Bontoc Eulogy, Marlon Fuentes

Bontoc Eulogy is a narrative that explores the Filipino movement to the west, focusing on the fairly exploitative nature of the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair, which placed native Filipino tribes and urbanized citizens on display in the name of education and knowledge. Juxtaposing images of the past with that of the modern Fil-Am, Fuentes uses Bontoc Eulogy to make a statement regarding Philippine identity in America under the mask of a “family history”. The film seems to question the ability to maintain ties to a native culture while beyond its specified borders.

While the narrator sets up his story, we witness how time and distance have faded his memories of his former home, and his ability to identify more and more with American culture, which happens to be the world of his children. It is this insecurity and inability to define identity, which often forces Filipino Americans to realize the existence of “the other” which inevitably separates “us” from “them”. But as Fuentes attempts to reconnect with his past he begins to question whether or not it is a past he wants to remember, as it is riddled with tragedy, desire, and loss, putting this cultural investigation under a somewhat somber light.

Speaking of the two sides his family, Fuentes develops a sense duality and explores the cultural tales that define the larger narrative of Philippine history. One is a glorious story of war and freedom fighters, the other one of curiosity and exploitation. The story of Markod, is one of mystery, open for interpretation and representative of the cultural loss felt by many who leave their native country. And secondly there is the tension between the worlds of the “primitive” and “civilized” as he touches on the disconnect between the native ways of the Filipinos and that of their American hosts, hinting at the familial and civic bond between the communities on exhibit. The film appears to asks us to examine our definition of “home” as we deal with a complexity of history and cultural identity.

Overall, the film is thought provoking, creating a realistic grounding in present day, while delving into mysteries of the past. Technically, I believe the repetitious patterning of imagery often pushed me to analyze and rethink themes in the story and better connect the individual pieces of the bigger story.