Joel Lamangan's independent film Patikul, one of the entries in this year's Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival, has garnered mixed reviews from critics and casual viewers.
Some brand the project as "an explicit exercise of fakery," owing to the fact, among other arguments, that the movie was shot in a location near Metro Manila, and not in war-torn Sulu, Mindanao, as the title boldly highlights.
Others compare the movie to a television soap opera, based on the eventual twist of the story as the plot progresses to its affirmative conclusion.
There's nothing wrong with these observations as each viewer is entitled to his/her own interpretation of a film. And that's what makes the motion picture business more thrilling and colorful, to say the least.
INSPIRED BY REAL EVENTS. First, we must understand the conditions that shaped Patikul's storyline, as written by Kristoffer Brugada. (The screenplay clinched 1st place for the Dulang Pampelikula category of the 2010 Palanca Awards.)
The story tackles the longstanding conflict between government troops and Abu Sayyaf rebels, whose initial fight for autonomy has led, unfortunately, to terrorist tactics.
Brugada focuses on just one of the many consequences of this armed conflict on the innocent young people and residents caught in the crossfire—growing illiteracy brought about by interrupted education provided by schools.
The inspiration for Patikul was the 2009 gruesome murder of Kan-Ague Elementary School principal Gabriel "Bong" Canizares. He was abducted, and later beheaded by Abu Sayyaf bandits when the P2 million ransom was not given.
The incident prompted the Department of Education (DepEd) to suspend the classes of more than 50,000 school children in Sulu, stressing lack of protection provided by the military to teachers and instructors assigned in the area.
In February 2010, an article written by Milwida M. Guevara for the Philippine Daily Inquirer relayed how villagers and parents of the affected school children rallied together by serving as security escorts to ensure the safety of the teachers.
STRONG MESSAGE. Brugada tweaked the story a bit to add more drama to the already tragic story.
In the screenplay and film version, Kan-Ague Elementary School principal Michael Balmes (Marvin Agustin) chooses to ignore the perils of working in a war zone territory to fulfill his role as a dedicated teacher to impoverished students.
Balmes's commitment is reflected in how rigorously he trains and supports the regional quiz bee bid of his talented students Fahad (Martin delos Santos) and Alelie (Angeli Nicole Sanoy).
Following the demise of Balmes at the hands of his abductors, Fahad and Alelie still compete, both of them dedicating their efforts to their fallen mentor.
Fahad's illiterate father Amman (Allen Dizon), on the other hand, leads his fellow coffee farmers and villagers to escort the traumatized teachers everyday.
