Imelda
D: Ramona S. Diaz
I first heard about this docu last January when it was being shown at the Sundance Film Festival last January. Come February, I forgot all about it. When June came around and news about the Cinemanila Film Festival surfaced, Imelda creeped back into the minds of the Pinoys once again. And then Imelda Marcos herself got a Temporary Restraining Order that prevented it from being screened at the Festival last June. Anyway, to make a somewhat long story short, it started its regular run on local cinemas last Wednesday, July 21, and I caught the 3:20p screening just this afternoon.
It's a good documentary. Nothing special about it but it's a refreshing break from the other Pinoy movies that have been coming out. You don't get to watch a Pinoy docu nowadays in local cinemas anymore. But it was a good piece. And I appreciate that Diaz tried to make everything as concise and as accurate as possible. And I have to admire her patience and resourcefulness in getting all the people interviewed and the footages shown in Imelda.
Imelda Marcos herself is such a one-of-a-kind person. No one can live life the way Imelda has lived her life. They've even got a word for it! --> Imeldific - which means excessive/extravagant. She is such a hoot. And she thinks she's so great simply because no one has told her otherwise. Like she has this theory of the 7 Portals of Peace and Order (but is actually 9 Portals) where she starts with a tree and ends with a tree+man+circle+something else+something else+a heart+something else and ends with Peace and Order or something like that. I'm sorry I can't explain it better but I was just so amazed and surprised at how she can come up with this. And there was another point where she said that man has three things to achieve: a healthy body, a literate mind and dignified spirit. And if one is missing, then all you have is a Pacman. Okay.... Imelda is really just an unbelievable individual.
All in all, Imelda will never win a Best Picture award (unless money and politicking and kiss-assing get in the way) because it did tend to run on and on and on without seeming to have a point. And there were times when it bored me and I had to stop myself from getting my cellphone to look at the time. But the effort is there and it is very much appreciated. And I do like the parallelisms that Diaz has presented. I won't say what they are so you'd be forced to watch Imelda but they are good. You have to pay attention, though, to see them.
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