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| Bongga Ka 'Day |
Nevertheless, Bongga Ka 'Day manifests some of De Los Reyes' better virtues as a film director, virtues which were already evident in Annie B. Easily appreciable is his contemporary sense of comedy, from which Bongga derives its uniquely Filipino elan. Unfortunately, the movie's element of social commentary ends with this present-tense sense of humor. Aside from this, De Los Reyes displays a remarkable capacity for controlling crowd sequences, a trait one presumably attributes to his stage training. His films has a tolerable degree of technical competence, furthermore, none of his movies are bereft of either a social consciousness or a perceptibly innovative energy. De Los Reyes' shortcoming, then perhaps would be a tendency for the facile cinematic conventions of Filipino movies, as evidenced by both Annie Batungbakal and Bongga Ka 'Day. The film, clearly a less pretentious vehicle than Annie B. is also a far less ambitious one as well. Its discerning humor is handled much too casually throughout to support the film's unassuming relevance. Wittingly or unwittingly, De Los Reyes has nevertheless belittled the potency of his movie's keenwitted observations, perhaps because to the categorizing mind, Bongga is strictly light entertainment. Yet, Bongga Ka 'Day could have been so much more, say the Filipino counterpart of Saturday Night Fever (1977) and not simply because Frida and Tony Manero both have happy feet. Although an entertaining movie, Saturday Night Fever intelligently depicted the paradoxical reality of disco mania. Tony Manero, in relieving himself of the social constrictions that came with family and community, took to the streets and to the dance floor as well, but only to met with familiar binds. Frida Manalo more or less subscribes to the existence of such a social phenomenon, but only as a matter of consequence. The film's constituents and the filmmaker's treatment of these constituents are much too incongruous to provoke the kind of analogy Saturday Night Fever does. Bongga Ka 'Day is a stillborn attempt at capturing the wayward vitality of today's youth, victimized by the mentality that pervades Philippine cinema, a mentality locked in its own philistinism. Why should relevance always connote the plight of he poor? Why not disco maniacs? Why are the emotional paroxysms always premised on thwarted sexuality, as evidenced by the preponderance of rape, attempted rape, multiple rape, illicit sex, extra-marital sex and deviant sex in our movies? That De Los Reyes is sensitive not to the inherent possibilities of his widely diverse materials, but rather to the stereotypes which they are at once associated which reflects the limiting influence of this prevailing narrow-minded outlook towards a medium which, more than any other, may take on the complexities of life itself.
Directed By: Maryo J. de los Reyes
Screenplay: Jake Tordesillas
Director Of Photography: Joe Batac, Jr.
Musical Director: Hotdog
Film Editor: Edgardo 'Boy' Vinarao
Production Designer And Art Director: Fiel Zabat
Produced By: Associated Entertainment Corporation And Four Seasons Film International
Release Date: July 18, 1980
Bongga Ka 'Day! theme song performed by Hotdog.
Welcome To My Life love theme from Bongga Ka 'Day performed by Nora Aunor and Lloyd Samartino.