Introduction

I have always sneered at the sight of bold-colored posters plastered around the cinemas during Christmas breaks. The Metro Manila Film Festival is donned with titles like Kimmy Dora: Ang Kiyemeng Prequel, Sosy Problems, Sisterakas, My Little Bossings or romance films entitled after cheesy lyrics taken from songs headings that never really strike my fancy. This distaste goes beyond mere titles of course. I find movies at the Pinoy box office predictable, static and with little or no artistic element. The movies are often riddled with flat characters that embody stereotypes like the suplado rich boy and the loud barrio girl. Their attitudes are tweaked on cue that moment after they fall in love. Humor laden with gay lingo and recurring themes on crossing social hierarchies probably never really clicked with me.

In contrast, I was willing to wait in a long line under the rain when Cinemalaya Films were showing at the UP Film Center. I have always preferred independent films because of the way each scene is crafted, the way actors look like real people and most of all, the recurring social themes that may be too sensitive for most people to digest existentialism, sexuality, social ills and politics. There is often less focus on selling for wide acceptance but more on being full and intricate enough for people who would. These are the types of movies that leaves an aftertaste that can keep you buried in thoughts for days on end.

The very first and last Pinoy film I have seen in the big screen is Ang Babae sa Septic Tank (contrary to its title, it was a product of pure artistic genius) but it was also independently produced. On the Job is the very first Pinoy studio film production I have watched in the movies and Im more than glad I did. Its easy to say that its probably a pioneer that has brought action thrillers and perhaps all other popular movie production into a whole new level. It felt like watching an indie film except it was much longer and there was clearly a lot more money put into it. Beyond those shallow observations of course, the most exceptional element was the subject area it tackled corruption, crime and politics that does not seem to be entirely fictional. The eerie realization through this film though is the fact that even grave moral misconduct such as killing for a living seems to be justified in another mans lenses. The use of such a medium to effect influence in its viewers consciousness is precisely why besides the calculated angles and perfect cuts of scenes, the intricate story line and the plot twists towards the end, the movies prime success were in its characters. In

particular, I was impressed that they were able to craft multi-dimensional characters. Each one was styled to elicit mixed emotions like the way one could look at Tatang both as the antagonist and the protagonist in the story. Besides the obvious range seen in Tatangs actions, his characters seem to possess entirely contradicting personalities. The same can be said of Joaquin Acosta.

Joey Marquez as Joaquin Acosta Sergeant Acosta seems like the epitome of a hero a clean, honest, principled and hardworking cop running after the bad guys. He is however a victim entrenched in a system that runs a different game completely opposite what he was mandated to do. Consequently, he is portrayed as a loser unable to step up the ranks. Much to his disdain, he is stuck in the position he is in because he was wrongfully included in an intra-agency corruption controversy in the past. If he was ever guilty of any form of corruption, it is of being a policeman and a father unable to criminalize his own child. Their relationship briefly alludes to an irony which is perhaps the most descriptive of his characters fate. In a lot of instances, it seems that he would fulfil the role primarily attached to his type of character the underdog that would develop into the celebrated hero. But he always falls short. This is illustrated in the scene where he finally got a hold of his boy and once in the position to capture him, he was overcome by his emotions and consequently, the rascal slipped from his grasp. Contrary to the usual story line where an underdog develops into a victor, it seems that he is perpetually stuck in repetitive cycles of failure.

It is ironic that his strength in character seems to be his weakness in performance. Besides being consumed in his desire to solve the case and perhaps improve his status, he feels too strongly against the wrongdoers he so desperately wants to indict that at the last few scenes, he bravely but unwittingly drove chasing the antagonists screaming and attacking them. This eventually led to him being fired and placed in a position where he is now completely incapacitated from ever attaining what hes fighting for. Perhaps it can be said that he was too swept by emotion that he was unable to assess the situation because had he looked closely at the crime scene, there was no way he could have missed the evidence in Piolo Pascuals phone.