A Faustian bargain drives the story of Dolphy's 1977 film Omeng Satanasia. When an old scientist (Dolphy) fails to create an elixir of youth for himself, a gay demon (also Dolphy) offers him youth in exchange for his soul, that is unless he can find true love before a one year time limit expires. The rest of the film (clocking in at more than two and a half hours) consists of the youthful Gregory Casanova (also Dolphy) doing just that.
The film is mostly remarkable for garnering Dolphy his first (and in my recollection, only) FAMAS award for acting for playing four roles in this film. Granted, we don't really see much of the fourth character, an angel, but it counts. The movie itself hasn't aged quite as well, but there are a number of things that still stand out even today. For its time, its use of special effects and split screen techniques is impressive.
Dolphy's stories seem to always have a moral lesson to tell. In this case, it's the fact that money and youth don't always buy happiness. During the pre-screening program, Bibeth Orteza mentioned the fact that Dolphy was being considered for a National Artist nod, but the latest effort was rejected because he "romanticized poverty." This in my view is a ludicrous statement, considering the time in which these movies were made. His works were subversive in their own quiet, often comedic way. In particular, this film can be interpreted as a rejection of ill-gotten wealth, and that there are some things more precious than youth or money. That makes the final frames of the movie, a shot of Omeng with the only thing that he truly values, even more poignant.
The legendary Nora Aunor has numerous films under her belt, but this film in particular stands out from most of her other films, if only for its place in pop culture as the movie that had her saying "my brother is not a pig!" Without context, it sounds bizarre, but in the proper context the implication of that line is haunting and relevant even today. Minsa'y Isang Gamu-gamo is an essential postcolonial work, as it shows the lasting effects of the United States on our country.
The film mostly follows regular melodramatic conventions of the era, managing to use these conventions to bring about its intended patriotic message. The Philippines of Minsa'y Isang Gamu-gamo is a country with a significant foreign military presence still within its bounds, decades away from the eventual removal of a permanent US military presence in the country. Even though the Filipinos of this era are virtually treated like second class citizens in their own country, they defer to the colonizers and accept this perceived inferiority due to economic or pragmatic reasons.
But the film's characters soon assert themselves against the Americans and their sympathizers; in this context, "my brother is not a pig" is a declaration of humanity, of sovereignty, a statement of peers, not inferiors. The film goes on to show two examples of what can happen if we fight back, and the outcomes come off as a bit pessimistic: the first shows our propensity to compromise in the face of increasing pressure, the second shows how futile it can be, because of how lopsided the system is made to be. The reasons for these outcomes are varied and complex, but the ending scene can be interpreted as one example of a root cause for our irrational deference to former colonizers: we're hardwired to serve and be helpful.
The film also sears indelible images in its frames: a shot of F4s flying overhead, a kite, colored in the red,white and blue of both our flags, stained with blood, and Nora Aunor's enigmatic expression in the final frames of the film, searching for a sense of justice that proves elusive.
The film mostly follows regular melodramatic conventions of the era, managing to use these conventions to bring about its intended patriotic message. The Philippines of Minsa'y Isang Gamu-gamo is a country with a significant foreign military presence still within its bounds, decades away from the eventual removal of a permanent US military presence in the country. Even though the Filipinos of this era are virtually treated like second class citizens in their own country, they defer to the colonizers and accept this perceived inferiority due to economic or pragmatic reasons.
But the film's characters soon assert themselves against the Americans and their sympathizers; in this context, "my brother is not a pig" is a declaration of humanity, of sovereignty, a statement of peers, not inferiors. The film goes on to show two examples of what can happen if we fight back, and the outcomes come off as a bit pessimistic: the first shows our propensity to compromise in the face of increasing pressure, the second shows how futile it can be, because of how lopsided the system is made to be. The reasons for these outcomes are varied and complex, but the ending scene can be interpreted as one example of a root cause for our irrational deference to former colonizers: we're hardwired to serve and be helpful.
The film also sears indelible images in its frames: a shot of F4s flying overhead, a kite, colored in the red,white and blue of both our flags, stained with blood, and Nora Aunor's enigmatic expression in the final frames of the film, searching for a sense of justice that proves elusive.
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