The dark world of passion & paranoia

After watching Will Fredo’s indie film, Compound, which was on exhibit recently at the Cinemalaya Film Festival, I was proud that Filipinos can still make quality movies even with a low budget.

Although the film was independently produced, the cinematography is superb. Fredo was able to make the characters so interesting and real and I was intently waiting for what would happen next.

Early in the movie, the story dealt with the relationships of the characters living in the compound. A husband (John Arcilla) and wife (Janet Russ) with major problems please each other sexually. Their marriage slowly falls apart because of several factors including having to cope with a retarded daughter (Joan Palisoc), their ambition to retain their social status, the husband’s drug addiction as well as the wife’s penchant for physical augmentation.

The drama is intensified by the presence of a beautiful long-time househelp (Liza Diño) who is the object of John’s sexual attention.

As the couple’s relationship crumbles, their finances also begin to become a major problem as John gets laid off from work. They decide to take in a tenant in the compound.

Stage actor Jake Macapagal plays a bisexual tenant searching for himself and escaping both his nagging wife, Lily Chu and his lover, Marq Dollentes.

This is perhaps one of the first Filipino films of late that tackles a bisexual/gay theme just as it happens these days. Most films that tackle the gay issues usually dwell in the sleazy underworld sort. This time around, we are drawn to the dilemma of the characters as well as actors’ brilliant and subdued portrayals.

Tension arises in the compound, sexual couplings get into a frenzy, and just when you know where the story is heading, the director expertly reinvents the story resulting in a gripping thriller with a most unexpected ending that leaves the audience breathless.

It is amazing how Fredo was able to create an almost surreal idyllic life behind the walls of a compound almost like a microcosm of a society filled with people having illusions of their own. However, there is a world outside the compound which has an exquisite appeal of both danger and freedom.

All in all, the movie is a milestone for independent movies – tackling social issues fearlessly with brilliant performances of non-mainstream actors who deliver truthful performances.

Compound’s musical score, a collaboration of Bob Aves and Grace Nono, also helps in hurling the audience into the dark world of passion, paranoia, intrigue, sex and violence.