Ang Lihim Ni Antonio

“Ang Lihim ni Antonio” which premiered its uncut version at the University of the Philippines Cine Adarna last February 4, 2008 and was later shown at the Robinsons Galleria last February 13, tells the story of Antonio’s struggle to explore his identity.

The film in a nutshell

The film starts with a day in the life of Antonio, played by newcomer Kenjie Garcia, who wanders around Marikina on his bicycle. The viewers are given a preview of the boy’s thoughts as he starts to question the reason of his existence. Acting as the omnipresent narrator, he asks himself if he can choose his own parents or even his sexuality because life would have been easier for him if that was the case.

He stops at a computer shop where he meets his best friend, Mike (Jiro Manio) who is a riot among his peers and another close friend, the religious but sensual Nathan (Niño Fernandez). His mother Tere (Shamaine Buencamino) comes in to remind him that they will go to the market later as Antonio promised, but as they were about to leave his father calls from overseas.

A familiar family situation was shown with the director leaving the entire scene to the audience’s imagination as he put the characters on a telephone conversation without voice-overs that establishes the main characters’ personalities. Tere was depicted as an uptight mother when it comes to money while Antonio as a diligent kid longing for the affection of his father which is often filled by the gifts he gets from abroad.

Antonio’s life is not at all easy as he grows up in a world with no role models to emulate, something his strict but loving mother cannot provide. Knowing that he is different because of his unusual desires, he is forced to discover his sexuality on his own by expressing it openly to his friend Nathan. His curiosity leads him to appreciate his friend’s physical aesthetics and eventually discovers the intricacies of his sexuality.

The arrival of Jonbert, his uncle (Josh Ivan Morales), provides a climatic twist on the life of Antonio as it reveals the hormonal changes in a 15-year-old homosexual as he experiences sexual desires and expresses it in a various subtle ways.

The side-long glances strengthen the portrayal of this desire while watching his muscular uncle taking a bath through a hole on the bathroom door gave flavor to Antonio’s curiosity.
The revelation of the hedonistic tendencies of Jonbert and the abandonment of his father became the turning point of the story, where the altruistic mother discovers the horrible actions by Jonbert. Tere kills Jonbert and Antonio admits to the crime of killing his uncle.

Reflections after watching the film

The charm of the film comes from the characters as they portray relatable and genuine people but limited to certain social classes and cultures. It has all of the downsides of being a digital film, wobbly camera angles, unnecessary sound that drowns dialogues and extras that contribute to what have been an otherwise well-made film.

Antonio’s life is filled with depressing tragedies that seems too unusual and unreal which rarely happens in reality. The story however, is done in a typical fashion where omnipresent narrators are present.

It also is possible that the director wants to establish the character’s desire and fears by placing them in form of their curiosity or in another character’s eyes but either way it is unnecessary and only adds to the clutter scattered throughout the film.

The film needed help with its editing due to some scenes that needed cropping. In addition, the sounds are a little bit disturbing especially the natural ones that were caught by film because it was a little bit loud. The dubbing was horrendous because the viewer can easily recognize the dubbed part which is reminiscent of Mexican telenovelas. But the music, especially the original song, was great because it compliments the film. The acoustic song “Awit ni Antonio,” which was played throughout the film highlights a character thoughts and emotion. It also helps the film carry an overwhelming atmosphere by adding impact to the dramatic parts of the film an example is the scene wherein Tere is touching herself which shows her longing for her husband.
The carefree writing was obviously intended for a particular audience, those who are members of the third sex and those who are just plain curious about it. The actor’s acting will not be given justice because the film will not get any recognition from uninterested viewers.

Kenjie Garcia, although new, was able to provide an outstanding performance at par with seasoned actor Buencamino, save for some scenes where he is acts robotically as if strings were attached to him.

Shamaine Buencamino, on the other hand, delivered an exceptional performance. Every scene which included her was powerful enough to stand alone as a timeless performance.

Josh Ivan Morales commanded the audience with his on-screen presence. From the promdi to the hedonistic portrayal of his character you are sure to follow him throughout the film. He was the only choice for the part and he didn’t disappoint. He served as an eye candy to the delight of the gay audience.

Jiro Manio was a surprise. The star of Magnifico, praised for his dramatic acting skills, shifted to a little comedy which was very effective. He provided comic relief which was a good break from the otherwise serious nature of the film.

The disappointment came in the form of the little exposure of dancer-turned-actor Niño Fernandez who gave a good performance. His close-to-none screen time was needed to establish the plot which was understandable.

Overall the film, although not great, has some very good points. It is the most controversial film of the year in its genre but often overshadowed by Adolfo Alix’s “Daybreak” which received great reviews and continued patronage in IndieSine. - JOHN JOSHUA GUZMAN

Photograph Source:
http://manilagayguy.com/2008/01/26/ang-lihim-ni-antonio/