Lino Brocka`s Melodrama Films and Social Critique during Martial

Lino Brocka's Melodrama Films and Social Critique during Martial Law Era
Philippines
Jose Gutierrez III and Ana Karina A. Cosio
Lino Brocka, a Filipino director who made more than 60 films in his career, spanning
from 1970 to 1991, was known for his films that struck an optimal balance between popular
and progressive. He worked with familiar conventions of melodrama, which was very popular
among the public, and used this approach in fleshing out socially relevant issues during Martial
Law Era (1970s to mid-1980s) Philippines. Ultimately concerned with the role of the artist in
society particularly during times of crisis, this essay examines how Lino Brocka films, in spite of,
or perhaps, because of their apparent operation under the “safe” genre of melodrama,
provided sharp social – necessarily implicating political – critique amidst the climate of heavy
censorship. This essay (1) surveys the tradition of Philippine melodrama films; (2) describes how
melodramatic film conventions were appropriated by the director in creating an entirely new
sub-genre – the “Brocka film”; (3) briefly recounts his politicization and transformation towards
being an outspoken artist-activist; and (4) examines how the auteur used his cinema as a
discursive weapon against the oppressive regime. Archival research will be employed on: (1)
Philippine melodrama films; (2) the material conditions and social discourse during the Martial
Law Era in the Philippines; and (3) Lino Brocka’s development as artist and activist. To identify
the distinguishing characteristics of the “Brocka film” as a sub-genre of melodrama films,
textual analysis will be conducted on selected films from the auteur's body of work .