Mapúa University

Bakit Hindi Nakakasawang Masaktan: A Study on the Structure of Hugot Films

DF116 Film Genre Module 1 Exam/Project

Submitted to:

Mr. Fernando Calleja

Submitted by:

Wilford L. Medina

AM23

May 6, 2022
 I. ORIGINS OF THE SUB GENRE

Hugot has been one of the coping mechanisms of people who has just got their hearts

broken. (Dayrit and Ting, 2015) Hugot is a Filipino verb that means pulling something out of

somewhere. But in the contemporary context, hugot is about heart breaking punch lines, where

someone expresses their heartaches through witty jokes or puns. Milan (2004) directed by

Olivia Lamasan and One More Chance (2007) directed by Cathy Garcia Molina are some films

considered to be hugot films even if the sub-genre wasn’t a thing yet. These two films are

famous for their deep “nakakatama” hugot punch lines.

Heartbreaks are being romanticized into movies that we audience enjoy and feast on.

One-sided love, ex-lovers, and third parties that happen in real life are made into something

entertaining and fun to watch. There is no harm in that, because it comforts the audience that

they are not the only one going through the heart break. It also assures them that although

things may not turn out to be happily ever after, one day they will learn their worth. And nothing

beats going through the moving on phase when you know you’re not alone in the journey.

Getting our hearts broken is inevitable that’s why hugot films are always relatable to the

Filipinos. No matter how redundant the conflicts are in films Filipinos seem to never get tired of

being hurt watching those films.

 II. REPRESENTATIVE FILMS

Labs Kita… Okey Ka Lang? (1998)

This film is one of the famous hugot films in the 90’s because of the Marvin and Jolina

tandem. The story revolves around two best friends who have known each other ever since.

When they reached adolescence, Bujoy (Jolina Magdangal) realized she has fallen for her best

friend. But unfortunately, Ned (Marvin Agustin) is too coward to admit that he also has fallen for

Bujoy, so he instead chose to court another girl. The film had a happy ending for both

characters, where they both realized that they really love each other more than friends.

Barcelona: A Love Untold (2016)

This film is about Mia (Kathryn Bernardo) having suicidal thoughts, because she is being

pressured by her family to be a lawyer. She told her family she will go to Barcelona, Spain to

study, but in reality, she went there to work different jobs to earn money and prove herself to her

family. There, she met Eli (Daniel Padilla) who is a typical OFW working numerous jobs per day

to support his family back in the Philippines. He is also a frustrated animator who came from a

broken family and can’t move on from his dead ex-girlfriend. The two characters eventually gets

to know each other. Eli helps Mia to look for jobs and help her to be independent. Mia on the

other hand who is a very jolly and carefree person tries to cheer up Eli who always seems

problematic and sad. When Mia finally developed feelings for Eli, he tries to help Eli to move on

from his ex-girlfriend, in hopes of having a reciprocation for her feelings. At the end, Mia goes

back home to the Philippines to reconcile and apologize to her family. She is finally accepted

and understood by her family. Eli, finally learns to let go of the past and move on to the present.

He reconciled with her mother and accepted that he can’t bring back the past with his ex-
girlfriend again. Eli and Mia had their happy ending where they found the love they want and

need in each other.

I’m Drunk, I Love You (2017)

In this film, Carson (Maja Salvador) and Dio (Paolo Avelino) has been best friends for 7

years. When the two best friends went to La Union with some other friends, they went drinking.

When they were all drunk, Carson and Dio went back to their hotel rooms. Dio was singing one

of the songs he composed, then out of nowhere, Carson confessed to Dio that she has loved

him for 7 years now. After that event, Dio apologizes to Carson for not being able to reciprocate

the feelings she has. The story ended with Carson and Dio graduating college and them

remaining as best friends.

Exes Baggage (2018)

The title of the film tells itself. It’s about Pia (Angelica Panganiban) and Nix’s (Carlo

Aquino) story from meeting at a bar to being lovers until how they broke up. After watching the

film, I remembered lots of stories that I heard from my friends about their exes. Some of them

wished to have a decent break up. Some of them wanted to get back together with their ex. And

some of them curses their exes to death. The plot of this film is very relatable and realistic to the

masses. I honestly did not like how it ended, because Pia was already in a new relationship but

we can see how she is still hung up with her ex, Nix when they saw each other again at a party.

Nix even lowkey convinced Pia to think things through if she is really ready for a new

relationship. For me, I really don’t like exes still having communication, or they communicate as

if nothing happened in the past. But this film showed it otherwise. Although I understand that

happens in reality.
 One thing I noticed in the films I watched is, the plots and conflicts between two

characters are all relatable and close to reality. Even though the story of having third parties,

high school or college sweet hearts, one-sided love has been used over and over through the

years, Filipinos still seem to get very attracted to hugot films. The audiences like to see films

where they can relate, because through that they know they’re not the only one going through

the heartbreak.
 III. GENRE STRUCTURE

1. Troubled Past – The girl and boy each has their own damage from the past. They

are in the process of moving on or healing their selves. They can currently be a mess

or trying to divert their attention to other things.

2. Meeting the Hero – They will meet someone down the road and in the most

coincidental way, such as a bar, airport, restaurant, or literally on the road. Or, they

can already know each other for a long time, and they just don’t know the other one

is their “hero”.

3. Blooming of a Friendship – A conversation will be initiated. At first the other one will

be hesitant to talk to a stranger, but as time goes by of them being together, they will

get to know each other’s bubog. They will soon be comfortable with each other. Their

friendship can also go through rocky roads.

4. Mending the Wounds – As they build their trust and get comfortable with each other,

they agree to help each other heal. They agree to value their friendship over their

misunderstandings to fully help each other be a better version of their self.

5. New Dilemma – As they heal and their friendship grows deeper, their hearts and

minds will be challenged once again. They can start to develop feelings for the other

one. Confessions and confrontations might be done, which will complicate their

relationship more. It’s up to them if they will go back to square one, being hurt and

left once again, or they will trust their heart this time and give love another chance.

IV. THE FUTURE

All of us can relate to the hugot films, as it tackles sorts of heartbreaks that cater to the

audience. May it be about being left at the altar, third party, or even just about best friends and

one-sided love. We might not relate to the happy ending or a proper closure or a clear and two-
sided break up, because that’s the beauty of hugot films and its storytelling. We romanticize

heartbreaks. For me, film making is also about making a story or event that we wished

happened or will happen to us. Film is where we make our own alternate universe. Some of us

hope for a proper break up. Some of us wish for a second chance. And that’s what catches the

audiences, giving them their what ifs through film.

Personally, I think the topics and heartbreaks hugot films show are becoming redundant. Ex

relationships getting back together, one-sided love, and such has been used over and over,

they just execute it differently, but the conflict is still the same. The couple have their happy or

sad ending but it seems like there is no growth shown between the characters. Lately, I have

also observed how relationships have evolved through time. It’s not all about petty fights of

forgetting special dates or giving your ex a second chance anymore. The market of hugot films

have grown as well as their struggles in relationships. They now discuss and have fights about

the future. Their future plans such as careers, marriage, family, kids, or just being open about

the conflicts in their relationship.

Today, relationship is all about priorities and compromise. If your partner does not want to

have kids in the future, it’s for you to decide if you’re going to compromise or stick to your

dream. Small issues such as jealousy, time management, proper communication, and trust are

something being discussed now. It’s not all about being cute and silent when you wait for your

partner to understand what’s on your mind. Couples now understand that a mature relationship

should be about being open and accountable to share to your partner what’s been making you

uncomfortable. It’s about communicating to them what you expect in the relationship you are in,

and the other should also explain and listen.

Hopefully, film makers and writers will realize that. Hugot films should not be all about the

meet cute or kilig moments of the main characters. But it should be about growth. About moving

on from the hugot and heartbreak phase. About how to stand up again from the damage in your
past. It should teach us to learn from our past and if we would want to give love another try. It

should not be about girl chasing boy when she realizes he is her hero, and vice versa. We

should not patronize a gender or pick a side in a relationship. In making films like this, we

should also be open to the audience about how to resolve those kinds of conflict. Films has

such a big influence in the audience’s lives. As film makers, should be aware of what we

produce and make. We should not only make entertaining films, but films that will teach the

audience self-worth and growth.

V. SOURCES

Dayrit, M. G., & Ting, J. P. (2015, June 24). #Hugot. The GUIDON.

https://theguidon.com/1112/main/2015/06/hugot/#:~:text=Hugot%20literally%20refers%2

0to%20the,for%20the%20Eugenio%20Lopez%20Jr.