Maynila Sa Kuko NG Liwanag

Reference:
The Claws of Light Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Claws_of_Light
Biala, Christine Joyce G.
FILM 12: Sineng Pinoy
UPFI, College of Mass Communication
University of the Philippines Diliman, Quezon City

MAYNILA SA MGA KUKO NG LIWANAG

Maynila sa Mga Kuko ng Liwanag, known internationally as Manila in the Claws of Light, is a
1975 film by Lino Brocka which is labeled by many critics as possibly the greatest Filipino film of all
time. The story of this movie follows the journey of a Julio Madiaga in searching for his lover who
sailed away from their coastal province some time ago while surviving extreme conditions of a bustling
city which was far from the comforts of the finest urban lifestyle.
Aside from being a bustling citybusy on days and even nightsManila is an urban jungle.
Based on Julios experience, who had nothing else to depend on for work but labor force. Working on a
construction project under the supervision of Mr. Balajadia, he only earns two hundred fifty pesos which
is more or less half below minimum wage. Later when The Future La Madrid Building was about to be
finished, some workers, including him, were cut off from work without any consideration that most of
them completely depended on that job to supply oneself with his basic needs while commodities are at
citys preset high cost of living.
Since Julio was displaced from his province, he used to sleep in the building until he was fired.
Wandering off in Luneta Park looking for a spot to sleep, he encountered a theft incident which he tried to
stop. By night, he was accommodated by a male who managed to own an apartment and live like an
average Juan through prostitution, which Julio later submitted himself to.
The movie dwelled on Julios search for Ligaya Paraiso, whom he had loved even since their old
days in the province. The flashbacks in the movie had a great impact, recurring like a lucid dream except
that it was a memory. Each of these flashbacks simultaneously appeared like a puzzle piece, completing
the memory. The sudden yet frequent appearances of these flashback were Julios thoughts of how much
he was thinking of her, and of fullness of his hopes of ever finding her.
But before those dreams turn to reality, he passed by, staring at a building, at a corner with street
signages of Ongpin and Misericordia. While his instinct struck the building like a tigers eye, these
signages had been around in an attempt to convey codes: Ongpin, which is known to be a Chinese name;
and Misericordia, which is associated with sympathy. Arranged perpendicularly like a usual street sign,
these streets must be complimentary ang contradictory like the axes in a coordinate plane. The street
Reference:
The Claws of Light Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Claws_of_Light
perpendicular to Misericordia, or the Ongpin, must be abusive or oppressive. It subtly conveys a cry for
help especially that Ligaya might be there.
Another part of such quest is searching through the clues of the past. Mrs. Cruz reappeared in
Julios memory as the agent who brought Ligaya to Manila for education and a part-time job. However,
upon reaching her, she denied her identity, called a police to distract Julio, and ran away.
Julio and Ligaya finally found each other, only for Julio to find out the truth thats far from he
expectedLigaya was scammed by Mrs. Cruz for her to be recruited for prostitution in a brothel owned
by some Ah Tek. In addition, she already had a child, and had been threatened with her life.
Upon hearing the news of Ligayas death from his friend Pol, Julio entered the brothel and took
revenge on Ah Tek; then the people from the neighborhood, who were seemingly the oppressed working
class similar to Julio, instantly judged him plainly as a murderer and attacked him without even hearing
anything from his side. This ending was unfortunate in a sense that he was oppressed by his fellows,
while the people oppressed him similar to how the oppressors of the society normally do to them.
The characters themselves were already defined according to their names. Ligaya Paraiso is
literally joyful paradise in English, which may be whom Julio wanted to resort to after such journey.
Some claim of Ligayas representation of paradise as the mother country and how she was abused by
the city as the center and its ideologies. Julio Madiaga is matiyaga or patient as he was full of hope in
finding his paradise. Mrs. Cruz, or cross, was Ligayas bridge to her suffering into prostitution, and
agreeing to come with her was like playing along in a Lenten play and nailing herself to the suffering. Ah
Tek was derived from atik which, in Filipino, means money, and the character portrays greed and
selfishness. In Cebuano, it means joke or fool, where Ligaya who was fooled by Mrs. Cruz go to him.
Mr. Balajadia from the construction, sounded like bahala ka diha/dyan in Cebuano and Filipino,
respectively.
Manila may be likened to the layers of earth in Inferno Canto. Based on Julios experiences and
encounters, from working class status to prostitution, the greater the sin, the nearer the layer is to the core
of hell. Through Julios journey, the movie was able to expose different stories of suffering and
oppressionall in one city under one hellish system, in the timely context of 1975, a few years after the
end of Marcos regime. Maybe the movie wasnt about Julio after all; maybe it was about Manila, hence
entitled Maynila sa Kuko ng Liwanag.

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