Deathrow: A ‘prison movie’ with a big difference - STARBYTES By Butch Francisco

A lot of local prison movies have already been produced in the past. Without my even trying very hard, I could already think of at least two films of this genre in a snap.

One is Bulaklak ng City Jail which takes a look at the harsh conditions female inmates go thorugh in prison.

This film brought home practically all the awards at stake in the 1984 Metro Manila Film Festival – including the best actress trophy for its lead star, Nora Aunor, and the best supporting actress plum for Celia Rodriguez. (The award served as a very nice farewell present to Miss Rodriguez who went in semi-retirement after completing this film).

Another local prison movie I remember (but which I’d rather forget) is Muntinlupa. Now, I could really go on and on about this film (released in early 1988, but I’d much prefer not to dwell on it anymore because its lead star, Anthony Alonzo, is already in peace at his final resting place.

Most action stars have done at least one prison film in their respective careers, but I think it’s Ace Vergel who has done the most.

But of the so many prison movies produced locally, GMA Films’ Deathrow looks the filthiest. No, I’m not refering to its direction, script and technical elements. On the contrary every aspect of this film is above par. (It got a B rating from the Film Ratings Board.)

Set almost a hundred percent in prison (it was actually shot at the congested provincial jail of Sta. Cruz in Laguna), this film comes out looking so realistic, you can almost smell it. And it’s not a very pleasant smell, I’m telling you. It smells of decay – so much like the smell of a prison cell, if you’ve ever visited one. That’s how closely this film sticks to reality.

Watching Deathrow, however, is a pleasurable experience because it has an interesting story to tell.

Directed by Joel Lamangan, Deathrow casts Cogie Domingo as an orphan raised by relatives who treat him like dirt. Soon, he falls into bad company and is later falsely accused of committing murder in an armed robbery.

He could easily have gotten off the hook – being a minor, except that there are no existing records to prove this fact. So off to the calaboose he goes and is even mixed among inmates in death row.

Being young and defenseless, he lands at the very bottom of the totem pole in prison – the lowest in the pecking order of things in jail. In this living hell, he is made to clean toilets, asked to peddle prohibited drugs among inmates and is sometimes even used as a sex toy. His prison woes, however, ease a bit when he befriends Eddie Garcia, a fellow inmate scheduled to die by lethal injection for assuming the crime of another person.

Deathrow is another call on the government to look into-our rotten penal system. The movie, for instance, dramatizes the special treatment which the national penitentiary reportedly grants to some of its VIP inmates.

In Deathrow, we see an incarcerated governor (played by Tony Mabesa) still wielding power from inside his cell.

But what’s most disturbing is the fact that some prison officials may be behind some of the illegal activities (like drug peddling, for instance) being conducted right inside the penitentiary – as fearlessly dramatized by Deathrow.

Aside from the various socio-political commentaries it offers, Deathrow also boasts of an acting ensemble that gathers together some of the finest names in Philippines theater. Pen Medina, Rey Ventura, Nanding Josef, Spanky Manhan, Nonie Buencamino and Mabesa.

And then, there’s Jim Pebanco who gives an excellent performance as a gay inmate who manages to assert his rights against some of the toughest bullies in jail.

Deathrow also gives viewers another facet of the great actor Eddie Garcia. In this film, Garcia gives a restrained, yet highly effective and moving performance as a tough, yet kind-hearted inmate. It’s an Eddie Garcia we’ve never seen before – so totally different from his other performances in the past.

Young star Cogie Domingo has already proven his worth (and so early at that) in his launching film, Yakapin Mo Ang Umaga (directed by Jose Javier Reyes). Here in Deathrow, he fares even better.

Some reviewers, of course, say that Cogie Domingo cries too often and too much in this film. But then, if you are 16 and languishing in jail I guess you’d be crying your tonsils out too.

In Deathrow, Cogie’s every facial movement mirrors the sufferings of a young inmate, who is at the mercy of everyone inside and outside of his cell. The pain etched on his face should be a strong enough message for youngsters to keep out of trouble and out of jail.