How Magnifico won my heart

My eyes absorbed the familiar scenes unfolding before me as I watched Maryo J. delos Reyes’ film Magnifico. Ears hungry for the sound of home alertly caught each wave sent out by the theater’s loudspeakers. That Friday night last March 26 at the KIT Tropentheater in Amsterdam, I along with a group of people from different cultural backgrounds, sat as the magic of Magnifico and Maryo transported me to a world of hope.

It was by chance that I learned about the first Asian Film Festival in the Netherlands. I surfed about the week’s activities in Amsterdam when this caught my eye. I clicked on the Cinemasia site and scanned the program. Imagine my delight when I saw one entry from the Philippines. I felt so much pride when I read about the film winning The Grand Prix award and Crystal Bear Trophy in the prestigious Berlin International Film Festival. Excited and curious, I made arrangements with friends to see it.

It was a rare opportunity to experience watching a public screening of a Filipino film in this wealthy, cosmopolitan city. The poverty and struggle of Magnifico and his family found a place here that night, even for just a moment. It touched the hearts of many in the audience as we were gripped by the simplicity and innocence of a little boy who believed that every struggle has a solution. There was laughter when he measured his grandmother so that he could make her a coffin. There were tears when he died. When the movie ended, there was a feeling of lightness because his spirit lived on in the many lives he touched.

Of course, it was straight to the bar across the street for the whole group, an equal mix of Filipinos and Dutch. There was a need to discuss the film. I was curious about how the Dutch friends found it. As the discussion got going, it became a wonderful exchange about cultural differences. For the Filipinos, it became another mirror to see our culture more clearly, a mirror with which we are constantly confronted because we live abroad.

Most of us liked the film. Descriptions such as good, beautiful, and heartwarming were expressed. There were negative criticisms too like the subtitles were stilted. Sometimes the grammar was wrong. Sometimes the white letters faded into the white background. Someone said that the film did not have the polished look of a professional film. Another said that the background music drove him crazy. It was unrelenting, a noisy distraction when silence would have been more effective to embrace a poignant moment. Still another was deeply bothered about how Magnifico’s pinkies twitched during his last scene. However, everyone agreed that these were all minor details that did not ruin the beauty of the film.

The comment that stood out for me was from a Dutch couple. Both of them felt that the movie was extremely sad and heavy. They did not understand why Magnifico had to pay in the end when he was the best thing that happened to everyone. They did not believe that such poverty could exist, and that one family had all those burdens to carry. That was when I realized once again how rich this country is. No one here has experienced that kind of existence because they have a well-developed social structure. No Dutch citizen has to wonder where he will get the next meal; that despite doing all kinds of physical work; he still does not have enough to buy food for his family. Because of the efficient Dutch health care system, no one has to suffer unbearable pain here because he cannot buy medicine to alleviate it. The Filipinos in the group told them that the struggles were real, and that there were more people who had to bear heavier burdens. There are Filipinos who are homeless, dispossessed, or living in atrocious conditions. Issues much tougher than what we saw in the film, like child labor, prostitution, child abuse, drug addiction, incest, criminality, are a daily reality for many.

For me, this simple story about ordinary people in a small town in the Philippines is a beacon of hope, a light that guides and encourages. It is a story of David and Goliath. The little boy wins against the immensity of the odds against him because he has the light of faith in him – faith in himself, and faith in the goodness of others.

The story about life as seen through Magnifico’s eyes gently brought forth the message that the heart when allowed to express itself does not define life as happy or sad, but rather lives life in all its purity and beauty.

Magnifico. It is magic.