006 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Reactions to �Brokeback Molehill� Let me guess...you loved Star Wars !!! Doni Miller, [email protected] Feb. 09, 2006 MY REPLY. You guessed wrong. I tried to watch the first Star Wars twice, and twice I fell asleep. I didn�t bother with the other Star Wars after that. wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Antonio, Every time I read your column I mean to write to you. I hope you will forgive me using your given name, but although we have never met, over the years I feel that I have gotten to know you. Writers are, in some ways, very similar to strip-tease dancers, except that instead of exposing the flesh, over many columns they expose themselves, i.e. their character, beliefs and even their history. Thus, familiarity in this case is not meant to be contempt. Far from it, in fact. During the period that you wrote for a broadsheet of which I was not a regular subscriber, I was honored to receive by snail-mail from you, on a weekly basis, a copy of your writings, some of which I retain to this day. A mother watching the passing-out parade of cadets was heard to remark, �Look at all those soldiers out of step with my son,� I feel this applies to your contributions;you are so out of step with the majority of columnists and writers. This does not bother me too much, except that because I always totally agree with you, then at least one other �soldier� is in step with yourself. This is not intended to flatter, because I know that is not needed. However, I have always appreciated any good comments from my fellow scribes above all others, because who can be the better judges than one�s peers. I am in doubt, however, as to your true nationality. It has been proven that people who are raised in various countries, not only speak different languages, but think differently. Should this indeed be true, then judging by the views of the majority of both columnists and journalists in the Philippine broadsheets and mass media, one has to doubt the claim of you being a Filipino. Both areas explored by yourself in today�s column were valid and true. It is amusing to see that on the same day the Inquirer on its front page has its headline, �Feminine Face of Poverty; Only 3 men Die at Ultra� yet carries a story inside of two families fighting over the ownership of P49,000 found on one of the bodies. The Lopez family may not be necessarily responsible for these tragic deaths, but they are most certainly guilty for the stupefaction of an entire race. People are not born stupid but have to learn. Local television networks, using the most powerful medium known to man, produce the most inane rubbish ever seen in any country. All channels cater to the lowest common denominator because of crass commercialism. The lack of intelligent writers has meant that telenovelas from both South Korea and previously Mexico are daily fare. In locally produced �dramas� the acting skills are little better than any high school drama group and the �popular entertainment� shows are totally pathetic. One doesn�t expect glorified Discovery channels, but one would expect drama to consist of more than a shouting man hitting a woman and then her spending the next ten minutes wailing while a piano plays inane music in the background. Even the newscasters, in the main, appear to doubt that the microphones actually work, and feel they need to shout to make themselves heard in a high-pitched monotone. Good grief! Enough of that! Your comments on the movie, �Brokenback Ridge� were absolutely spot on. I found it a totally boring movie, emotionally dead, with a totally inarticulate leading man who also could not act. The best thing about the movie was indeed, the sub-titles. These, as with many other movies, are totally hilarious and bear little relationship to what is actually scripted. What was the message? If it was that two men can fall in love with each other, this was certainly dissipated by the unemotional buggery scene. Two dogs in the street show more emotion Prior to reading that there are other people in this world who felt as I did about the movie, I was wondering just what was wrong with me. All of these so called experts raving about it, presenting awards, et al, and I thought it was rubbish. Thank God there are two of us. After watching this movie, with frequent glances at the clock, I had to ask myself some relevant questions. First, I admit to being an unwilling homophobic. All of my life I have tried to be understanding. Yes, I realize that homosexuals generally make up 6 percent of the human race and from their ranks there have come geniuses, great artists in both visual and musical arts, statesmen who have contributed positive things to this world, etc. I do not understand it, but assume that neither do they. In spite of this attempt to be sophisticated about homosexuality, I cannot help but feel uncomfortable in their presence. I have to admit that I really preferred the days of my youth when to commit homosexual acts was illegal and thus they stayed in the closet. Although I too believe that making homosexuality legal was the correct thing to do, eliminating the inevitable blackmailing that occurred, I do not like having the fact that a person is a homosexual shoved into my face. The sight of Elton John kissing his �bride� turned my stomach. I still lived in England when homosexuality was decriminalized, and I used to joke that I was migrating before they made it compulsory. All of this soul-searching was provoked by the fact that while the majority seemed to think that this was a great movie, I thought it was total crap. Thank you for also stating same � my homophobic tendencies appear not to have swayed my judgment. To finish, many thanks for your wonderfully simple common-sense view on the many topics you tackle. It brightens my life considerably and gives me hope for the future of my children knowing that there are Filipinos who still have their brains. May the likes of excellent writers such as yourself and F. Sionil Jose expand and prosper. Alan C. Atkins, [email protected] Feb. 09, 2006 MY REPLY. To erase your doubts about my true nationality, I can assure you that I am a Filipino, born of Filipino parents, and I have lived in the Philippines for most of my life, except for the 41/2 years I spent in the US studying to be a chemist and then working as one, and the six months I spent touring Europe on a Vespa motor scooter. wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww The hoopla triggered by "Brokeback Mountain" is highly suspect. Just like "Million Dollar Baby" last year, it gives Hollywood's liberal fringe much to celebrate. "Million Dollar Baby" I read was finished in two months record time. Why so much hurry? With the cause celebre Terri Schiavo case dominating the headlines early last year, having a pro-euthanasia film just fit the bill perfectly. The acceptance of homosexuality and same-sex marriage are hot issues in the US and Europe. And Hollywood is just too willing an accomplice to perpetrate unnatural vice and push these issues in the forefront. That's why we have a TV show like "Queer eye for the straight guy" where normal people are portrayed as bungling nerds and sodomites as fashionistas and vanguards of tastes and culture. Is it any surprise that "Brokeback Mountain" received so many Oscar nominations this year? For the gullible, unthinking, mediocre and indifferent lot, this movie would just be like any other emotion-filled drama and poignant portrayal of two homosexuals falling in love with each other. Yuck! Just the thought of it sends shivers down my spine. And while were at it, why do you think the local indie film, "Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros" received international acclaim? And if these were normal times, aamagin lang ang mga yan sa takilya! Jose Ma. Alcasid, [email protected] Feb. 09, 2006 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Mr Abaya, That is the best review I have read for Brokeback Mountain. It is also a very good description of the Hollywood types who decide on these self-adulatory awards. Attached are some other responses to the film from the general public. Hope you like them. David de Padua, [email protected] Feb 11, 2006 Top 10 Signs You Are a Gay Cowboy 10. Your saddle is Versace. 9. Instead of Home on the Range, you sing It's Raining Men 8. You enjoy ridin', ropin' and redecoratin'. 7. Sold your livestock to buy tickets to Mamma Mia! 6. After watching reruns of Gunsmoke, you have to take a cold shower. 5. Native Americans refer to you as Dances With Men. 4. You've been lassoed more times than most steers. 3. You're wearing chaps, yet your "ranch" is in Chelsea. 2. Instead of a saloon, you prefer a salon. 1. You love riding, but you don't have a horse. David Letterman wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Mr. Abaya, Re Brokeback, I was disappointed so much by the screenplay that I'll read the book from which it was based, the one written by excellent writer Annie Proulx (of Shipping News). I expected to see how 'true love' between two people would unfold, not minding that these involves two macho cowboys. What came across instead was their lusty feelings for each other --- no depth as to the friendship, companionship, acceptance, and forgiveness that cements true-blue love relationships. With Heath Ledger, his being Australian may also be the culprit. Just imagine marrying his Australian slang with a cowboy twang! My brother sent me one your articles re Dan Brown and his plagiarism of HBHG. Have you written Part 2 of that? Can't find it in the tapatt website. Thanks a lot for being you. Good luck always, VITTI CORPUZ VALENZUELA, [email protected] Head, Business Development Social Development Specialist WOODFIELDS CONSULTANTS INC. Feb. 11, 2006 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww You were watching a pirated copy of 'Broke back Mountain.� The genuine has excellent subtitles. You would have given it a just review. Allan Cosio, [email protected] Feb. 11, 2005 MY REPLY. I doubt it. Granted that the �English� subtitles in the globalized DVD were incomprehensible, I watched them for only about 60 seconds before giving up. What would the English subtitles in the original have contributed? The mumbling would not have ceased. Besides, isn�t it a serious infirmity of an English-language film that one has to read the English subtitles in order to understand the mumbling? wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Hi, I read your review of sorts of Brokeback Mountain -- I'm not a subscriber to your newsletter but a friend forwards your writing on occasion. I haven't seen the movie, so I can't say much about it -- but one glaring thing for me that I thought was worse than how (you believe) the Hollywood press seems to have hyped the movie, is how it had to be compared with other movies with gay characters. I think it's an indication of how people see films with gay characters as essentially lumped together. PRIEST was hardly a movie about homosexuality -- you could change that gay priest's hidden sins to something else (e.g. relationship with a married woman, a porn collection, an illegitimate child) and the movie will still be essentially the same. But change the ending and it ceases to be about a film about forgiveness. I can't comment on the Cuban film since I haven't seen it. I don't know -- I just seem bothered that these movies that are essentially unrelated get lumped together again in that imaginary category people think of as 'gay films'. What does it make the tv series ROME, which is bristling with homosexuality, among many other things? Even THE CRYING GAME is hardly about homosexuality (although you didn't say it was) -- it's about how people will ultimately do what's in their nature. You can change the homosexual to a woman with another deep, disturbing, dark secret and it's still the same movie. Maybe I can say more when I get to watch BROKEBACK -- which I think premieres next week. BTW, I believe we met a few years ago when I was working for UNA/Sky Internet/BayanTel -- with Timmy Diaz de Rivera and Bombim Cadiz. We were discussing how our network would connect to the then-planned PHnet exchange point. Robby Villabona, [email protected] Feb. 11, 2006 MY REPLY. If you prefer to classify gay films as films about �doing what�s in their nature�, then practically all films will fall under that generic category, including King Kong, all film biographies of Hitler, Napoleon, Alexander the Great, Mozart, Jesus Christ, Dracula, Frankenstein etc, all films about criminals, psychopaths, eccentrics, mad scientists, even normal and average people, even cartoons of Donald Duck, Mickey Mouse, Bambi, Cinderella�.they�re all about �doing what�s in their nature.� Sorry, I was never associated with BayanTel/UNA/Sky Internet. wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Mr. Abaya, I was amused by your assertion that Brokeback Mountain was a boring affair not worth your two hours, and that the hype it is attracting may spring from over-zealous PR managers. Then again, that was an Op-Ed column, and you know what they say about everyone having their own opinion. Then again, as I always tell my students in literature who find Nick Joaquin, NVM Gonzalez, etc. boring,: "That opinion may some more about you than it may about the work itself." I never found Brokeback Mountain boring. In fact, it moved me. In fact, it moved so many people I know, gay or straight. I couldn't sleep for two nights just thinking about it. And I am not alone: you will find so many people in the blogging world who are equally moved by the movie, that we are often amused when some people find it "boring." And trust me, Ang Lee didn't hire me to be a PR man for the movie either. The question is: did we see a totally different movie? Perhaps. I chose to block all the hype before I viewed it, and found a film that was very, very true. Now I can rightly say the hype is not without cause. It is a great movie. I just thank God that more people think about it the way I do. Ian Rosales Casocot, [email protected] Feb. 14, 2006 PS. You should watch the films of Ozu or Kurosawa or Wong Kar-Wai, and find new meaning in the so-called "meditative" film. MY REPLY. It may interest you to know that two of the films of Yasujiro Ozu (Tokyo Story, Early Summer) and five of Akira Kurosawa (Ikiru, Rashomon, Ran, Madadayo, The Seven Samurai) are included in my list of �The Best Films Ever Made�, which will come out in this website soon. I have two films by Wong Kar-Wai (Happy Together, In the Mood for Love) in my collection, but neither rates a listing by me. I prefer the films of Zhang Yimou (Raise the Red Lantern, The Story of Qiu Ju, Ju Dou, Not One Less). But in my opinion, the best meditative films are The Seventh Seal, by Ingmar Bergman, The Last Temptation of Christ, by Martin Scorsese, and The Barbarian Invasions, by Denys Arcand. So, contrary to your very perceptible sneer, I do like meditative films. wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww |
| Dear Mr. Abaya, I agree with all your observations on "Brokeback Mountain." I thought I was the only one who had difficulties understanding the lines of Heath Ledger. I wonder if he was not properly taught to deliver his lines, or had he just taken to heart the role he was playing?!!! I wonder! Linda C. Baisa, [email protected] March 09, 2006 OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO |