Sineng Pambansa, Day 4: Badil by Chito Roño
Badil, the edifying new film by Chito Roño, is required viewing for anyone who has ever wondered why Philippine politics is so screwed up. Students should be required to watch it. Politicians should be carried bodily into the cinemas and made to watch it. It should be shown on television every election season.
With minimal fuss and maximal astuteness, Roño goes to the root of our problem: the feudal/tribal system which perpetrates itself through patronage and the exploitation of Filipino values like “utang na loob” and “pakikisama”. Election campaigns are a farce—a big, glitzy show produced to entertain the citizenry. Behind the scenes, at the grassroots, the winners are known even before the ballots are cast.
Written by Rody Vera, Badil follows a small-town political operator and his son as they do their rounds on the day before the election. The father, a recent stroke victim (played by Dick Israel, himself a stroke victim), distributes cash to the mayor’s supporters and reminds them of personal favors they had received from the man. Everything is personal in Filipino politics. They get word of “dinamita”—a plot to manipulate the vote by paying the mayor’s supporters to stay home on election day. (According to Rody, “badil” is Waray for “dynamite fishing”, and in this context, “killing the vote”.)
When the father is unable to deal with the problem, the son (the excellent Jhong Hilario) is prevailed upon to do the job and “show the mayor that they are men who can be trusted”. Thus filial duty and family honor, backed up by the familiar troika of “guns, goons and gold”, are invoked to maintain the status quo.
Leading to the sad truth about Philippine politics: Whoever wins, we all lose.
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What have we learned from Sineng Pambansa, the All-Master Edition? We have learned that more than a big budget, what a filmmaker needs is the freedom to make the film his/her way.
Answers to questions you might be asking, unless you wandered onto this site purely by accident >>>
September 18th, 2013 at 16:13
In this film, Chito Rono had his way. Mga veterans sa teatro at pelikulang Pilipino ang supporting cast. Ala OTJ in a sense sa calibre ang buong cast. Nakakahinayang nga lang at konti lang ang mga nanood on its last day in SM cinemas. Pero syempre nagpalakpakan kami.
September 18th, 2013 at 20:53
I feared for everyone’s life while watching this. I was scared of the silence every time Lando kills the engine of his motorcycle. There were no shots fired on screen yet it was more tension-filled than OTJ.
September 19th, 2013 at 00:20
How very, very true in the far-flung provinces, places where the peripheries are rarely cared by the central power! This is the case during the tail-end of the elections period. Many don’t really care the outcome, they just wait for money! I can say that we must transcend from our present Pinoy values!