Metro Manila (Movie) – Review

Movie Director Sean Ellis

Cast / Actors Character Name Role

The main character is a farmer and a married
man with two children (Soon to be three
Jake Macapagal Oscar Ramirez children). He worked as a driver for an
armored vehicle.
Senior driver in Manila Courier Service. He
trained Oscar to fit well in the job. He offered
John Arcilla Douglas Ong Oscar some help, but he had ulterior motives
that would cause Oscar some problems.
Wife of Oscar. She worked in a bar when
Althea Vega Mai Ramirez they arrived in Manila.
The nine-year-old daughter of Oscar and Mai.
Erin Panlilio Angel Ramirez She was asked to work in the bar too.
The bar owner offered Mai a job, but when
Mai wasn’t able to reach her drinks quota,
Mailes Kanapi Charlie she was interested about Angel. She wanted
Angel to work at the bar too.
A desperate man who hijacked an airplane
Jm Rodriguez Alfred Santos and jumped to his death
Ana Abad Santos Dora Ong Wife of Douglas Ong
Owner of the courier company armored truck
Moises Magisa Buddha where Oscar and Ong worked

The Look of the Movie

Metro Manila is a film about typical poor family who decided to leave their
province and head out to the city to try if their life would be better. They
ended up living in the slums of Tondo and get scammed by people. They
soon realized that life in the city is too hard and that they made a mistake by
coming in Manila. Oscar was grateful when he got a job and because they
don’t have any money he didn’t object when Mai decided to work in the bar
too, bringing along with her their 2 children. Oscar got involved in a scheme
plotted by Ong and he can’t escape it no matter what he does so he used it
as an opportunity to be able to provide for his family so they get out of the
slums and harsh life they have. Oscar was killed, he knew it would happen
but before he died, he made sure that Mai would get the money that he
managed to get. Mai left with their children together with the money to start a
new life without Oscar.
 Actor Performance Comments:
For Oscar’s character, played by Jake Macapagal, I will give him a 10/10
performance score. He was able to portray the role convincingly. I was able to
see on his face all the struggles that he is had endured and the pain of
deciding on an action that would cost his life. He was selfless. He was a good
man, hardworking and brave. However, due to his situation, his desperation
to keep his family safe and out of the slums made him decide to do actions
that cannot be undone. POVERTY can make people desperate.
For Ong’s character played by John Arcilla, I will give him a 10/10 score. He
was a seasoned actor and being the villain in the story suited him so well
because of his excellent portrayal of facial expressions and voice effects
when he laughs. He was one of my favorite actors of all time.
All the actors who played in this movie, in my opinion, were all excellent.

Memorable Scene or Qoutes:

For me, this line from ANGEL is very memorable. She said: “Tay, dito po
ba tayo pupunta pag tayo’y namatay”. She was looking at the Peninsula
Hotel, a very beautiful view and in her innocent mind, she was seeing
heaven. But her father’s answer was just as sweet and memorable too. He
said that when he died, he will always be in Angel’s heart.

In this story, we can see that children are the most who suffer when
poverty strikes. They were so innocent but most of time the are forced to
grow up fast so they can fend for themselves.
 Thoughts and Reaction While you Watch
From a general point of view, the movie's plot was a typical story of many
of the poor Filipinos who are in the slums of Tondo. Many of init originally
all from Manila, but different provinces. In a documentary I watched a long
time ago, a family is starving in the province. They don’t have any money
and cannot work because there is no job available. They wanted to find a
decent job in Manila because they all thought Manila was the answer to
their problems and that good opportunities would eventually come for them.
But that is not the case; when they arrive in Manila, they see the sad truth.
Life is not easy. Work is hard to find. And everything has a cost; nothing is
free. Many Filipinos in the city are homeless or squatting in illegal places.
Children were forced to work at an early age to help the family. They were
supposed to be at school and studying, but instead, they were driven to
find money or food for their family. I wonder when would this dilemma end.
I also came from a poor family and I can totally relate to the desperation
that the character where feeling in the movie.

The Setting of the story

Initially, in the story, it started in Banaue Province. Oscar lived there, and he was a
farmer. However, the farming land isn’t producing much, and the buy-out for his
crops was inadequate for his family’s needs.
He brought his family to Manila, and they ended up living in the slums of Tondo,
where lots of criminals lived.

The Conflict of the Movie

1. POVERTY – the life of Oscar was full of struggles and he was poor. He
wasn’t able to provide well enough for his family’s needs. The conflict is
when deciding about doing the right thing and struggling for a long time
or a quick way to escape poverty but doing the wrong thing
2. GREED – Douglas Ong’s greed is also a source of conflict. He is
already living a decent life yet he still aims for more. This conflict in his
life resulted at the end of his life
3. MAN VS MAN conflict – when Oscar and Ong had a fight because he
was forcing Oscar to steal the key for the box that he kept for himself
after the robbery a few months ago
 THE SUMMARY OF THE PLOT OF THE MOVIE
A poor and straightforward farmer who lived in Banaue Province
struggled to make ends meet. His land wasn’t producing enough to
cover the expenses and his family’s needs. He decided to move his
family to find a new life in the city. He took all the money left after selling
his crops and headed to the town.
When they arrived in the city, he was approached by a man who
scammed him and took his money. He was offered a very cheap room
for his family, and he immediately believed the man; however, the next
day, they were asked to leave the room because it was illegal for them
to stay there.
Oscar continued to look for a job. A man noticed a military tattoo on his
arm and invited him for an interview. He met Douglas Ong, who helped
him land a job at Manila Courier Company as an armored truck driver
with money inside.
Mia, the wife, decided to look for a job because they don’t have food
and money. She was hired at a bar to entertain guests. She brought
along his nine-year-old daughter and her baby at the bar because no
one would look after them. Mia was not able to reach her quota, so the
club owner wanted the nine-year-old Angel to work as well.
Ong was being too lovely to Oscar. He introduced him to all of his
friends and even to his wife. He also offered a much decent room to
Oscar so he would no longer live in the slums of Tondo. Little did Oscar
know that all of these kinds of actions were just a ploy to make him
follow all of Ong’s wishes.
Ong told Oscar the story about his former partner and the robbery that
resulted in his friend’s death. However, he didn’t surrender the box
which contained money. He kept it and planned to steal the key from the
company. He asked Oscar to steal it, but he died before it happened.
Oscar knew that he was already in trouble because the stolen box from
the previous robbery was hidden in his room, and he would be blamed
for it because of Ong. He took the opportunity to steal the key, but he
knew that he would die if he did it. When he died, his belongings were
sent to his wife, Mai, who realized that the necklace contained the
engraved key. She found a letter from Oscar. She left the city with her
children carrying a bag full of money from the box.