Ronald M.

Quileste PhD in Education 1

Dr. Saturnina Absin Filipino Society
Critical Movie Review:
Maynila: Sa Kuko ng Liwanag

Maynila: sa Mga Kuko ng Liwanag is one of the most important Filipino

movies in history. It is Filipino auteur Lino Brocka’s magnum opus—one that

underlines his political activism and penchant for using oppressed characters who

gradually reach an awakening.

The film was directed by Lino Brocka, considered to be one of the greatest

directors in Philippine history. He was the first Philippine director to enter into the

prestigious Cannes Film Festival with his film Insiang (1978), while Maynila: sa mga

Kuko ng Liwanag is the only Filipino film to make it to be included in the film

anthology 1,001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.

The 1975 movie tells the story of Julio Madiaga (Bembol Roco), a young

man from the province who comes to Manila to look for his girlfriend Ligaya

Paraiso (Hilda Koronel) who went to the city months before him. Julio thinks Ligaya

may be in danger, because she was merely recruited to work as a maid but all

efforts to contact her proved futile. But looking for Ligaya is not easy. Julio

struggles to live on his own by working in odd construction jobs, bunking up with

friends, and even navigating the city’s skin trade.

Maynila: sa mga Kuko ng Liwanag was produced during Martial Law, when

the Marcos regime was promoting Manila as a dream city. Their brand of

improvement, though, was to ignore the rampant poverty in the city.

Many who have seen The Claws of Light have speculated on the symbolism

of the characters, which is hinted at in their names. For example, some comment

that Ligaya Paraiso represents Inang Bayan, the Filipino concept of the

motherland. Her name, which literally reads "joy[ful] paradise", is a reference to

how Julio viewed his lover as an ideal paradise, and her given name is a nod to

her newfound yet unwelcome occupation as a "lady of pleasure".

Watching the film again is a little chilling, because it could have been shot

at this moment. Julio Madiaga can exist in our time, and he won’t be out of place.

Julio Madiaga himself is regarded as a symbol of the provincial Filipino everyman,

eking out a living in the hard conditions of the city. His surname is an archaic

variant of matiyagâ ("patience”), a trait obvious in his hope-filled and persistent

search for Ligaya.

Mrs. Cruz's surname simply means "cross", pointing to the heavy burden she

places on the shoulders of the young girls she lures into prostitution. The name of

the antagonist Ah Tek, meanwhile, is a play on the colloquial term atík, ("cash"; a

transposition of kità, or income) representing the greed and selfishness of the

character. The city itself is sometimes considered to be the main character

instead of Julio and the others, while the film is also construed as a portrait of one

man's corruption and eventual downfall.

Brocka’s vision, therefore, is a brave one. The film shows what the Marcos

regime wanted to hide: Manila’s poor living in decrepit conditions, forced to work

in exploitative jobs that fail to pay a living wage, and at times even resorting to

prostitution to survive. This vision is what makes Maynila: sa mga Kuko ng Liwanag

relevant decades later. The issues it raised in 1975 are still present even up to

now—Manila’s poor still live in makeshift houses beside creeks, good jobs are still

scarce, and many still work as prostitutes in order to eat.