EL PRESIDENTE

JESSA MAE T. NOFIES

CAS-06-301P
 The Cast
 Jeorge "E.R." Estregan as General Emilio Famy  Gary Estrada as Jose Tagle

Aguinaldo  Sid Lucero as Gaudioso

 Nora Aunor as Maria Agoncillo  Troy Montero as Frederick Funston

 Christopher de Leon as General Antonio Luna  Ronnie Quizon as Apolinario Mabini

 Cesar Montano as Andrés Bonifacio  Joonie Gamboa as Ambassador Felipe

 Cristine Reyes as Hilaria Aguinaldo y Del Buencamino

Rosario  Yul Servo as Pedro A. Paterno

 Lou Veloso as Julian Felipe

 Ronnie Lazaro as Gen. Candido Tirona
 Ian Veneracion as Gen. Ernesto Aguirre
 Bayani Agbayani as Gen. Baldomero Aguinaldo
 Dennis Padilla as Tal Placido
 Gerard Ejercito as Gen. Crispulo Aguinaldo
 Roi Vinzon as Lazaro Segovia
 Allan Paule as Gen. Tomás Mascardo
 Archie Adamos as Luis Aguado
 Emilio Garcia as Gen. Pío del Pilar
 Soliman Cruz as Maximo Inocencio
 Wendell Ramos as Gen. Mariano Noriel
 Jericho Ejercito as Young Emilio Aguinaldo
 John Arcilla as Mariano Trías
 Roldan Aquino as Maria Agoncillo's Father
 Mike Lloren as Vicente Riego De Dios
 Gloria Sevilla as Maria Agoncillo's Mother
 Ian de Leon as Artemio Ricarte
 Jhulia Ejercito as Lorenza Agoncillo
 Felix Roco as Gregorio Del Pilar
 Maita Ejercito as Marcella Agoncillo
 Alicia Meyer as Inang Bayan (Motherland)
 Lariel Castro as Cecillo
 Alvin Anson as Felipe Agoncillo
 John Regala as Padre Agustin
 Sunshine Cruz as Gregoria de Jesús
 Karl Michael Bentozo as Benguzozo
 Joko Diaz as Procopio Bonifacio
The Story

The story is told in flashbacks as Emilio Aguinaldo thanks the US government for giving

him the opportunity to attend the full restoration of Philippine independence on July 4, 1946.

The film begins with his capture by Philippine and US forces under Frederick Funston's

command in 1901, then flashes back to 1886, when an old woman gives Aguinaldo and his

childhood friend Candido Tirona cryptic prophecies. Ten years later, Aguinaldo is inducted into

the Katipunan and later assumes leadership of its Cavite chapter while becoming mayor

of Cavite El Viejo. When the trouble breaks out in Manila in late August 1896, Aguinaldo tries

to assure the Spanish provincial government of non-interference and covertly marshals his

forces despite a lack of weapons. Learning that the Spanish mostly put their forces in Manila,

Aguinaldo finally mobilizes his troops and takes the command of the Katipunan forces in

Cavite.

As the rebels gain ground in Cavite and several provinces, its Magdalo and Magdiwang

factions convene to elect a provisional government. Andrés Bonifacio oversees the Tejeros

Convention, which elects Aguinaldo as president, Mariano Trías as vice-president and himself

as interior minister. He storms out of the convention when Daniel Tirona objects to his election.

Aguinaldo's brother Crispulo informs him of his accession and convinces him to leave his

troops just as he was seeking to defend against the Spaniards at Pasong Santol. The rebels

are defeated and Crispulo is killed. Meanwhile, an embittered Bonifacio establishes his own

revolutionary government and is later arrested. Aguinaldo is concerned about Bonifacio's

actions and wanted him exiled, but the War Council advises his execution.
 Several months later, Aguinaldo leaves Cavite with most of his forces intact and makes

it to Biac-na-Bato in Bulacan, where he signs the Pact of Biak-na-Bato and heads for Hong

Kong. There he meets with US officials who approach him with offers of support and

recognition of a new Philippine Republic amidst the Spanish–American War. Aguinaldo returns

to the Philippines and formally declares independence from Spain. As the Malolos Congress

convenes, Felipe Agoncillo tries to represent the new nation at the Treaty of Paris negotiations,

but gets stonewalled at every turn even as US forces gradually arrive in the Philippines. The

Philippine–American War breaks out in February 1899 and Antonio Luna is appointed

commander of all the Filipino forces. He is assassinated three months later and the Filipino

troops are gradually routed by the Americans. As a result, Aguinaldo's forces travel all over

northern Luzon to escape the Americans. General Gregorio Del Pilar volunteers to lead some

troops in holding them off at Tirad Pass and buy Aguinaldo time to get away. His loyal courier

is later captured by the Americans while getting some medicine for his son. Now aware of

Aguinaldo's hideout, Funston plans his capture.

Having been made to accept the American occupation over the Philippines, Aguinaldo

lives a quiet life, which is marred by Hilaria's passing in 1921. He meets and marries Felipe

Agoncillo's niece Maria in 1930. Over the next few decades, the couple witness Philippine

history unfold once more as he is defeated in the 1935 presidential elections, Japanese

occupation and the restoration of full independence. In 1962, an elderly Aguinaldo and his wife

comfort each other over President Diosdado Macapagal's decree to restore the actual date of

the Philippine declaration of independence. In his final hours, the same woman who gave him

his prophecy appears to him one more time.

The Preparation
A 350-page script emerged in 1998, with the proposed film meant for the Philippines'
Independence Centennial, but no production was made.
Ejercito said Meily was chosen to direct the film due to his knowledge of Aguinaldo,
experience in large productions, and personal belief in him. Meily's appointment was made
despite swearing never to helm a historical film again, after working on Baler in 2008. Ejercito's
second choice for director was Mario O'Hara; the latter died before Ejercito made him an offer,
on June 26, 2012. Ejercito ruled out picking Tikoy Aguiluz because a falling-out between them
during the editing of his last film, Manila Kingpin.
Despite the existence of the 1998 script, Meily opted to create an entirely different script
instead. He wanted to hire screenwriters at Ejercito's request, but volunteered to write it
himself when no writers joined the project. Meily claims he tried to make the film as factually
accurate as possible, and he describes the finished product as "95 percent" accurate to what
really happened. Historians were on set to ensure full accuracy.
Ejercito described the film as much harder to make than Manila Kingpin because it
"deals directly with our country's history." Over 50 professional actors and actresses were cast
for the movie. He also described the "set, costumes, locations, and logistics" as "staggering by
all Philippine cinema standards." He also claimed that it was the biggest and most expensive
Filipino film ever, as the film was made on a budget of Php130 million. Shooting took place
over 43 days at select locations in Cavite, Laguna, and Bulacan.

The Critics
The movie garnered mostly positive reviews from critics. The Philippines' Cinema
Evaluation Board graded the film an A, and it has been endorsed by the
government's Department of Education, the Commission on Higher Education, and the Film
Development Council of the Philippines.
In a review, Phillip Cu-Unjieng of the Philippine Star said it "vividly recaptures" one of
the Philippines' most turbulent periods in history by exposing the infighting among the
Katipunan's members and how Aguinaldo wanted to resolve them. He noted that the film's
quality makes it almost stand out as much as Richard Attenborough's Gandhi, Steven
Spielberg's Lincoln, and Martin Scorsese's The Aviator. Philibert Ortiz-Dy of ClickTheCity.com,
on the other hand, gave the film two and a half stars out of five, describing El Presidente as
"deeply flawed as an entertainment, but there's a lot in it to like." While he did note the film was
ambitious, he also stated that the "lack of focus hurts it in the end", due to its large scope.
Rommel R. Llanes of the Philippine Entertainment Portal especially praised the
performances of Montano and de Leon as Bonifacio and Luna, respectively. However, he also
stated that Ejercito occasionally felt like Asiong Salonga, the main character of his previous
film, Manila Kingpin. Maridol Rañoa-Bismark, writing for Yahoo! Philippines, highly praised the
film for "its breathtaking cinematography, well-choreographed fight scenes, haunting music and
brilliant acting", but mostly for it being about the "triumph of good over evil."
Columnist and radio show host Jessica Zafra, however, was critical of the movie's
treatment. She said the depiction of Bonifacio's death raised questions about its authenticity.
She added that the film itself "does Emilio Aguinaldo a disservice by portraying him as a victim
of circumstance" and even highlighted the "amnesia" prevalent among contemporary Filipinos.
The movie garnered the most awards at the 2012 Metro Manila Film Festival, winning
the plums for Second Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor (Cesar Montano), Youth Choice
Award, Best Float, Best Sound, Best Musical Score, and Best Make-up.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Presidente_(film)