El Presidente revolves around the life of General Emilio Aguinaldo.

It shows him as a young

boy, through his career switches (from cabeza de barangay to war general to president), up until
his old age. The story starts as President Emilio Aguinaldo is captured by the Americans in
Palanan. The film then transitions 15 years earlier, in 1886, as a young Emilio Aguinaldo is
foretold his life by an old, mysterious lady. He discovers that he will have three significant
women in his life - one of which he will never marry, his close friend Candido will be killed by a
bullet and afterwards, Aguinaldo will become king of a kingdom he will never rule. The movie
then chronicles Aguinaldo's rise and fall from 1896 onwards. Emilio Aguinaldo is a controversial
figure in Philippine history, and depending on which side you fall on, he’s a hero or
the balimbing. He’s no doubt a pillar of the revolution and an extremely interesting character. I
suppose that’s the first point that I wish this movie had taken into account, among all of the
different angles from which to approach this character. I know that most times when we review
something, we can’t review it for what it isn’t. But given our knowledge of the subject matter, it
seems fair here to expect that the film might have explored the character and given him more
depth. El Presidente isn’t the best hero film out there. But despite its numerous flaws, I still
believe that it’s a film worth watching because it shows how just how much went into getting the
freedom that we enjoy today.