Das Mädchen Insiang

Positives:

• Good picture of reality: The best asset of the film for me is its accurate painting of reality, specifically, the life from the slums. They shot it in a literal slum area so it convincingly conveys the vibe and atmosphere of these marginalized places. From the people's clothing, housing, way of life and attitude; they are captured by the film perfectly. Even the minor details shown in the film can accentuate the situation in the slum life such as when Insiang's mother urinates in front of her without any privacy.

• Perfect characterization: The characters from the film are fundamentally sound. They all have unique traits that depict their individuality and complexity, not just a typical character that can be sacrificed in the name of the plot. Every character, including the supporting casts, also has concrete motives that dictates their individual actions, allowing them to enrich the storyline.

• Simple but succinct storyline: The plot is simple, whereas every viewer can relate to it. But its simplicity is not a negative because of its compactness as it was told in a concise and inventive manner. For example, I like that the story starts in the thick of things, during the time where Toyang is about to shoo her relatives from her home. Most average writers will just start the story when Dado is already living in Toyang's home, just using petty flashbacks to paint the background of the characters. Not Mario O'Hara though. He is a magnificent writer.

• Good acting of Mona Lisa: Among all the artists, Mona Lisa is the one for me who got a timeless performance. Her acting during this film can still be considered very realistic even in today's standards.

Negatives:

• Insiang losing her character: I think the film did Insiang dirty. She suddenly lost her values during the last parts of the film, resulting in her character's inconsistency. How can a lass who refused to be touched by Bebot in the theatre suddenly allowed Dado to abuse her sexuality in the name of revenge? There is no turning point in the film that could be used as justification where Insiang decided that "enough is enough," going the dirty way to avenge herself. The motel scene is the closest justification but for me, the motel scene alone is not convincing enough.

• Rushed pacing during Dado and Insiang's affair: Another dud, albeit minor, is the rushed pacing of the film during Dado and Insiang's affair. It only consumes approximately 15 minutes of runtime. Viewers are only given a small window to heat up and realize that Dado has an ulterior motive of mingling with Insiang instead of Toyang. In my opinion, the climax could become even more satisfying if the film further extends the cut, capitalizing in the slow but emotionally powerful idea of Toyang losing her grip to Dado while the latter is pursuing Insiang.

To sum up:

Just like Dado, the film hits two stones in one bird. It perfectly depicts the slum situation during that time while telling an excellent realistic revenge story that leaves the viewers satisfied. Insiang (1976) really shines in its relatable story and good characterization, successfully imbuing the protagonist's hardships in the hearts of the viewers. Yet, the film could still soar onto higher echelons if only the creators decided to polish minor inconsistencies as well as some unrealized storyline potential.

Lino Brocka's 1976 melodrama of slum family love double-crosses was the first Filipino film to be shown at Cannes and is being revived at festivals. It deserves to be seen for the female actors, mother Tonia (Mona Lisa, credible as an aging lady who's still highly sexed and attractive) and gorgeous daughter Insiang (pronounced "Inshang"). Hilda Koronel, who plays Insiang, is enough like a Loren or a Lollobrigida to make you think of Fifties or Sixties Italian cinema and the visual style is conventionally of an early period, but this brutal story lacks the humanity and warmth of the Italians. Tonia drives a family of in-laws out of her shack (which is in with other families; in this barrio there is no privacy and all is known) because she can't feed them, but her ulterior motive is to bring in Dado, a handsome, macho man and a gambling no-good probably young enough to be her son, as her lover. Insiang has several young men interested in her, but the one she chooses is too cowardly and lazy to run away with her as she would like. Soon Dado puts the make on Insiang. It turns out badly for just about everyone in this miserablist drama, which has been compared to Fassbinder and Sirk. It's been commented that the story undercuts the two major values in Filipino film – motherhood and the sanctity of the family. Brocka certainly keeps things lively, as do popular dramatic films from other Third World countries, and telenovelas. Yes, this holds the attention; but unfortunately the print used for the NYFF 2006 showing was an ugly-looking digital transfer that made all the boys look pimply and the shots look shoddy. Only Koronel's face shines through.

Within the slums of Manila's Tondo shantytown, tales of urban melodrama unfold as sexual abuse runs rampant in Lino Brocka's gritty revenge fantasy 'Insiang', a film hailed as one of the late Filipino filmmaker's finest. With a powerful blend of unflinching realism and thorny political commentary, Brocka masterfully portrays the struggles of the urban underclass striving for social mobility. For Insiang, an unskilled young woman without prospects, fending off the advances of intoxicated and lecherous men is only half the battle; she longs for escape from the squalor, and with that, the wrath of her scornful mother.

Hilda Koronel's portrayal of Insiang, a domestic maid confined to the slums, is nothing short of captivating. In spite of her dreary surroundings, Insiang radiates with a glow usually reserved for soap opera starlets. Brocka and cinematographer Conrad Balthazar filmed her in the most flattering angles. Tonya (Mona Lisa), the matriarch, toils long hours at the fish market for little pay. Bitter after her husband abandoned her, Tonya's corrosive disposition erodes the spirits of those around her, including her unemployed in-laws, who she spitefully evicts because they can't help with the household expenses. Soon after, her younger lover, Dado (Ruel Vernal), moves in to tend to her carnal desires day and night, but Dado's consuming lust for Insiang leads to his downfall.

Brocka's disdain for President Ferdinand Marcos and his authoritarian rule of martial law is evident in the film's harrowing opening scene set in a slaughterhouse, in which the slaughter of a pig and its subsequent grinding in a meat grinder metaphorically represent the ruthless nature of the dictatorship. Not surprisingly, authorities in the Philippines were up in arms and tried to have the film banned. Brocka and Balthazar shot the movie on location in an actual slum, and they captured the streets teeming with residents coexisting in cramped conditions.

A timid young man who covets Insiang from afar hopes to exit the slums armed with education, offering a glimmer from the oppressive gloom, but it's the school of hard knocks that dishes out life's harshest lessons. 'Insiang' is foremost a charged melodrama about a damaged mother and daughter locked in a cycle of poverty with no escape. The flammable mix of lust, jealousy and tragedy can only end in tears.

Insiang is a must watch for any movie enthusiast. Hilda Koronel plays a young lass in the slums of Metro Manila and when her mother decided to live with Dado, she was devastated.

What follows is masterful movie making, revenge at its finest. Go watch this !

A strong, well written story, perfect casting and performances, clever staging and pacing make for a powerful love story, set in the slums of Manila. Insiang (Hilda Koronel) is tormented by an embittered mother (Mona Lisa), barely able to contain her anger at the husband who abandoned her for another woman and left behind their daughter to abuse and belittle. Tensions explode when Mom takes in a much younger lover (Ruel Vernal), who bides his time, ogling Insiang. Her boyfriends (Rez Cortez and Marlon Ramirez) are too young, too weak and too poor to do much for her, but the person who loves her most is eventually revealed.