Jorge Arago on Bernal
Images from Sari-Saring Sineng Pinoy. Nunal sa Tubig was written by Jorge Arago and directed by Ishmael Bernal.
At our DVD dealer’s shop Butch pointed out Porcile (Pigpen) by Pier Paolo Pasolini and said it was one of Ishmael Bernal’s favorite movies. Bernal was particularly fond of the tag line, “I killed my father, I ate human flesh and I quiver with joy.”
Last week Butch and Uro attended the wake of Jorge Arago, a close friend and collaborator of Bernal. Arago had been writing a biography of the director, and in 2010 he published this essay online. If you have even the slightest interest in Filipino cinema we urge you to read it.
Pro-Bernal, Anti-Bio by Jorge Arago
We must get our hands on that biography.
In lieu of an obituary Butch sent this piece by Jonathan Franzen on his friend David Foster Wallace, Robinson Crusoe, and the island of solitude.
Answers to questions you might be asking, unless you wandered onto this site purely by accident >>>
January 5th, 2012 at 11:05
Which of Bernal’s films are now available on DVD?
January 5th, 2012 at 11:10
You mean officially? (Hysterical laughter)
January 5th, 2012 at 16:20
Yes, officially — I believe I’ve seen some in stores though I can’t remember exactly which ones.
January 6th, 2012 at 01:16
Oh right, they were selling dvds of Himala at Powerbooks a few years ago.
January 6th, 2012 at 12:14
I vaguely remember also seeing a DVD of Moral. We should make a list.