Released: July 25, 1978
The Plot: "Pag-puti ng Uwak, Pag-itim ng Tagak" is a pulsating love story that recaptures the nostalgic fifties, the exciting era of mass hysteria, and the golden years of the rock and roll fever inflicted by screaming, wiggling hip-shaking foreign pop idols dominated by Elvis Presley, Bill Haley, Little Richard, Pat Boone, Doris Day and the Platters. "Pag-puti ng Uwak,Pag-itim ng Tagak" is more than a love story. It is also a commentary - a satire rich with humor injected into a moral, psychological, sociological, and cultural aspect, outlook, and values of the said bygone era. "Pag-puti ng Uwak, Pag-itim ng Tagak", is a poigant rich-girl-meets poor boy love story of Julie Monserat and Candido Ventura - two love-struck starry eyed youths who fought for their right to love each other, here is a story that touches social conflict - the perennial clashes and discrimination between the rich and the poor. Julie grew up under the custody of her two wealthy spinster aunts Beatriz and Miguela Monserrat. Julie enjoyed everything, except the right to love her own father - Maestro Juan Roque, the poor town teacher. Julie met Dido a student-combo player. They fell in love with each other and had secret affairs. The aunts hated Dido for his " lowly breeding and ear-splitting music", thus rejecting him in favor of the town mayor's son. Julie eventually got pregnant. They planned an elopement but was foiled. The conflict between the lovers and the Monserrat exploded into a series of scandals that rocked the whole town of Sta. Inez..." - Celso Ad Castillo Web-site (READ MORE)
The Reviews: Skeptics disappointed by the clumsiness of craft and the excess of theatrics of Burlesk Queen will have to revise their prejudices against director Celso Ad Castillo. Admirers of the wildly poetic, though erratic and often hysterical, works of the director of Nympha, Ang Alamat, Daluyong at Hagabat have reason to rejoice. Pagputi ng Uwak, Pag-itim ng Tagak, Castillo’s newest film, securely established its director in the ranks of Bernal and Brocka as filmmakers who have something to say and possess the craft and art to say it cinematically. Castillo’s Pagputi ng Uwak is a movie that is truly impressive this year or any other year. The title, Pagputi ng Uwak, Pag-itim ng Tagak is a traditional metaphorical way of saying “Never.” It is the first statement of the tragic theme of this tale about a class-divided (not “star-crossed”) Romeo and Juliet in a small Southern Tagalog town called Santa Ines in the mid 1950s. The screenplay is focused on the young music student Julie Monserrat (Vilma Santos), who has had to grow up without a father, in the care of two domineering old maid aunts (Adul de Leon and Angie Fierro).
As a young woman born in a tradition-bound town but raised in the modernizing atmosphere of Manila, Julie gropes towards maturity without benefit of guidance from understanding elders. Home for the traditional town fiesta, she meets the poor boy next-door, Dido Ventura (played by Bembol Rocco) whose passion and impulsiveness rush her into an elopement But Dido’s family has a long-standing grievance against the Monserrats who, through fraudulence in the past, had grabbed the Ventura property. When the young lovers ask for permission to marry, Julie’s snooty aunts make her choose between her present status as a rich single Monserrat, and an uncertain future as housewife of Dido. In a moment of indecisiveness, Julie gives up Dido and goes back to her music studies. At the university, Julie is visited by the elderly violinist from her hometown whom she idolizes. Maestro Juan Roque (Jonee Gamboa) has learned she is pregnant, and he has come to tell Julie that he is her father and then walks out on him. When she gives birth, against the wishes of her aunts, Julie decides to keep the baby and give the baby to its father. By this time, it has become impossible for the baby to have its father. Dido has joined the band of Huks headed by Kumander Salome (Lito Anzures). Driven by the desire to help his daughter out, Maestro Juan Roque goes to the Huk hide-out to effect a reconciliation between Dido and Julie. A quick night visit for Dido is arranged, and the lovers rediscover each other. Too late, for government agents have learned of the presence of the Huks, and a bloody shoot-out affirms the nihilism of the film’s title.
The screenplay sets the rather conventional plot against a vividly characterized locale and times, using religious festivals to mark the periods of the year and key characters to show feudal society under stress from the challenge of new social forces. It weaves a tragic tapestry around the lovers by juxtaposing social and economic inequity, the pursuit of art, small town police brutality and revolutionary ferment. The result is a reading of the Romeo-and-Juliet story as filtered by a sensibility attuned to the social and historical pressures that mold human relationships in a Philippine town in the 1950s. This is where the writers (Ruben Arthur Nicdao, Lando Perez Jacob and Ishko Lopez) with whom Castillo worked, go beyond other screenplays which had worked on the same plot. The writers have located their characters against a backdrop of social realities which allows the viewer new insights into the ragged twists and turns of a tired plot. Julie and Dido’s fate is made ur concern because the lovers are figures of young Filipinos of the 1950s uprooted from a past they never made and reaching out for a future they are not allowed to make. The lovers are both without a father, and the only fathers in the story are a dedicated musician a staunch revolutionary and a revengeful town mayor, who is the only real family man of the three. This would seem to imply a social comment which is much to veiled to be coherently perceived.
Castillo-watchers who had to cringe at the amount of its acting that Castillo allowed or demanded from his actors and actresses, will be gratified at the quiet intensity of the performances in Pagputi ng Uwak. Although one is never convinced that Vilma Santos can indeed bow music out of violin, her characterization of Julie displays the maturing talent of an actress fast learning to explore and shape her emotional resources in creating a character. Bembol Roco is disadvantaged by the script’s focus on Julie, but he impressively communicates the change in Dido from reckless teenager to hardened rebel. The acting highlights in the film, however, are provided by the three capable stage performers playing supporting roles. At long last Jonee Gamboa has been allowed to shed the irritatingly mannered caricatures he has been made to do in his previous films. As Maestro Juan Roque, he gives a serene portrait of a man who sublimates the turmoil of his inner life into the music he plays and composes in a performance memorable for its restraint and sincerity. Angie Ferro tends to be over-empphatic in places, but her portrayal of Miguela effectively keeps the role from degenerating into a contra vida stereotype by touching it up with humor that is broad yet never out of character. It is Adul de Leon, however, who emerges luminously as a character actress of the first magnitude. Her interpretation of Beatriz is a piece of complex character portraiture all the more admirable for having made a role of rather limited range so persuasively human.
Good performances are not unusual in Filipino movies. What is rare is that coming together of temperaments and skills that make film art possible. In Pagputi ng Uwak, Castillo’s work does not display anything that he has not already shown in his previous films. The fondness for story material that reeks of social overtones, the lyrical exuberance with which he invests starkly realistic situations, and the intensely theatrical confrontations among his characters – these have been qualities evident even in Castillo’s lesser works, where they are often pushed to absurd lengths. What has happened in Pagput ng Uwak is that the director has been able to bring to a focus his varied talents, and found fellow artists with temperaments congenial to his. With cinematographer Romy Vitug and musical director George Canseco, he seem to have found working partners who share his penchant for the poetic, and their collaboration has resulted in a film where narrative imagery and music fuse into a memorable whole. Vitug’s cinematography, always marked by the same lyricism that distinguishes his still photography, adds considerably to the visual impact of Pagputi ng Uwak through lightning and framing that enhance the poetic nuances of Castillo’s direction. In Vitug, perhaps, Castillo has found the ideal cinematographer, one who can effectively translate into visual terms and lush the poetry of Castillo’s imagination. Canseco’s music for Pagputi ng Uwak redeems his execrable work in Isang Gabi sa Iyo, Isang Gabi sa Akin. Inspired by Castillo’s vision and Vitug’s imagery, he seems to have caught fire, and the music (principally, Classical violin music) with which he supports the scenes in Pagputi ng Uwak demonstrates sensitivity to the intentions of the director at the same time that it transports the moviegoers from one image to another, from one point in time to the next, and from poetry to reality or vice-versa. A skeptic turned admirer is perhaps prone to gloss over the flaws of Pagputi ng Uwak. To be sure, cynics will find fault with editing and the production design. Yes, the camera lingers too long at the religious festivals and no, a young woman in the 1950s will not be caught dead wearing a long dress at a fiesta. However, the already considerable amount of art and craftmanship in evidence in Pagputi ng Uwak ought to be ample justification for a more forgiving eye. It is enough that Celso Ad Castillo has demonstrated that he has what it takes to be a major director and most of all, he has come up with a movie that makes film year 1978 begin in July. – Bienvenido Lumbera, Who Magazine, July 29, 1978, (READ MORE)
Kuwento ng magkasintahang pinaghiwalay, na ipinaloob sa isang panahong dinadaluyong ang lipunang Pilipinong rebelyong Hukbalahap. Iyan ang buod ng 'Pagputi ng Uwak, Pag-itim ng Tagak'. Dekada ng 1950 noon, at sa pista ng matandang bay an ng Santa Ines ay nagkatagpu-tagpo sina Julie Monserrat (Vilma Santos), Dido Ventura (Bembol Roco) at Maestro Juan Roque (Joonee Gamboa). Mula sa mayaman at makapangyarihang pamilya si Julie, isang ulilang pinalaki at pinapag-aral sa Maynila ng kanyang mga tiyang matandang dalagang sina Beatriz (Adul de Leon) at Miguela (Angie Ferro). Si Dido ay maralitang binatang ang Ina (Mona Lisa) ay may iwing poot sa mga Monserrat na kumamkam sa kanilang lupain at naging dahilan ng kanilang paghihirap. Si Maestro Roque naman ay kilalang kompositor at biyolinista na umuwi sa Santa Ines upang tapusin ang kanyang sarsuwelang pinamagatang "Pangarap ng Bagong Umaga." Sa unang pagkikita pa lamang ay napusuan ni Dido si Jutie. Nagkahulihan ng loob ang dalawa, at isang gabi'ypinangahasang akyatin ni Dido si Julie sa kuwarto nito. Ang kanilang pagtatalik ay humantong sa pagtatanan. Nang magbalik ang magkasintahan upang humingi ng pahintulot na sila'y pakasal, si Julie ay pinamili ng kanyang mga tiya sa maginhawang buhay na kanyang kinagisnan, at sa walang-katiyakang hinaharap bilang asawa ni Dido. Nagdalawang-isip si Julie, at pinili niyang manatili sa pangangalaga ng kanyang mga tiya.
Masamang-masama ang loob ni Dido sa nangyari. Nang siya ay laitin ng kanyang kasintahang si Cristy (Olivia O'Hara), sinaktan niya ito. Nalaman ni Claro (Robert Talabis) ang ginawa ni Dido sa kanyang kapatid, at nagharap ang dalawa sa isang labanang mano-a-mano. Napatay ni Dido si Claro. Alkalde ng bayan ang ama (Mervin Samson) nina Cristy at Claro, kaya't pinakitos nito ang mga pulis upang iligpit si Dido. Nang gabing lihim na kunin si Dido sa kulungan upang patayin, inambus ng mga Huk ang sasakyan ng mga pulis. Tiyo ni Dido ang pinuno ng mga Huk na si Kumander Salome (Lito Anzures). Sumamang namundok si Dido sa kanyang Tiyo. Minsang dumalaw sa bahay ng mga Monserrat si Maestro Roque, siya ay hinamak ng magkapatid na Beatriz at Miguela. Mula na rin sa mga tiya ni Julie, natuklasan niya na anak pala niya si Julie sa patay nang si Ana Monserrat. Nang magkahiwalay sina Julie at Dido, nalaman ni Maestro Roque na buntis si Julie. Ito ay dinalaw niya sa konserbatoryong pinag-aaralan ng dalaga sa pagka-biyolinista. Ipinagtapat niyang siya ang ama ni Julie. Tinalikdan ni Julie ang kanyang ama, subalit ang pagdalaw na iyon ang naging dahilan upang magpasiya ang dalaga na huwag ipaampon ang kanyang anak na isisilang. Nilakad ni Maestro Roque na pagtagpuing muli sina Julie at Dido. Isang gabi ng Mahal na Araw, nagkita ang magkasintahan at nakilala ni Dido ang kanyang anak kay Julie. Natunugan ng mga espiya ng gobyerno ang pagbaba sa bayan ng mga rebeldeng pinamumunuan ni Kumander Salome. Ang uha ng anak nina Julie at Dido ay nangibabaw sa masinsing putukang lumipol kina Dido at mga kasama. - Manunuri,
Putting in place a dialectic that analyzes social reality as at once a corrupted condition and a transformable possibility. In this situation, Dido's idealism is undercut as an illusion by Julie (Vilma Santos), a jaded but nevertheless sensible young woman who in turn opens herself up to a revision of consciousness. This dialectic, or reflexive reflection is important to scan the contradictions of milieu and to probe the context of whatever human action plays out. Without such dynamic, which eludes most films which dare to tackle historical reality of epochal significance, all manner of practice is ultimately facile and anomalous and rendering romance as a vital agent in the articulation of difference, the engagement with a higher force and the summoning of a love that transcends the limitations of conspiratorial cacophony. A film nourished by this premise cannot fail. The personas of spinster sisters Beatriz (Angie Ferro) and Miguela (Adul de Leon) along with Joonee Gamboa as music teacher and violinist Roque San Victores are rounded out. And society is a charged terrain of armed revolt, state control and resistance. Direction, screenplay, cinematography, editing, production design, music and the performance of a sensitive cast contribute to the comprehensive competence of Pagputi Ng Uwak... Pag-Itim Ng Tagak..." - Jojo De Vera, Sari-saring Sineng Pinoy (READ MORE)
"...It was 1977 with an exceptional film, Burlesk Queen, that Castillo got his frist critical recognition. Entered in that year's Metro Manil Film Festival, it was adjudged the Best Picture, won forhim a Best Director Award as well as nine other artistic awards. It told a young girl in Manila in the 50's who wanted to become a burlesque dancer. It showed a subdued Castillo. He seemed in this film, to have held back his passion for visual impact to give way to his new mastery of film grammar. His characters cried and whimpered, they did not scream and curse. They delievered dissertations on art, not imprecations of wrath, which had set the pitch of his previous films. The critics fought bitterly over Burlesk Queen. In that festival, he was contending with film makers who enjoyed a high reputation among the country's most avid film critics. Upon winning the award, Castillo instantly became the favorite beating boy of the critics who did not appreciate Burlesk Queen. To prove to them his worth, Castillo did Pagputi ng Uwak, a 50's epic set in his favorite Southern Tagalog locale. It was the most lavish of all his productions and had all the elements of a "great" Filipino film. He exploited the many religious and social rituals typical of the region. The film featured the two most critically acclaimed performers of the time, Bembol Roco, Jr. and Vilma Santos, with the cinematography of Romy Vitug complementing Castillo's visual sense. And it touched on civil unrest to underline the film director's social awareness. Pagputi ng Uwak was a visual fest, an artistic and socially responsive film aimed at the critics. It was also Castillo's first commercial failure after a string of more than 20 minor and major box-office hits...In just a decade, Castillo, with all his audacity and dramatic excesses, has claimed his place as one of the most versatile and genuinely interesting filmmakers in the Philippines today..." - Rosauro de la Cruz (READ MORE)
"...Pagputi Ng Uwak, Pagitim Ng Tagak is another ambitious epic movie that succeeds on many film levels. The story is about the love affair between a young woman belonging to a rich and powerful family, and a poor man whose mother is still bitter about having her land property snatched from her by the other family. This simple conflict develops into bigger, more significant ones, and they are all integrated within the framework of the story and the different elements of the film. It opens on a festive scene that seems to go on foreever, but this gradually changes the mood of the story until it ends a bloody climax. Indulgent as the individual aspects of the film may be, they all fit director Castillo's grand and elaborate design at story-telling, encompassing various Filipino seasons, holidays and range of experiences. Romy Vitug's cinematography is spectacular, and the cast, headed by Vilma Santos and Rafael Roco, Jr., are marvelous..." - Expressweek, January 10, 1980 (READ MORE)
Celso Ad Castillo's epic masterpiece of romantic love, family relationships, class struggle and political rebellion, Vilma Santos star as Julie Monserrat, a music-loving provincial lass raised by her two prudish, wealthy spinsters aunt (Adul De Leon and Angie Ferro) Julie falls in love w/ Dido Ventura (Bembol Rocco) the poor son of embittered woman (Mona Lisa) who holds grudge against the Monserrats for wrong doing several years earlier. Other memorable characters populate this beautifully photographed drama, among them Maestro Roque (Jhoonee Gamboa) a composer-violinist and huk Kumander Salome (Lito Anzures), Dido's freedom-fighting uncle. rich in texture and full color, charm love and joy, tenderness, violence and despair and hope. The movie won critics awards and stars Yolanda Luna, Marvin Samson, Mario Escudero, Olivia O' Hara and Robert Talabis. Cinematograhy by Romy Vitug. Produced by VS film. - IMDB
"...Furor is really an understatement. "Burlesk" swept the awards in that year's MMFF, resulting in a controversy that led to the wholesale return of trophies. In spite of the scandal, "Burlesk" is still regarded by critics as the "quintessential" Filipino film. "Hinamon ni Brocka si Tinio ng suntukan (Lino Brocka dared Rolando Tinio to a fight)," Celso remembers. "Tinio, who was the head of the jury, heralded "Burlesk as the most beautiful Filipino film" past, present and future." Vi's turnaround: Adding fuel to the fire, ?Burlesk? had stunned moviegoers because it unveiled a new Vilma Santos?from ingénue to wanton woman. Vilma says of "Burlesk?" - "It marked a transition in my career. Working with Celso Kid is a privilege. He's a genius." With good humor, Vilma recalls a "quarrel" on the set of "Pagputi ng Uwak, Pag-itim ng Tagak," which she produced in 1978. "It took so long to finish. I lost money on that. But we're still friends." Burlesk and Pagputi brought a lot of honor to me..." - Bayani San Diego Jr. (READ MORE)
"...This veritable spiritual co-ownership ostensibly has enriched us all, Asians or Asean. It is no mark of a monarchical hauteur to say, for instance, that the films of Celso Ad Castillo, once dubbed as the Messiah of Filipino movies, are contemporaneous in their being a classic. If all these seem contradictory, Celso can easily point to his filmography to prove that there has always been, and will always be, fire in his filmmaker's eyes. His "Burlesk Queen" and "Pagputi ng Uwak, Pag-itim ng Tagak," (When the Crow Turns White, When the Heron Turns Black) for one, are now a classic, conscience-searing sociological film tractatus on structutal violence and institutional injustice that probed into the hearts of little people amidst a third world setting as encapsulated in the microscopic life of a poverty-stricken, young woman. It's Rossellini, you would say? Think again...Pagputi ng Uwak, Pag-itim ng Tagak was sent to Sao Paolo, Brazil for the Latin American Film Festival and represented the Philippines at the Asean Film Conference in 1981..." - Celso Ad Castillo Presents web-site (READ MORE)
