Of sacred pacts
Review of Roderick Cabrido's "Tuos."
(Screenshot from YouTube)
"Tuos" maps out the richness of Filipino culture, traditions, and beliefs. We have never been poor when it comes to this sphere. Way before the Hispanic reign, the preponderance of the Filipino praxis is irrevocable.
Through Mycko David's splendiferous cinematography, "Tuos" transports us to the Panay Islands where the Binukot princess Pina-Ilog (Nora Aunor) and her successor, Dowokan (Barbie Forteza), reside.
The Binukot princess is the living archive of everything that makes the tribal community culturally affluent – traditional songs, dances, chants, and oral lore. Such is her importance that she is sequestered from the public, appearing only when traditional performances are required. The premeditated storytelling reveals how deep the Binukot’s importance really is. Interjected with a medley of animation and shadow play, Tuos divulges a self-perpetuating pact between the beast Buyong Makabagting and Tikum Kadlum, the ancestor of the Binukot. This pact makes the
Binukot princess both a mediator and offering to the beast in order “to appease him.”
Pina-Ilog, already ripe with age, hones her granddaughter, Dowokan, for the cumbersome task. Dowokan is resolute yet compassionate, making her grandmother believe that she is up to the task. However, Dowokan’s tenacity in carving her own path matches her grandmother’s adherence to the tribe’s rules. An unexpected circumstance would force Pina-Ilog to choose between honoring the pact and letting her granddaughter be happy.
(Screenshot from YouTube)
Directed by award-winning documentary filmmaker Roderick Cabrido, and starring Philippine cinema’s Superstar Nora Aunor, "Tuos" auspiciously makes a bang. It did not disappoint when it bagged the Best Sound, Best Production Design, Best Original Musical Score, Best Cinematography, and Audience Choice Feature Film awards in the recently-concluded Cinemalaya Film Festival.
"Tuos" is a force to be reckoned with. It is not easy to digest. Cabrido boldly ventures to explore the immortal dichotomy of black and white. The harrowing differences are very evident in the film. We see the division of tradition and civilization, reality and the shadow world, old and young, nature and man.
"Tuos" fills us with a plethora of shots and scenes juxtaposing opposites in our world. We see the tribal community’s dogma in traditional healing and Dowokan’s receptiveness to the civilized way. The Sugidanon epic of Panay sung in shadow play and the reality narrated by Denise O’Hara is clearly elucidated. We feast on the silent skirmish between the grandmother and her successor as they clash in beliefs, attitudes, and actions. We see a macro shot of animals, particularly insects, followed by an aerial shot of the forest nurturing these insects. Cabrido, however, substantiates that the world is not divided into black and white as some people would have us believe. He debunks the misconception that there is an absolute dichotomy in everything.
(Screenshot from YouTube)
There exists a line, a part, a gap where the two opposing forces meet – the gray part. Between tradition and civilization lies knowledge, a perspicacity to distinguish right from wrong. Between reality and the shadow world exists the Binukot, constantly considering the welfare of the community and the satisfaction of the beast. Between the old and the young are the adults who are wise enough to understand the old but not old enough to underrate the young people. Between nature and man is a mediator who understands the wrath of nature but recognizes the needs of human beings.
"Tuos" avouches that balance does not exist through black and white tipping each other’s part of the scale. Balance is kept through the existence of the gray.
In Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird”, Aunt Alexandra attributes the town’s reliance to their own apprehension to do things themselves. In "Tuos," it’s the Binukot princess who is relied to, looked up to, and revered by everyone because she does the things that everyone is too afraid to do. As if that isn’t much, men have created a set of rules, creating boundaries and restricting freedom. In the case of "Tuos," the Binukot princess is not to be touched by anyone but her handmaiden, Mayhuran (Flor Salanga). Marriage in the town is fixed.
(Screenshot from YouTube)
Rules are said to preserve the balance in our world. It equalizes everyone. Thomas Jefferson once said that all men are created equal. If we indeed are, why are there rules to equalize everyone? "Tuos" asserts that it’s because men are not created equal in the face of the world. Some are born with more opportunities than others. Some are born gifted, some are born talented. Some are deprived of one or the other. Dowokan is shown to have special privileges because she is the chosen successor of the tribal community. She even boasts to Dapuan (Ronwaldo Martin) that no one can afford her dowry. In the latter part of the film, though, she questions the unjustifiable nature of the rules. She contends that she does not choose to be born a successor. Others have made that decision for her.
The same applies to everyone. We did not choose which traits we are born with. We did not choose to whom we are born. We did not choose where we are born. Despite the absence of our hand in these things, we are restricted with rules accompanied by our birth, our birth rights, and our birthplace. Consequently, when we break rules we are faced with heart-wrenching bigotries.
Tuos brashly attempts to deal with something big, but seldom dealt with. It creates a pact between the audience and the filmmakers which is marked by the last scene where the dog seems to break the barrier between the film and the cinema house itself.
Disclaimer: the contents of this review are solely the opinion of the writer, and does not necessarily represent the whole PLM Film Society.
