GomBurZa ignites renewed interest about freedom

MANILA, Philippines — After GomBurZa romped off with seven awards in the 49th Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF), including second Best Picture honors, Best Director for Pepe Diokno and Best Actor for Cedrick Juan, genuine interest spread all the more to discover the story about the three martyred priests.

Empty theater seats prior to the awards night were filled and GomBurZa proudly created box-office record unexpected for a period flick. The film’s rank at the tills also commanded a new high.

Screening schedules subsequently packed the theaters and the awards that GomBurZa received helped boost the box-office success of the film, creating added knowledge for the stirring, historical epic story. Starting out with 39 cinemas, the film is now being shown in 100 theaters, as of writing. 

One of the 10 official entries in this year’s MMFF, GomBurZa producers (JesCom Films and MQuest Ventures of MediaQuest in cooperation with CMB Film Services), director (Jose Lorenzo “Pepe” Diokno III) and cast (veteran actor Dante Rivero, Best Actor winner Cedrick Juan and Enchong Dee in his rare, serious role) were hopeful from the start that their film would make a mark with its viewers.

The very little that we know about Roman Catholic priests Mariano Gomes, Jose Burgos and Jacinto Zamora or collectively known as GomBurZa, while we were still in grade school, was enhanced by this film about the priests who were unjustly executed by garrote on charges of subversion on Feb. 17, 1872.

The charges on GomBurZa were made following the Cavite mutiny, initiated by Fernando La Madrid (Arnold Reyes).

Admirably, Dante Rivero, Cedrick Juan and Enchong Dee apparently gave their all to essay their once-in-a-lifetime roles as intellectual clergymen all schooled at the University of Sto. Tomas (UST).

Piolo Pascual played a brief role as Fr. Pedro Pelaez who perished in an earthquake, leaving his student, Fr. Burgos, behind to continue the brave journey.

Since the Filipino secular priests dealt then with the Spanish colonial authorities, most of the spoken parts, especially in the first half of the film, were in Spanish. Some were even in Latin.

Spanish-Filipino actors were auditioned and tapped early this year to portray Spanish friars in GomBurZa, that was why a language coach was imperative for the actors to give authenticity to the dialogue they spoke. They obviously delivered the requirements of their roles.

Jaime Fabregas played the Spanish archbishop Meliton Martinez who pleaded to the authorities that the Filipino priests not be stripped off their garments and allow them to die as priests before the townspeople at Bagumbayan.

Direk Pepe poured long and tedious hours for his research to finalize the script and worked at the helm of GomBurZa early this year. His directorial masterpiece was not ignored and he was even named Best Director in this year’s award’s night.

Direk Pepe took great pains in ensuring a historically accurate epic, after working with historians, although there were apparently cinematic license given to a few scenes.

One of the producers, in accepting the second Best Picture trophy of GomBurza in the MMFF Gabi ng Parangal, said it was direk Pepe’s “powerpoint” that made Jesuit Communications give their nod to push through with producing the film.

Direk Pepe was at the helm and he also gave his inputs in writing the screenplay with Rody Vera and Ian Victoriano.

The successive execution of GomBurZa at Bagumbayan in 1872, more than a century ago, was completely hair-raising, Each priest in his black cassock bravely facing the townspeople was a stirring moment.

The deaths of Fr. Gomes, Burgos and Zamora ignited a revolution that was witnessed by the people, including Jose Rizal, then a young boy hugged by his older brother, Paciano, when the martyrs’ death took place.

Rizal continued the fight. However, he died by firing squad but dedicated his second novel, El Filibusterismo, to the fight started by GomBurZa.