Jolina G.

Mendez
PE-23
Reflection
Bonifacio: Ang Unang Pangulo
The story, of course, is about Andres Bonifacio, the Father of the Philippine
Revolution. Nothing really new from the other facts we know about him from
our history lessons and books but I guess, this movie just shows or justifies
how he became or why he was called the first president of the Philippines.
But for foreign readers, let me tell you a little more about the story...
The movie is about Bonifacio's life and how he organized and led the
Philippine Revolution against the Spaniards.
He was one of the founding members of Rizal's La Liga Filipina, an
organization which called for political reforms in Spain's colonial government
of the Philippines. But after Jose Rizal was arrested, Bonifacio, together with
the others, revived La Liga Filipina which was lead by Andres himself.
He was able to gather men and lead them to fight against the Spaniards
even though they lack weapons. And that is the main point why most
historians consider him as the first Philippine president and that Katipunan is
the first Philippine government.
The story revolves how badly Andres Bonifacio wants independence; so bad
that he risked his life and lost his family just to finally end the cruelty of the
Spanish colony.
Bonifacio: Ang Unang Pangulo will likely garner the largest audience among
the recent films that have tackled the hero. And thats kind of a shame.
Though it is the most technically polished of the three, it is also the least
interesting. It is undoubtedly a good thing that this story is being told, that
there exists a mass entertainment that seeks to educate the masses about a
really tumultuous portion of our history. But the movie fails to make its
subject and its main points compelling. The other two movies, despite their
comparative lack of resources, found better ways to tell this story.