Quezon's Game: A must watch for every Filipino

I just watched Quezon’s Game the other night and I can say that it is perhaps one of the best films I have watched in a while. It is a film inspired by the defiance of our former President Manuel Quezon to its former sovereign master, the US to let 1,200 Jews in the Philippines during the Holocaust. It is a film, cliché as may it sound will make any Filipino proud.

I came across this film when I saw some people lining up for it at the same time my husband and I were lining up to watch John Wick 3. We just came from New York where we couldn’t watch the latter because we had a 12 year old in tow. With our son at his Lola’s place, we were free to watch Keanu Reeves plow through dozens of assassins like him. Anyway, I got curious with Quezon’s film and when I browsed about it on the web, I decided to watch it.

There was only one theater left showing this film in our area because the summer films in Hollywood just arrived and filled the slots in our local cinemas. That’s too bad, this film deserved a longer run so more of our countrymen can watch it. I wonder if these theater owners have watched the film already because if they did than they should be ashamed of themselves for wanting more profits than instilling national pride. I mean one cinema for every major theater chain could have been enough to showcase the film.

Going back, Quezon’s Game not only prides itself with a compelling and inspiring story about the resoluteness and generosity of President Manuel Quezon but the film was also gifted with the fine performances of its actors. 

The foreign actors were convincing and definitely was given the part due to merit and not because they just looked Americans. Their dialogues were well-crafted thanks to a solid script, one of the best I’ve come across to in a while and even though there were more talk than action in this film, it was far from boring.

Raymond Bagatsing as President Quezon was a good choice because he embodied the role with conviction and vulnerability. It is complemented well by Rachel Alejandro’s moving portrayal of Quezon’s wife Aurora. The other Filipino actors like Audie Gemora also made me proud as they were as convincing as their foreign counterparts.

The cinematography of the film was a delight to watch. It showcased the beautiful grounds of Las Casas de Acuzar in Bataan where restored old houses stood and a place you can visit to see the grandeur of Old Manila. I have visited this place thrice and each visit was a feast for the eyes and heart of every Filipino like me. It was heartwarming to see it in an excellent film like this one.

One of the best scenes I liked was when President Quezon joked or instructed his Vice President, Sergio Osmena to piss in one of the toilets near the Oval Office if he can when he visits there. In his mind, it is a way of protest for making us Filipinos feel inferior since we are usually led to the back toilets labeled as Coloreds. He also emphasized the need of our country to be independent from foreign sovereignty to strengthen Filipino pride because he’d rather have a country run by hell by Filipinos than run like heaven by foreigners.

Sad to say, I know what President Quezon was talking about regarding discrimination. Even decades after, I still felt a sting of it in my latest travel to the US. I just came from New York and I don’t like the way some white people have a patronizing tone with us especially in stores or restaurants where they need to serve us. Some minorities too are guilty of this as well. Discrimination or racism does not have to be said aloud but it is palpable with the tone of the voice, a glance and a smirk. I have also felt this way in Hongkong. Discrimination was a just a concept in my mind before because we don’t have that in our country and when I felt it myself, it was not a nice feeling. You felt like your worth was being questioned and I felt pity for those who usually encounter it.

It is something I have always wanted to write about because it is wrong the way some foreigners label Filipinos like they are not worthy to be served or be shown respect to just because many of us work as domestic and overseas workers. I have always been proud of my countrymen who work hard to provide for their families. I feel their sacrifice and pain being away from their homeland and they deserve to be treated with admiration and dignity. We, Filipinos, overseas worker or not or even just tourists in another land deserve to be treated with hospitality and respect because we deserve that just like any other race.

I’m sorry for the digression but the movie reminded me of that awful feeling again. But then again, it also spurred me to uphold my national pride and re-evaluate what it means to be a Filipino. Our lack of discrimination to others have always been our source of strength as well as our generous spirit and this film can attest to that. President Quezon defied foreign powers and rallied the Filipino people to his cause and made a difference to the lives of the 1,200 Jews who were not welcomed in other countries. He fought for it because he felt that it was the right thing to do. He makes us proud to be Filipinos. Quezon’s game should therefore not be missed and is a must watch for every Filipino to remind them again that we, as a people should take pride in ourselves because it is our character that defines us from the rest.