At the 16th Lumière Film Festival in Lyon, France, film enthusiasts gathered from around the world to share their appreciation for the art of cinema. Among the impressive lineup of films set to be screened from October 12th to 20th 2024, the one title that immediately stood out to me was Jaguar by Lino Brocka.
The resurrection of Jaguar and the Philippines’ cinematic heritage
Featured in the Festival Lumière’s « Lumière Classics & New Restorations : Treasures and Curiosities » section, the neo-noir crime film signed Lino Brocka made its long-awaited premiere, 40 years after its initial release in 1979. A fruitful collaboration between the Philippine Film Archive and Cité de Mémoire brought Philippine cinema back to light by showcasing Jaguar in its 4K restored version. This reintroduction of Jaguar was truly fitting with the Festival Lumière’s slogan : « The Re>Birth Place of Cinema ».
Following the screening of Jaguar at the festival, I had the opportunity to converse with Don G. Arawan and Julian Eudela, representatives of the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP), the leading national institution dedicated to preserving and protecting the Philippines’ cinematic heritage.
They shared that for nearly half a decade, many Filipino films were considered lost due to the lack of a governmental film archive. The years of colonialism and the various wars that the Philippines endured contributed to the erosion of its cinematic heritage, and currently, the FDCP holds only 5 surviving pre-war films. It is truly unfortunate, considering the wealth of stories that Philippine cinema still has yet to tell.
A major challenge now confronting the FDCP-PFA is locating films no longer accessible within the country, being that many national filmmakers deposited their works in international film archives.
For instance, many of Lino Brocka’s master negatives can be found all around the world because during the 1980s, he found himself smuggling his films to and from the Philippines. Brocka resorted to this due to the heavy censorship and severe media & arts repression under the Marcos administration at the time.
Therefore, film repatriation has been a key mission of the PFA, aiming to preserve Filipino cinema. They have been successful with the retrieval of multiple Filipino films, such as Brocka’s Jaguar, Insiang, and Maynila, sa mga Kuko ng Liwanag.
However, the restoration process of these films is no easy feat. Caroline Caruelle from Cité de Mémoire explained that the restoration is an extremely delicate, meticulous, and time-consuming endeavor. One film is never like another, so the restoration process needs to be adapted depending on the film’s characteristics, such as its condition.
Jaguar’s year-long restoration was well worth the effort, given its profound cultural importance. Being more than just a film, Jaguar is a vital piece of heritage gifted to future generations by Lino Brocka.
Lino Brocka : a trailblazer for Filipino Cinema
Following his untimely death in 1991, he was posthumously awarded the title of ‘National Artist of the Philippines for Film’ for his significant contributions to the development of Philippine arts. Since then, Lino Brocka has become one of the pillars of Philippine Cinema, and his legacy persists in the nation’s collective memory.
The FDCP describes him as « A citizen with a film camera », which perfectly embodies who he was for the people. Lino Brocka was, with no doubt, an outspoken and fervent critic of the Marcos dictatorship. As a result of his political activism, he was even imprisoned and at one point was prevented from leaving the Philippines.
Despite these obstacles, the Ramon Magsaysay Awards committee stated that he still went on to make cinema a « vital social commentary, awakening public consciousness to disturbing realities of life among the Filipino poor ».
He was, and still is, a fearless hero to many. His impact endures through his socially realistic films which offer a sharp analysis – and often critique – of Filipino society and its oppressive social structures during the Marcos dictatorship, a theme recurring throughout much of his work.
Brocka’s analysis of Filipino society through Jaguar
Jaguar by Lino Brocka, initially released in 1979, received numerous accolades, including acclaim at the Cannes Film Festival in 1980 where it became the first Filipino film nominated for the prestigious Palme d’Or.
This intense but visually striking film tells the story of Poldo who finds himself stuck between two opposing worlds : the slums of Tondo and a glamorous Manila. While working as a security guard in a luxury apartment house, Poldo’s life takes a turn when he saves a resident, Sonny, from one of his rivals, and becomes his personal bodyguard. Poldo’s gradual ascent in social status comes at the cost of a moral decline as he gets roped into the criminal underworld.
Throughout the film, Brocka offers an astute portrayal of class dynamics in a heavily class-divided Philippine society by highlighting themes of poverty, violence, and survival in a dog-eat-dog world.
The ending, marked by Poldo’s explosive and slightly manic anger, left a lasting impression illustrated by audible gasps echoing throughout the theater. We witness him unleash his inner beast — worthy of his nickname « Jaguar » — as he goes on a total rampage, intent on destroying everything and everyone around him. In the final scene Poldo is locked up in a dark jail cell, his eyes filled with nothing but realization, despair, and solitude. With everyone’s eyes glued on the screen, it was clear that the audience shared his rage, as if they too had experienced the injustices he suffered.
Jaguar is truly one of the many hidden gems of Philippine cinema. It is a powerful film in which Lino Brocka manages to masterfully confront the issues that took over the Philippines during the Marcos regime.
As a Filipino myself, I was profoundly moved by Jaguar, and it was of the utmost importance for me to reconnect with my country’s heritage after being detached from it for so many years. I was delighted to see that even decades after its release, its message still resonates with audiences around the world.
Witnessing this impactful and beautifully crafted film’s new life on the big screen at the Festival Lumière was both an honor and a reminder of how important a nation’s cinematic heritage is. It is crucial for cinema to endure so that generations of stories and history may continue to be shared.
