Regardless the controversial topic and my non-knowledge of the reality of those events (for example, volume of corruption within police and acceptance of gays in the Phillippines), as for a film as such, it was skilfully accomplished: good/great performances by major actors, versatile direction and appropriate choice of music made Ang pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros a smooth watch.Due to limited space and time, however, the film had several documentary elements, and several events happening in the dark did not allow to follow them carefully (perhaps by virtue of modest technology used?). Thus, not a total contentment for me, but definitely a distinguishing and challenging creation to be screened in various festivals.

Though its a thoroughly Catholic-dominated country, the Philippines is said to have a more lax attitude towards "the gay" than other more liberal, democratic countries, like the one I live in. Many point to its cinema as evidence of this. Of course, this is from the outside looking in. LGBT folks, particularly the effeminate "bakla" male, might be commonplace in Philippine film, but the ones we don't see on screen face a particular type of oppression. They are often an object of ridicule, stereotyped as shallow, loud-talking and outrageously "mayabang," and usually sex-crazed. And a lot of folks, gay or straight, eat it up.Despite its deceptive marketing (from the DVD cover/promo poster to the trailer), Auraeus Solito's Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros/The Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros (2006) isn't at all about a flamboyantly gay boy's crush on the hunky neighborhood police officer that happens to be set in a third world barrio. The story is the barrio, and all its contradictions, initially dressed up as a neorealist comedy evoking both Lino Brocka and Bagets at once before taking a darker turn halfway through.Like all good (worthwhile) Philippine stories, its aware of acute third world contradictions without overtly speaking on it. If Brillante Mendoza's work emphasizes people's idealism despite wretched conditions, Solito's flips the formula. His Philippines is one where the people are wretched but the settings, still unmistakably impoverished, can also be a magical, wonderfully pastel-colored place. Maxi (Nathan Lopez) is 12-years old, gay, and plays surrogate mother to his family of petty thieves: tatay Paco (Soliman Cruz) and his older brothers Boy and Bog. The barrio is his playground, until one night he's assaulted by some knuckleheads. Policeman Victor (JR Valentin) comes to his rescue, and they become friends much to his family's objection. Matters complicate when Boy ends up killing somebody in a botched robbery attempt. Lopez brings remarkable ease to the title character, embodying urban poor Philippines with simplicity and struggle. His selfless need/want to care for others is carried by a fragile balance between a naive confidence of who he is and a growing insecurity of where he is (and where he's heading). He dreams in a bubble in the process of bursting, asking his father "Wala na bang ibang paraan itay?" (Is there no other way, dad?)On the surface, he's nothing like his macho, gun-toting father. However, beneath the princess demeanor, he is his father's son, perhaps more so than his brothers. Conditions have forced Paco to consider what is more dignified: starving with a factory job, or getting by as a petty thief. Maxi has inherited his father's most lasting trait: a commitment to keep the family together. Or at least fed, clothed and sheltered, even if it means doing the "wrong" thing. Thus, Maxi's "blossoming" has less to do with dealing with his rejected affections for Victor and more with facing down the reality of his family's livelihood. Restrained by necessity rather than stylistic choice, Solito shows us what could be done with a digital camera, $10,000US and 13 days of shooting. It's a style of film that can never be overdone in the Philippines, where lack of support from the media industry and government and resources forces an organic creativity.Solito's execution is matched by writer Michiko Yamamoto's (Magnifico, 2003) gift for compact, delightful drama/comedy without teetering to far in either direction. Thanks to this collaboration, Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros is a leap forward from the gay caricatures we've gotten too used to, and yet another piece of a compelling argument that Philippine cinema isn't all cornball and melodrama. Or, that a movie can still have those elements and not be shitty.

I had the chance, finally, of catching ANG PAGDADALAGA NI MAXIMO OLIVEROS last Saturday afternoon at Glorietta 1.Used to watching digital works, more or less Alma KO Na Kong No Ange MAG limitations nag movie even before I took my seat in the decently filled theater and anticipate the first reel to roll. (I say decently Dali Hindi man Ito pun, Mariam ring nonfood.) The cinematography, Dali nag shot in digital, may problem SA quality, especially during the interior and night scenes, very grainy. Pixelized pa nag. Or pa rang Kuhn SA Super 8. The scene when Maxi got the letter from Victor, obviously Natka-auto focus Ange Lent Dali fighting Ange rear SA foreground. A problem that could have been solved by either re-taking the said scene or using more adept manual camera lens operation; Na med yo unforgivable Kong abuses Lang cameraman.Medyo irritating din for me Young MAG zooming in shots SA Gurkha Ni Maxi. Ilang bases tong giant. This passé technique Na Kincaid Lang normally SA MAG amateur, handy camera handlers, at nays Rina SA Lian noting MAG bold movies during the 80's and the pity-PTO of the 90's ya Sang very unimaginative way to make emphasis.Most scenes are shot using hand-held cameras, and even using the protracted takes or mies en scene. Uso Ito SA video, where mas natural Ange flow nag Sang Essen Kong Atatürk Na Lang at walking Ange camera, either surrounded or NASA Gina para Hindi Na clanging i-edit. Very evident Ito SA Ubangi Essen Kong Sana SAM-seaman Jamaican SA hap-Kienan SO Maxi Kasai Ange Pamelina Nina. I can understand Na Dali saguaro SA spatial limitations, kayak halos narcotic Na Ange camerae SA MAG tao. Think NYPD Blue, like the scene mung shaken Ange bong bahs Nina Maxi.I like the grimy vignettes showing the slums and its inhabitants. Au natural.The audio is sometimes inaudible in a few scenes Dali nag live sound. Sana mas ma-enhance pa. The music, especially the strings, is just played at the right time. The movie is mostly quiet, and I guess that's more fitting.Meron ding counting problem SA continuity. There was one scene Na caplet nag among SO Victor, the next scene shows him wearing shorts. At pa rang ubiquitous SO Maxi, Na tipping Nansen gad Siva SA counting Abra o may menagerie Kay Victor. Like the scene nonage Donal nag very 'lithe and fragile' body Ni Maxi Ange 'bulk at heavyset' body Ni Victor SA bahs into. Well, well…Sabik nag, if you only think of terms of plausibility SA beat Essen SA pluckily, ala Lang bubo. Anyway, cliché man Siva, Sabik nag, it can only happen in the movies.Nathan Lopez carries the movie single-handedly. A born natural. Very perfect for the role of a 'nagdadalaga'. JR Valentin as the well-mannered and principled policeman is convincing enough save for some bland and monotonous line deliveries. Sa exchange penman Nina SO Maxi Kong apatite nag into Ange nailing pumas, para saying nabobs nag script. His best scene however for me was mung Nanjing Siva nag hulk Ni Maxi SA posing. Genuine Young surprised Nina, at Page-shake nag UL Saba git.The 'barako' family of Maximo are all stalwarts: Soliman Cruz as the father dotes on his 'unica his' Maxi at almost every scene. Nakakabagabag Ange Essen Kong Sana sample Nina SO Neil Ryan as Bogs bang Majesty Ito nag tao. Si Ping Medina, halos carbon copy nag Tatar Nina, SO Pen. The scene where Maxi cries on his shoulder makes one feel on the pains of rejection.The ending, contrary to public reaction, is not totally original. Obviously, the filmmaker must have taken his inspiration from the closing shot of Carol Reed's The Third Man, Kong Sana glimpsing Ni Alida Valli SO Joseph Cotten ha-bang accentual din Ito SA Saskatoon Nina Na pa rang waling Nikita.Technical-wise, the film is flawed. Pero all in all, for a digital effort, this film is a gem. Michiko Yamamoto shows she is not just a one-shot-wonder scriptwriter. Aureus Solito is in, definitely. The film's main strength I guess is its simple, bittersweet storytelling of two figures that have the most unlikely relation – a dignified cop whose conviction is on the brink of collapsing, and an adolescent boy challenged to face his loyalties between love and family. Siguro Ito Na Lang Ange mas banyan nag pan sin nag Kremlin nag MAG jurors Kong kayak't Kalila't-Janean Nguyen Ange accepting noting MAG papery.

Although the main character is gay, this is not a gay film. The beauty of the film is that it does not make fun of the gay character. Maxi is well-loved and accepted by his family and the community.There is plenty of humor but this light treatment of the story does not at all trivialize the message that the film wants to bring across to the audience. Scriptwriter Michiko Yamamoto who also wrote the award-winning "Magnifico" has improved her skill in storytelling and is not at all melodramatic this time. She has done away with subplots that don't move the main story much, a weakness of many Filipino scriptwriters who want to tell everything, including the entire history of the Philippines, in one movie. Her characters are all balanced – no one is all-evil or all-saint. The most touching scenes are those that show the tenderness of Maxi's tough-guy family to him. However, there are technical glitches that need to be fixed, and with digital technology editing may still be possible, e.g. scenes that are too dark or the screen going black for too long, making the oldies in the audience worry that perhaps the "lagarista" has been caught in traffic with the next roll of film. It is not often that Filipinos abroad get to see a rare gem like this film. Thanks to digital film-making and indie cinema and the film festivals in many countries.