from the lenses of the west

the year of living dangerously, directed by peter weir, has been a fixture on the TNT channel, now turner classic movies for decades. but it was only the other day that i got a peek in its entirety. although gazing at a much younger mel gibson (aussie accent and all) titillate our inhibitions, it was the marked squalor and poverty that floored my qualms and compunctions. the film, based on a novel by C.J. Koch, was released in 1982 and a collaboration between australia and MGM productions. the narrative followed gibson as guy hamilton an australian journalist covering indonesia circa 1965, during the overthrow of president sukarno. but it easily could have have been the philippines in the early 80's with nary an end to the marcos dictatorship. shot mostly in the philippines, bembol rocco co- starred alongside a flawless sigourney weaver and a brilliant linda hunt, who won an oscar. rocco as kumar is a pivotal role in the movie. kuh ledesma is tiger lily, the dark beauty with very few lines. you have domingo landicho, one of the finest filipino writers, screaming maawa na po kayo, huwag ninyo siyang saktan!(please have mercy, don't hurt him!). i always wonder when i read about this line in the twisted books if the producers were too complacent to research further on bahasa indonesia. after this film, hot mel did mad max beyond thunderdome, then hollywood and worldwide stardom was in his grasp.

i was easily touched by the marked penury and deprivation. the setting may be jakarta, but one could feel the essence of manila. i like to think that my country has gone forward. if indigence has not been totally eliminated, at least it has been culled. or i'm just dreaming again.