Raymond Red's Himpapawid depicts struggle for survival

Nine years after winning the Palme D'or in Cannes, director Raymond Red returns to the movie scene with Himpapawid -- a soaring take on how an oppressed worker turns into a disturbed criminal. Inspired by an actual hijacking incident the award-winning director read days before his victory in France, the movie is so poignant and realistic in depicting the Filipinos' daily struggle to survive that it sears into the heart and mind of every viewer no matter how tired they are of the country's many problems.

The film follows the misfortunes of construction worker Raul, whose fragile mind falls into a state of hopelessness after days of enduring the cruel life in the metropolis. First, he loses his job after he took a day off to arrange his return to the province to visit his sick father. When he attempts to find another means to earn a living, he gets caught in bureaucratic red tape, causing him to ultimately lose patience and hope in doing the right thing. On the brink of desperation, Raul joins four of his neighbors in a plan to rob a job placement agency. When the plot goes awry, the movie’s protagonist is further pushed to the limits. He decides to board a local plane and hijack it in mid-air, leading to the film’s climax. Red, who has directed ambitious and historical films in the past like Bayani and Sakay, describes the narrative of his latest offering as “simple" yet “easily relatable." He even admits that while filming the movie, he himself felt the struggles of Raul, who he said represents every Filipino who feels trapped in the seemingly hopeless system. “Kung titingnan mo iyong core ng film, basic right ng isang Pilipino ang kinukwestyon dito, meaning kahit sino makaka-relate eh. In fact, noong ginawa ko itong film na ito, naka-relate ako. Hindi ako mahirap na tao, middle class ako. Any Filipino can relate to this," he told GMANews.TV after the special screening of Himpapawid last July 10 at the ongoing Cinemalaya film festival. The film premiered last year in Cinemanila 2009 but has not been released to a wider local audience. Nonetheless, Red hopes to show it in commercial digital theaters if given the opportunity. Serious but hilarious Throughout the film, Red convincingly portrayed the main character’s struggle to survive in the city through effective story-telling. With every misfortune, Raul’s daily struggles become more and more realistic to the audience, thanks to Red’s ability to tell the story with the correct pacing. The audience could only cringe when a coin from Raul’s pocket rolls down a sidewalk drainage, after the director skillfully established in a previous scene that every penny fished out of the protagonist’s piggy bank was very precious. The director tells this story of struggle for survival with Manila’s filth and darkness as backdrop the same setting he used in his Cannes-winning short film Anino. Red seems to have mastered the art of capturing the reality of this city, where crime and poverty persist. Scenes inside and outside Raul’s dark and cramped space, complete with shots of crawling mice and cockroaches, helps in setting the gloomy and bleak mood of the film. The convincing portrayals of the film’s actors also contribute to Himpapawid’s success. Raul Arellano, who plays the movie’s lead, effectively draws the audience into his multifaceted character. Arellano’s acting during a scene when the hijacker contemplates the crime he is about to commit was especially noteworthy, because he was able to portray both the desperation and hesitation required of his character. The ensemble of supporting actors, including regulars in the independent movie scene such as Soliman Cruz and John Arcilla, also delivered beautifully. Their portrayals were especially highlighted in the scene where their entire gang was planning the robbery. Lines were thrown effortlessly and the acting was so natural that the supposedly serious scene turned into one of the most hilarious parts of the movie. The story-telling, acting, and visuals contribute to Himpapawid triumphs in delivering a critique of Philippine society. It makes one ponder how poor Filipinos fall into docility due to the system’s inability to help them achieve even their most basic needs. Red tackled this best in perhaps one of the most poignant scenes of the movie, where Raul simply passes by a picket instead of joining the labor protests. Instead of taking notice and participating in what could have been one of the solutions to his problems, Raul is blinded by his own exasperation and desire to survive, even stealing items from the protesters. Red’s Himpapawid indeed brings local independent cinema to new heights with its striking message backed by excellent execution. Its gutsy, head-on take on the problems of Philippine society makes the film not just an achievement in artistry but, more importantly, a call to action for Filipinos at a time when genuine change is everybody’s battle cry. – YA, GMANews.TV Himpapawid will be the gala opening film at the New York Asian-American International Film Festival in Manhattan on July 15. It is one of the few Asian-made films to have been chosen to open the film festival. Photos from Raymond Red's website