Johnny Tsunami

Johnny Tsunami is a 1999 movie directed by Steve Boyum which depicted a story of a teenage boy named Johnny Kapahaala and his move from Hawaii to Vermont in a struggle for assimilation into the East Coast community. Brandon Baker, the actor who played Johnny Kapahaala, ss of Filipino descent and his role/character in the movie draws many parallels to the Filipino/American relationship.

Johnny Kapahaala’s grandfather is the legendary Johnny Tsunami who has conquered some of the most ferocious waves in all of Hawaii. Johnny’s father Pete is a computer science engineer who works on networking computers. Pete’s structured and uptight life vastly contrasts the life both his son and father chose to live. Johnny took after his grandfather’s love for the water and soon became a great surfer himself, winning multiple titles as a young child. When Johnny’s father gets a job transfer to Vermont, their entire family is forced to move to the cold and always snowing state of Vermont.

In this town, there are two schools: one private and one public. Johnny’s father has decided Johnny would attend the much more prestigious private school for the betterment of himself. Yet as first day comes to an end, Johnny realizes that he has little in common

with these uptight students. In an attempt to learn how to ski, Johnny finds his true passion lies in snowboarding, whose characteristics much more resemble that of a surfboard. Taught by a newly made friend Sam who attends the public school, Johnny quickly becomes apt at snowboarding and even attempts to teach the daughter of the principal of the private school.

One day, Sam tells Johnny that he is moving to Iceland, where his father has been relocated. Trying to prevent the move, Johnny takes both himself and Sam back to Hawaii where they stay with the grandfather, learning how to surf and enjoying the sun. Johnny’s grandfather decides to come back with the both of them and surprises everyone with his ability to surf. In a battle to determine who would own which side of the slope, Johnny defeats his “rival” Brett.

Johnny Kapahaala is a modest young child who shows a great deal of respect to both his family and elders. Always mannerful, he resembles a typical Filipino with a strong family core. Johnny takes the high road and the road less traveled by in an attempt to not only assimilate but bring new culture and a way of thinking into the uptight private school. Brandon Baker proves to be a decent actor for his age. He is able to capture the frustration of assimilating into a new culture paralleling the difficulty the Filipinos had merging with American culture. Their strong traditions and values prevent them from completely letting go of their past and their true identities.

Thrilla In Manila

Thrilla in Manilla is a documentary between one of the greatest rivalries in all of sports. Featuring Muhammad Ali and Joe Fraizer, this documentary depicts the most storied rivalry which took place in Manila of the Philippines. Director John Dower is able to uncover truths and unseen footages from all three of their encounters and beautifully assembles them together in a piece which is widely considered one of the best sports documentaries.

The actual term “Thrilla in Manila” is actually a reference to the third boxing match in 1975 between Muhammad Ali, or Cassius Clay, and Joe Frazier. The documentary begins with a shot of Joe Frazier who still to this day, lives and trains in the same gym where he was training to fight Muhammad Ali decades ago. At 63 years of age, you can still find him and his son living a humble and quaint life away from publicity in the poor and deprived Badlands. Unable to let go of the rivalry, Joe walks around with an eternal burden, reliving the match that both defined and ended his boxing career.

At an early age in his career, Cassius Clay who also known as Muhammad Ali, was stripped of his at the time title and boxing license because of his refusal to fight in the Vietnam War. Being friends at the time, Joe Frazier loaned Muhammad Ali money and told him he would do anything he could to get his boxing license back. During Ali’s 3 year absence from the boxing realm, Joe went on to win the boxing title, dominating every opponent and claiming the title as the best boxer. Yet as Joe would win more titles and destroy more and more opponents, the buzz from the argument of who was better, Frazier or Ali, would get louder and louder. People still believed Ali was still the greatest, angering Frazier to the point where he wanted Ali back so he could beat him and prove he was the best. They needed each other. Ali needed Frazier to revitalize his dying reputation and Frazier needed Ali to show the world he was a better boxer. As tension grew between the two, their friendship turned into one of the most bitter rivalries in all of sports.

By 1970, the American public had turned against the Vietnam War and Ali was given back his boxing license. The public immediately wanted, and were granted, a Frazier vs. Ali fight, both whom were undisputed champions. As training began, the ever so cocky and confident Ali turned on Frazier, calling him stupid and ugly. In an interview he proclaimed “He (Joe Frazier) can’t talk, he can’t dance, he can’t write no poems.” The man who had once helped Ali was now at the forefront of his verbal abuse.

In March 1971, their first fight was viewed as the fight of the century. It was generally seen that if you rooted for Ali, you were black, young, liberal, against the Vietnam War. Whereas if you rooted for Frazier, you were generally a representative of a white conservative America. Frazier, to everyone’s surprise, won by decision. Muhammad claimed that the ruling was unfair and continued to taunt Frazier, calling him a gorilla and Uncle Tom. In their second rematch, Ali won in a decision. Their third and final battle was held in Manila. Ali and Frazier went toe to toe for 14 rounds, neither of whom would give up. They were fighting for something bigger than boxing and each were willing to give up their lives for the fight. Ali was overheard telling his trainer during the fight that this is what it felt like to be dying. Frazier, blind in both eyes from the fighting, continued on and would not give up unless he died in the ring. Ended by the ref

in the 14^th round, Muhammad claimed the victory by the narrowest of margins. His pride kept him from giving his respect to Frazier and to this day their rivalry continues. Yet many years later, Ali said if God had called a Holy War, he would want Joe by his side

Thrilla in Manilla was held in the Philippines during the corrupt dictatorship of the Marcos regime. Fights occur where they’re needed and President Marcos was key on demonstrating that Martial rule was not as bad as it seems. It was held in the Philippines to get people’s minds off of how bad the economy was, offering a much needed distraction. Imelda Marcos viewed it as an opportunity to show the world that this was not a third world country. It was rumored that they paid $10 million for the fight but both Marcos’ denied it. The corruption and the spending of public money on a publicity stunt is seen as further proof of the corruption of the Marcos regime.

Paper Heart

Released in August of 2009, Paper Heart was a film produced, written (storyline and music), and starred by Charlyne Yi (Filipina American).  The movie is based on a young lady, Charlyne, who is naive and wants more knowledge behind the meaning of love.  In order to do so, she and her team of two are making a documentary movie of other people throughout U.S. in search of her answer.  As things seems to be normal and according to place, a twist of faith started occurring to Charlyne after she encounters Michael (White American) through her interview and begins producing intimate feelings towards him.  Their relationship slowly began inclining as the days went by.  She continues her interviews with other couples and individuals while trying to gain a better understanding of what love is through the relationship between her and Michael.  Then the day came when Michael confessed his love for her but she could not say "I love you" back to him, but he was willing to wait for the day when she is ready to express her true feelings towards him.  As the movie continues, their relationship seems to be heading into a rough hill because of the lack of personal space and privacy.  Charlyne's team begins to intervene with their relationship and causes a problematic issue with their dates.  

Then one day Michael was "fed up" with the long wait and wanted Charlyne to confess how she felt about him.  To no surprise, she claimed that she was not in love with him and it resulted with their relationship break up.  Charlyne then conjures up anger within herself because she could not exchange the same emotional feelings that Michael has for her.  To wrap it all up, Charlyne decides to fly to Michael's house and have a talk with him, this time without being intervened by her camera crew and ended being with him.  The movie ends with a fictional, paper-made fantasy of the two biking away from the cops.  After a dramatic accident, Charlyne carries Michael (unconsciously hurt) on her shoulder to the closest hospital.

Paper Heart was inspired by Charlyne Yi through the understanding of the word “Love”.  In reaction to the movie, I see many aspect of this movie that pertains to the idea of interracial relationships, colorblindness, invisibility, and sexual hierarchy.  Because Charlyne is being portrayed as a quirky and sweet Filipino girl and Michael as a white guy being part of her documentary subject, it structures the idea of interracial relationship to be a normative image and can possibly steer away from the fear being stirred up through the establishment of the Anti-miscegenation law.  This also brings in the idea of colorblindness because Michael fell in love with Charlyne based on her character and not on her physical appearances.  I believe this can definitely bring in the idea of solidarity amongst racial groups if one was to take the time to get a better understanding of another person through social context.  But at the same time, I notice the invisibility of Filipino or Asian American being portrayed in the movie because she was never acknowledged for whom she was and what she did.  Also, it fascinated me that basically all of the people she interviewed were predominantly white folks.  I do not know if that just happened in coincidence or if it gives a perception that other racial group cannot obtain that same feeling of “love” as white people can or if they did not want to be acknowledged in the movie.   

Then lastly, what I found very fascinating was the difference in hierarchy between Michael and Charlyne.  Although it seems as though they both seem weird and awkward, Michael plays a role as a subject of her project, giving him a degradable image as a white guy.  This gave Charlyne more of a upper hand as a double minority status girl and it gave her even more power after Michael’s confession of his love.  This analysis very much conjures up the issue within the Filipino American during their emigration period to the United States.  The laws that were once applied to the Filipinos have impacted them in many ways that resulted with some heading back home and many deciding to tolerate the issues being raised against them.  But for those who did stay, it allowed them to formulate an activist and political mindset resulting the freedom and justice they are able to obtain today.

Home Along Da Riles

Based on a sitcom that aired for about a decade from 1992 to 2003, Home Along da Riles: The Movie, is a satirical film on the real life poverty of Filipinos living in the Philippines. Translated into English as, The House Along the Railroad Tracks, this comedic family sitcom turned to film explores the depths of the third world experience that many Filipinos go through either once in their lives, or throughout their entire lives. As dangerous as it already sounds, Home Along da Riles, is a portrayal of what Filipinos must endure every day—living in unsafe conditions under unsanitary circumstances. The sitcom/film revolves around an impoverished Filipino family known as the Kosmes.

Leading the family, Kevin Kosme, played by Dolphy, works as a janitor in a placement agency patiently waiting for his opportunity to be sent overseas as a cook. Dubbed as the ‘King of Philippine Comedy’, Dolphy, who’s formal name is Rodolfo Vera Quizon, made his name as a comedian-actor in both the Filipino and Filipino-American entertainment and performance communities. Dolphy’s character Kevin, makes his mark on the show/film as the main caregiver of the family who tries to hold his wife and kids together in the only house he could afford; one along the railroad tracks. The house, which is set to look as if it is almost going to collapse every time a train comes by, is one that is almost identical to the types of makeshift houses many people living in the Philippines find themselves calling a home.

Home Along da Riles reveals a tragedies that have been constant recurring problems in the Philippines. From poverty to homelessness to starvation, this sitcom/film showcases a first-hand point of view of the real everyday Filipino struggle—the struggle to survive. Although it relies on its comedic tone to relay all of this information about the Filipino struggle, it is a reminder of what the Philippines is actually like. The comedic tone only helps to set a bit of light heartedness in the audience viewing this sitcom/film so that the show can bring across their message of this raw lifestyle. Home Along da Riles not only helps to show what it’s like to make the best of what one has, but it shows the Filipino’s ability to be crafty, to use whatever they have to survive, and still through all of the struggle, be able to laugh and enjoy life with one another.

As a kid, I grew up watching this show with my father, and I can’t ever remember watching an episode and not asking “why are they doing that” or “why don’t they just get a better house” or “why don’t they just eat ifthey’re hungry,” and as naïve as it may sound, I was a kid and didn’t really understand what poverty was. As years passed, and I still continued to watch this show that later turned into a film, I began to understand the struggles that they go through in the Philippines and it helped me to appreciate everything that I had at home. I believe this show does so much more than entertain and be comedic, it helped to instill a small sense of humility in my mind,because if they could appreciate something as small as a blanket, then I shouldn’t be complaining about myhouse being cold at night, when all they had was a blanket.

Feng Shui

Starring the famed Filipina celebrity, Kris Aquino, Feng Shui is a Filipino horror film that showcases the popular superstitions that many people in the Philippines are constantly aware of. Created in 2004, and written and produced by an almost entirely Filipino and Filipino-American film crew, Feng Shui reveals a side of the Filipino culture that not many people notice as being part of their actual culture. Although not necessarily being automatically associated with the Filipino culture, there are various indications that superstition is almost as powerful as religion in the Philippines.

The entire film revolves around an old ‘bagua’ mirror that is cursed—in which bagua literally means ‘eight symbols’ or eight diagrams and they are “used in Taoist cosmology to represent the fundamental principles of reality, seen as a range of interrelated concepts”. This bagua, at least in Filipino tradition, is a mirror that is deemed to shower luck to whoever its owner is and is supposed to bring death upon those who are near to him/her, in this case Kris Aquino’s character, Joy. This is the main plot of the story, in which everyone around Joy dies, as the main character seemingly gets luckier. It starts by the curse of the ‘bagua’ affecting people whom she knows, then gradually moves in towards her closer inner circle of people that she cares about. Eventually she realizes she must reject the luck in order to save lives, but by the time she realizes it, it is already too late and the curse lives on.

The importance of this centerpiece of the film is that many Filipino households have this bagua on their front doors, showing that there is a sense of their strong belief in superstitions, otherwise they wouldn’t display it on their front doors. Just as someone would have the Crucifix (a Christian figure) or leaves from Palm Sunday (a Catholic day of obligation), by having the bagua on their front door alongside one of these religious symbolic figures, it shows how much they are willing to equate their superstition with their religion.

Although it is a bit confusing to think about such a religious nation being so superstitious, I personally believe this strong belief in superstitions stems from many of the more indigenous areas in the Philippines that were not so affected by the Christian/Catholic influence that was forced upon the Philippines. Before the influx of Christianity and missionaries sweeping the island of old seemingly black magic-like rituals, the Filipinos lived their lives among witch doctors and sacrificial rituals that still influences the superstitions that Filipinos have today. This film not only shows the significance of superstitions being part of the Filipino culture, but it helps to give Filipinos and Filipino-Americans an idea of how superstition and religion coincide with one another in one household.

The Debut

Released in 2001, The Debut, became one of the most successful independent films to become a main feature in the Filipino American (Fil-Am) community. Co-written by Gene Cajayon, a Filipino-American filmmaker, the film proved itself in the American film industry by becoming the first featured film released nationwide that represented the Filipino and Filipino-American community in America. This film automatically took Filipino homes and stores by storm; when it first came out, there were only a few Filipinos and/or Filipino-Americans who had teenagers in their house, who have not seen this film yet.

It was such a popular trend to watch this film, and inspired many Filipino-American young ladies to carry on the tradition of having a debut, or something similar to this celebration.A Debut is an elaborate 18^th birthday celebration, similar in comparison to a Quincenera in the Mexican culture or a Sweet Sixteen in the American culture. It signifies a coming of age for a young female, and it is, in a sense, a rite of passage; just as boys receiving their first car or their first tool box from their father, the debut symbolizes a pathway into adulthood.

Starring Dante Basco, a well-acknowledged actor in both the American and Fil-Am entertainment industries, the film revolves around Filipino traditions, lifestyles and culture to ultimately produce and reveal the making and presentation of a 'debut'. The Debut in this movie, is used as the backdrop and symbolizes much more than just a celebration; it represents the Filipino and all of the cultural stigmas and hierarchies each person part of the culture must follow, obey and pursue to receive their rite of passage into adulthood. It is a symbol of the moment when a child’s parental figures are ready to give them away to the world; it is when a child’s parental figures are ready to let them go, whether it be to go off to school, or get married, they are getting ready for a life of their own.

This film helps to represent Filipino and Filipino-American ideologies that many parents hold as standards for their children. It gave adolescents living in America a better grasp on exactly why their parents were so strict on them as children and teenagers, which was ultimately because they had not yet received their rite of passage to become adults. The Debut impacted Filipinos and Filipino-Americans so greatly that it helped to re-instill many of the cultural traditions that Filipinos hold so dearly to their hearts.