Small film, big impact

After a season of inane comedies and vulgar sex flicks, Pinoy movie fans are being treated to a really good film that shines in its simplicity. Mga Munting Tinig (Small Voices) earned raves at the Toronto International Film Festival and is slowly making its presence felt in Manila. The film directed by Gil M. Portes features young actress Alessandra de Rossi as Melinda, a substitute teacher who decides to apply what she has learned in university at an elementary school in a far-flung and poverty-stricken Philippine town. The land is untamed and the people are made of soft or stern stuff. There are those who are resigned to their bitter fate while the fiery ones leave their families and take to the hills to fight for what is left of their pride and dignity.

Being young and idealistic herself, Melinda inspires her young wards to value education and dream big but catches the ire of the children’s parents who would rather have their kids work the coconut field than spend time in the classroom. Her efforts towards change are met with resistance even by her co-teachers (Irma Adlawan and Malou Crisologo) and supervisor (Dexter Doria) who have all grown weary of trying to change the way things are. Disenchantment and apathy notwithstanding, the musically inclined Melinda convinces her superiors to allow the children to join in a choral competition for the district’s schools. Tragedy almost breaks her spirit but with the help of her caring landlady (Gina Alajar) and the supportive mother of two of her pupils (Amy Austria), she achieves far more than what she set out to do.

It’s a pity that not too many people are in the theaters to see this gem of a film. Many still opt to watch the usual Hollywood fare than this small movie that played to packed moviehouses in Toronto. There is even talk of a possible Oscar nomination and star treatment for de Rossi if she graces the movie’s screening at the Los Angeles Film Festival.

The individual stories of the children and their families touch the heart because they are presented in a manner that is not preachy. It is a commentary on innocence lost and the resilience of the human spirit. Poverty has no greater casualty than our ability to dream. When dreams are lost, they take with them our life force, the very thing that fuels our lives. It is most certain that many children in poor communities such as Malawig will never fulfill their ardent desires but the will to try must not be lost to them. Those who are hopeless are no better than the dead. There are no contravidas in this movie, not even the opportunistic school supervisor or the temperamental parents. They are all victims of their penury.

The movie is given its gloss by a coherent script (written by Portes, Adolfo B. Alix Jr. and Senedy H. Que), focused direction and brilliant acting. De Rossi’s understated performance and pretty barrio lass features make a knockout combination. However, she still has a few pointers to learn from her elder co-stars who are all seasoned stage and screen veterans: Austria, Alajar, Adlawan, Crisologo, Doria, Nonie Buencamino, Nanding Josef, Connie Chua, Sharmaine Centenera and Tony Mabesa. The gathering of such an exemplary group of performers and the casting of young, promising ones is an achievement in itself. Big stars are absent in this movie but there is an abundance of talent.

The fact that Mga Munting Tinig was made at all is testament to the power of perseverance. According to Portes, no producer wanted to touch the movie because it had no commercial value, it was too negative, etc., etc. Portes and friends were able to get funding from a company involved in educational plans and the rest is history.

We should support movies like Mga Munting Tinig and welcome the respite from the onslaught of bold flicks and US blockbusters in the past weeks. Let’s give the Ricas, Mauis, Aras and Aubreys of local filmdom a rest, shall we?