For the people of Infanta, Quezon, the month of May is devoted to the Blessed Virgin. Mayohan is what they call this tradition. A month-long series of novenas is instigated and a pasayaw marks the end of the festivity. Several happenings revolve around the seemingly religious and spiritual event.
I took notice of 7 C’s while watching the movie.
Cellphone. Lilibeth (Lovi Poe) is told by her friends a cellphone would be useful in time. And then she spends other people’s money to buy one. Niño (Elijah Castillo), the city kid who visits his parents’ hometown, softly exclaims when he discovers he left his cellphone back home. His uncle Ruben (Ping Medina) says he won’t let Niño borrow his phone. Well, how can he be able to text his “girlfriendS”? The cellphone is considered as such a necessity that the present-day human being is expected to be totally at a loss without this invention. Technology nowadays is too convenient it’s scary. Everything happens in an instant there’s no assurance it won’t be gone in an instant. For example: cellphone -> textmate -> blind date -> instant lover -> instant baby -> instant break up -> back to zero.
Chismis. It is said Filipino culture is rich with superstitions about anything and everything. Being naturally superstitious, we Filipinos tend to make and believe certain rumors that we encounter. We are fond of making stories about the lives of other people, whether these stories are true or not. Chismis or gossip is a recreation and entertainment to the common folk, but a despicable enemy to the rich and powerful. The most common victims of chismis are the politicians. The mayor in the movie supposedly chose not-so-pretty girls to dance with during the pasayaw to avoid chismis. Chismis is so powerful it can ruin people’s lives. The sad thing is not all chismis is true and it can tarnish the reputation of a good person.
Conference. Regularly attending events during religious feasts doesn’t always mean the person is religious. Youngsters may have other agenda when going to novenas, as an illustration. Niño is more engrossed in staring at Lilibeth during the padasal than in praying to the Virgin Mary. Aida, a friend of Lilibeth, concentrates on getting Niño’s attention while the elders are reciting the prayers. The padasal as shown in the movie is I could say more of a simple conference, just a gathering of people for various reasons. It is used for socializing, rather than for meditating. Another gathering that has been exploited was the pasayaw. Men eager to satisfy their emotional and physical desires and women trying their luck at “love” all take part in the corruption of the devoutness of the event. A riot occurs in the middle of nowhere, giving an end to the pasayaw. Afterwards, Ruben meets with his “girlfriend” and does “things” with her (it was revealed at a latter part of the movie). The true spirit of the tradition is lost.
Chastity. The traditional Filipina is expected to still be in a virginal state before marriage. The ideals of Roman Catholicism dominate the way most Filipinos think and act. In the movie, “devirginized” ladies take part in a celebration for the Blessed Virgin. How ironic. Lilibeth seems sweet, pure, and unexperienced. Then she smokes, and says her ex-boyfriend brought her to his house that time when she was so drunk. The untainted image is ruined. Rural surroundings tend to give an impression of lack of sexual desires and activities, but the movie shows otherwise. The thing is premarital sex is slowly being accepted by people. I believe this to be the reason why the government is trying to include sex education in the curriculum. Since kids nowadays are very passionate in discovering and doing things, at least they’ll be aware of the consequences and will hopefully be able to prevent the unexpected. I remember being told that people situated in the rural areas are the most enthusiastic when it comes to these things. Most of them are poorly informed, making them want to see it for themselves. We had several “probinsyana” house helpers before. They say that normally after highschool, since there are no colleges and not enough funds, people get married and have kids. More often than not, it occurs the other way around.
Children. Teenage pregnancy is no more of a big-deal. It is not unusual for young women to walk down the aisle with a bulging belly. Lilibeth lives with her grandmother who earns as a seamstress. One time she sees her grandmother doing finishing touches on a wedding gown. Learning that the owner of the gown is younger than her, Lilibeth presumes this wedding is caused by an unexpected pregnancy. I read somewhere that in the Philippines the average age for both men and women to involve in sex is 18 years and about 15% of women aged 15 to 24 engage in premarital sex. I know several close relatives and relatives of close friends of mine who got married to compensate for the wedlock. Some become single moms, taking refuge from their own moms. Commonly shown in movies is a situation where the single mother takes off from her town and leaves the baby behind in the care of some random neighbor or and more usually with the baby’s grandmother. This is Lilibeth’s situation. She is the love-child of her mother and the current mayor of the city, but she is not properly supported financially by her wealthy father who has his own family to take care of. With this she determines to leave for the city to find her mother who can’t possibly recognize her and who she never laid eyes upon before. Though it was shown in the movie that her primary reason for wanting to leave the province is to find her mother, I believe there’s also this want for a change/ escape/ improvement in her life. There’s this idea that life is better in the city, though this rarely becomes true.
Corruption. It is present everywhere, even in the smallest form of community. Lilibeth, in charge of the collection of donations being the presidenta of the pasayaw committee, buys a cellphone using money from the collection. Maybe corruption has already been absorbed in the Filipino culture seeing now we are the fourth most corrupt country in Asia, and for some years now we were always one of the best competitors in the field.
Choice. In a democratic country like the Philippines, we have the freedom to choose our leaders. The problem is that the citizens are badly or not even informed. Customarily we choose the people with names that ring a bell in our ears. Like right now our newly elected president is Noynoy Aquino, the son of two supposed to be liberators of the Filipino people. I’m hoping he would really live up to the expectations of the people of the Philippines. Influential parents or relatives are a key to authority. Niño asks Lilibeth one time if she became the presidenta of the pasayaw through her parents’ influential capabilities. He shares that the president of his class is useless and stupid but is given the position since his parents have a good relationship with the teachers. Though we are free to choose, the easily identified choices are too limited that we end up picking the more familiar.
These concerns are not only applicable in Infanta, Quezon, but to the country as a whole.
Every happening has an unseen side to it. A comedy movie doesn’t always mean it is all laughs. Horror movies may have other aspects than just “horror” incorporated in them. Love stories aren’t there to just make us smile, cry, and fall in love. We have to be able to look at all the angles in order to fully understand what is going on.
Mayohan doesn’t only dwell upon the blossoming love story between a 19-year old provincial lass and a younger city boy. It was a collection of stories; stories affecting each of the other in ways we can’t really expect. And that’s exactly the way everything goes.
"Each affects the other, and the other affects the next, and the world is full of stories, but the stories are all one."
-Mitch Albom; The Five People You Meet in Heaven
I took notice of 7 C’s while watching the movie.
Cellphone. Lilibeth (Lovi Poe) is told by her friends a cellphone would be useful in time. And then she spends other people’s money to buy one. Niño (Elijah Castillo), the city kid who visits his parents’ hometown, softly exclaims when he discovers he left his cellphone back home. His uncle Ruben (Ping Medina) says he won’t let Niño borrow his phone. Well, how can he be able to text his “girlfriendS”? The cellphone is considered as such a necessity that the present-day human being is expected to be totally at a loss without this invention. Technology nowadays is too convenient it’s scary. Everything happens in an instant there’s no assurance it won’t be gone in an instant. For example: cellphone -> textmate -> blind date -> instant lover -> instant baby -> instant break up -> back to zero.
Chismis. It is said Filipino culture is rich with superstitions about anything and everything. Being naturally superstitious, we Filipinos tend to make and believe certain rumors that we encounter. We are fond of making stories about the lives of other people, whether these stories are true or not. Chismis or gossip is a recreation and entertainment to the common folk, but a despicable enemy to the rich and powerful. The most common victims of chismis are the politicians. The mayor in the movie supposedly chose not-so-pretty girls to dance with during the pasayaw to avoid chismis. Chismis is so powerful it can ruin people’s lives. The sad thing is not all chismis is true and it can tarnish the reputation of a good person.
Conference. Regularly attending events during religious feasts doesn’t always mean the person is religious. Youngsters may have other agenda when going to novenas, as an illustration. Niño is more engrossed in staring at Lilibeth during the padasal than in praying to the Virgin Mary. Aida, a friend of Lilibeth, concentrates on getting Niño’s attention while the elders are reciting the prayers. The padasal as shown in the movie is I could say more of a simple conference, just a gathering of people for various reasons. It is used for socializing, rather than for meditating. Another gathering that has been exploited was the pasayaw. Men eager to satisfy their emotional and physical desires and women trying their luck at “love” all take part in the corruption of the devoutness of the event. A riot occurs in the middle of nowhere, giving an end to the pasayaw. Afterwards, Ruben meets with his “girlfriend” and does “things” with her (it was revealed at a latter part of the movie). The true spirit of the tradition is lost.
Chastity. The traditional Filipina is expected to still be in a virginal state before marriage. The ideals of Roman Catholicism dominate the way most Filipinos think and act. In the movie, “devirginized” ladies take part in a celebration for the Blessed Virgin. How ironic. Lilibeth seems sweet, pure, and unexperienced. Then she smokes, and says her ex-boyfriend brought her to his house that time when she was so drunk. The untainted image is ruined. Rural surroundings tend to give an impression of lack of sexual desires and activities, but the movie shows otherwise. The thing is premarital sex is slowly being accepted by people. I believe this to be the reason why the government is trying to include sex education in the curriculum. Since kids nowadays are very passionate in discovering and doing things, at least they’ll be aware of the consequences and will hopefully be able to prevent the unexpected. I remember being told that people situated in the rural areas are the most enthusiastic when it comes to these things. Most of them are poorly informed, making them want to see it for themselves. We had several “probinsyana” house helpers before. They say that normally after highschool, since there are no colleges and not enough funds, people get married and have kids. More often than not, it occurs the other way around.
Children. Teenage pregnancy is no more of a big-deal. It is not unusual for young women to walk down the aisle with a bulging belly. Lilibeth lives with her grandmother who earns as a seamstress. One time she sees her grandmother doing finishing touches on a wedding gown. Learning that the owner of the gown is younger than her, Lilibeth presumes this wedding is caused by an unexpected pregnancy. I read somewhere that in the Philippines the average age for both men and women to involve in sex is 18 years and about 15% of women aged 15 to 24 engage in premarital sex. I know several close relatives and relatives of close friends of mine who got married to compensate for the wedlock. Some become single moms, taking refuge from their own moms. Commonly shown in movies is a situation where the single mother takes off from her town and leaves the baby behind in the care of some random neighbor or and more usually with the baby’s grandmother. This is Lilibeth’s situation. She is the love-child of her mother and the current mayor of the city, but she is not properly supported financially by her wealthy father who has his own family to take care of. With this she determines to leave for the city to find her mother who can’t possibly recognize her and who she never laid eyes upon before. Though it was shown in the movie that her primary reason for wanting to leave the province is to find her mother, I believe there’s also this want for a change/ escape/ improvement in her life. There’s this idea that life is better in the city, though this rarely becomes true.
Corruption. It is present everywhere, even in the smallest form of community. Lilibeth, in charge of the collection of donations being the presidenta of the pasayaw committee, buys a cellphone using money from the collection. Maybe corruption has already been absorbed in the Filipino culture seeing now we are the fourth most corrupt country in Asia, and for some years now we were always one of the best competitors in the field.
Choice. In a democratic country like the Philippines, we have the freedom to choose our leaders. The problem is that the citizens are badly or not even informed. Customarily we choose the people with names that ring a bell in our ears. Like right now our newly elected president is Noynoy Aquino, the son of two supposed to be liberators of the Filipino people. I’m hoping he would really live up to the expectations of the people of the Philippines. Influential parents or relatives are a key to authority. Niño asks Lilibeth one time if she became the presidenta of the pasayaw through her parents’ influential capabilities. He shares that the president of his class is useless and stupid but is given the position since his parents have a good relationship with the teachers. Though we are free to choose, the easily identified choices are too limited that we end up picking the more familiar.
These concerns are not only applicable in Infanta, Quezon, but to the country as a whole.
Every happening has an unseen side to it. A comedy movie doesn’t always mean it is all laughs. Horror movies may have other aspects than just “horror” incorporated in them. Love stories aren’t there to just make us smile, cry, and fall in love. We have to be able to look at all the angles in order to fully understand what is going on.
Mayohan doesn’t only dwell upon the blossoming love story between a 19-year old provincial lass and a younger city boy. It was a collection of stories; stories affecting each of the other in ways we can’t really expect. And that’s exactly the way everything goes.
"Each affects the other, and the other affects the next, and the world is full of stories, but the stories are all one."
-Mitch Albom; The Five People You Meet in Heaven
word count: about 1300 words
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