‘Cinemartyrs’: We Need More Films to Counter Lies and Historical Revisionism

After watching a film, moviegoers sometimes leave the cinema feeling nothing, thinking instead about how to get home amid late-night traffic or where to have dinner in a crowded mall. But such cannot be said about director Sari Dalena’s “Cinemartyrs,” because it lingers in your mind as you walk back into the real world.

I was thus pleased that it won big at the recent Cinemalaya Film Festival, earning the Special Jury award and the Best Director award for the visionary Dalena. The film led me to again ponder the limitations, biases, gaps, gray areas, and holes in documented Philippine history as the film depicted the insufficiently discussed Bud Dajo massacre in Jolo, Sulu, during the Philippine-American War.

Sadly, a lot of significant events inevitably get filtered and forgotten through the passing of time, getting pushed farther back in the annals of our history, to the point of being almost inaccessible—or worse, disappearing into complete oblivion. That’s why we recognize filmmakers like Dalena, who unearth and bring (back) to our consciousness hidden and forgotten truths that we as Filipinos must be aware of and “never forget,” painful though they may be. As the classic and oft-quoted adage goes, “Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”

As the film progresses, one gets increasingly connected with it, until they see and feel in its latter part Dalena’s profound reverence for the Tausug culture, which leads to appreciating her and editor Keith Sicat’s decision to let certain scenes play out in their entirety, particularly the wedding ritual and the glorious and almost hypnotic traditional dance Pangalay, at the end.

The film’s other strength is the cast, who gave justice to their respective roles. But worth singling out is the lead, Nour Hooshmand. Together with her captivating eyes and strikingly beautiful face, her effortless “acting no acting” portrayal of young director Shirin is refreshing. Nour’s facial expressions and the way she delivered her lines were so engaging in their restraint. A lesser actress would have gone astray in attempting to pull off this kind of performance that harmoniously balances nuance, subtlety and naturalness. It’s a huge contrast to the kind of over-the-top schtick we commonly see from actors in teleseryes and big-budget commercial flicks.

Watching ”Cinemartyrs” makes one realize all the more the important role that independent filmmakers play in our society and how they could influence and shape our thinking. It is my wish that they thrive and remain unhampered and unharassed as they continue to “make babies”—as Shirin declared—creating films that send a powerful message and which, most importantly, are rooted in truth. More than ever, we need such films to counter the torrent of lies, fake news, misinformation, and historical revisionism that are harmful to our growth as a nation.