May 9, 1897 was the 22nd birthday of Gregoria "Oriang" de Jesus. She went to the house of President Emilio Aguinaldo to beg him to stop the planned execution of her husband Andres Bonifacio (Rocco Nacino) and his brother Procopio. However, Aguinaldo did not meet her himself. Instead, another official rebuffed her request, even telling her that she's lucky that was not arrested herself. After these rude words, Oriang was roughly driven out of the house.
This was the first scene of this stylized biopic about the life of the strong woman behind the Supremo of the Katipunan, a nationalistic organization launched in 1892 aiming to win independence of the Philippines from her Spanish conquerors via an armed revolution. She had married Andres in 1893, defying her parents' objections. She was initiated into the women's chapter of the Katipunan in 1894, choosing Lakambini as her code name.
Of course, the story about Andres Bonifacio and the Katipunan had been told and retold in many films before. The infamous Tejeros convention was reenacted in detail, with the hateful actions of Daniel Tirona (Allan Paule) highlighted. The controversial issue about Oriang's rape vs. molestation by Agapito Bonzon (James Lomohan) was also tackled. On a more personal note, we learned that she was a good cook, able to identify ingredients of a dish by smell.
The lesser-known story of Oriang after Andres's death was also given screen time. We learn about the harrowing 30 days Oriang spent looking for her husband's body in the mountains. We also learn about her marriage to Julio Nakpil (Paulo Avelino), a musician who became a trusted officer of Bonifacio, using the code name Giliw. In Nakpil's senior years, he was played by Spanky Manikan, who had already passed away in 2018.
Several scenes were interpretations of various writings of Oriang in her own memoirs written in 1928. They dramatized the letter of Oriang to the Gobernadorcillo requesting for rescue because her parents confined her in a house in Binundok to hide her from Andres. Even the romantic letter of Andres to Oriang which went viral 10 years ago was featured, but it was quickly declared as fictional by writer Eljay Castro Deldoc.
There was likewise a scene accompanied by the song "Pag-ibig sa Tinubuang Lupa," with lyrics from a poem written by Andres Bonifacio. There was a party scene where Hen. Luciano San Miguel (Pepe Herrera) was singing the patriotic song "Katipunan," written by Julio Nakpil.
Aside from telling Oriang's story, this film was also a documentary of sorts about the circuitous path it took to be created. The initial stage of its creation was in 2015 under director Jeffrey Jeturian, but shooting stopped after only nine days because the sponsors pulled out. Finally, the film was completed this year, coincidentally and fortuitously exactly the 150th birth anniversary of Oriang, under the direction of Arjanmar Rebeta.
It began with a birthday, and ended with a birthday -- full circle. But because its shooting had been interrupted into small parts over 10 years, there was sometimes inconsistent continuity in the locations, props and costumes. Also, that was the reason why three actresses played Oriang in this final film -- Lovi Poe, Elora Espano, and Gina Pareno. They used this as a metaphor about how any Filipino woman can be Oriang. 6/10
A very nice review 🙂 I realized that it could really be a metaphor rather than just confusing actresses who appear to be Ka Oriang.
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