海角大神

Two new films are going head to head in theaters across the Philippines this month, both claiming to be based on verifiable and documented evidence but offering dramatically different versions of the country鈥檚 dark period of martial law.

鈥淥ras de Peligro鈥� (Time of Danger) combines archival footage with dramatization to depict the final days of the 1986 People Power Revolution, focusing on the perspective of a regular, working-class family who suffered under the regime of former President Ferdinand Marcos.

鈥淢artyr or Murderer鈥� delves into the experiences of his daughter, Sen. Maria Imelda Josefa 鈥淚mee鈥� Marcos, who is also the film鈥檚 creative producer. It spans from her father鈥檚 days as a young politician through the family鈥檚 life post-ouster, and paints an unflattering picture of former Sen. Benigno 鈥淣inoy鈥� Aquino, whose 1983 assassination helped spur the uprising.聽

鈥淥ras de Peligro鈥� and 鈥淢artyr or Murderer鈥� have each been criticized for distorting the truth, reflecting a deep schism in Filipinos鈥� understanding of how the martial law period actually unfolded and the people at its center. It鈥檚聽a divide highlighted by the rise of President Ferdinand 鈥淏ongbong鈥� Marcos Jr., whose 2022 election victory was seen by many as the culmination of a decadeslong rehabilitation campaign by the Marcos family, which sought to downplay the atrocities committed under their patriarch.

Francisco Jayme Guiang from the University of the Philippines鈥� history department, says the films 鈥渙ffer two different things 鈥� the perspective of the big names in Philippine history, and the perspective of ordinary Filipinos.鈥�

鈥淏ut the question is, are these perspectives honest, right, and factual?鈥� he says. 鈥淥ne thing that is good with these kinds of movies getting in cinemas, is that this period of history is being talked about. We can see the discourse. Our interpretation of the past is being contested, particularly during the period of the military rule of Marcos Sr.鈥�

Battle of narratives

While 鈥淥ras de Peligro鈥� director Joel Lamangan has said his film has 鈥渘o intention to criticize or favor鈥� any political figure, observers consider it a clear rebuttal to 鈥淢artyr or Murderer,鈥� which is the second installment in a trilogy of pro-Marcos films directed by Darryl Yap, the first being 鈥淢aid in Malaca帽ang鈥� (2022).

The country is witnessing 鈥渁 battle of narratives,鈥� says Karl Patrick Suyat, head of Project Gunita, a digital repository of books, magazines, and newspaper clippings that shine a light on martial law injustices.聽

鈥淚t is not really a battle of facts,鈥� says the archivist, who has seen both movies. 鈥淚t is how filmmakers package these facts in the form of propaganda.鈥�

Historians have long sounded alarms over the Marcos family鈥檚 aggressive use of any platform, from social media to TV interviews, to promote their own version of history. But political scientist Antonio Contreras argues in his Manila Times column that 鈥淥ras de Peligro鈥� also fits the propaganda bill. What 鈥渉eightens the element of propaganda鈥� in that film, he explains, 鈥渋s the suggestion that the suffering of the family was unique to the period as if it was only martial law and Marcos that can inflict such injustice.鈥�

And at least in the box office, the pro-Marcos narrative is winning. 鈥淢artyr or Murderer鈥� reportedly earned between $145,000 to $271,000 U.S. dollars on its first showing day, compared to around $9,000 in ticket sales of its rival, which also opened on March 1. Its success is at least partly due to the fact that 鈥淢artyr or Murderer鈥� is playing in more than 250 cinemas compared to the 108 of the anti-dictatorship film. 鈥淢artyr or Murderer鈥� has also debuted in several foreign countries.

Alvi Siongco, one of the 鈥淥ras de Peligro鈥� producers, says his team is planning to release the film internationally, but promoting it in the Philippines is their priority.

鈥淭his film is about the truth and truth is our weapon. People must use this weapon against any attempt to distort history, especially now that there are people who are using art or films to spread disinformation. And we cannot allow that to flourish,鈥� he says.

Facts versus fiction

On a recent Sunday afternoon, a lighthearted family outing to see 鈥淢artyr or Murderer鈥� ended in a heated argument at a Manila mall, with Jasper Calderon insisting to his father that there was 鈥渘o evidence鈥� linking Mr. Aquino to the country鈥檚 communist rebels, an unfounded claim repeated by Marcos allies and aimed at tarnishing Mr. Aquino鈥檚 legacy.

鈥淭he movie has shown the proof,鈥� his father bellowed, throwing out his hands for emphasis.聽

Neither Jasper nor his father are staunch supporters of any political family, but they have two colliding interpretations of the film. The elder Mr. Calderon was convinced that 鈥淢artyr or Murderer鈥� was an honest portrayal of the period, whereas his son, a marketing executive in Quezon City, took issue with how it presented 鈥渘ew claims without providing enough context.鈥澛�

鈥淚 watched the film because I really wanted to hear the Marcos family鈥檚 side of the story,鈥� he says, 鈥渂ut there are claims shown in the movie that needed context and hard proof, especially claims against Ninoy,鈥� or Mr. Aquino.

In the film, Mr. Aquino is presented as self-absorbed and sexist. The filmmakers also used Mr. Aquino鈥檚 wife and former President Corazon 鈥淐ory鈥� Aquino鈥檚 own words during her interview with Vanity Fair in 1988. 鈥淢y husband, well, he was a male chauvinist,鈥� she told the magazine.

As much as these films may spark interest in Philippine history, experts worry about viewers taking them at face value.

鈥淧eople have a tendency to believe whatever is presented in a film that claims to be 鈥� about history,鈥� says Professor Guiang, from the University of the Philippines.

Ultimately these movies are 鈥渃reative works,鈥� says Francis Gealogo, a historian from Ateneo de Manila University and a former commissioner of the National Historical Commission of the Philippines. 鈥淭here is a difference between a historical film and a period film.鈥澛�

For his part, Jasper Calderon welcomes films like 鈥淢artyr or Murderer鈥� and 鈥淥ras de Peligro,鈥� warts and all. He thinks they ought to be shown to a wider audience for free.聽

鈥淟et them spark debate and discord,鈥� he says. 鈥淚t is only through a conflict of perspectives and narratives, even with our own family or community, that truth reveals itself.鈥�