The movie “Maynila, sa mga Kuko ng Liwanag” is a 1975 Filipino drama film directed by Lino Brocka based on the novel of Edgardo M. Reyes In the Claws of Brightness. It is arguably one of the most powerful films ever done in the history of Philippine cinema. It portrays the several illnesses the country was and is facing. The movie “Maynila, sa mga Kuko ng Liwanag” is a concrete depiction of the ills of city life. Back in the day, to the people in the province, Manila was their America and was a realm filled with infinite possibilities. But didn’t they know that going to Manila can be a nightmare especially when they don’t have money to sustain themselves. It is just sad to know that the place they think can give them a better life will be the one that wi
...ll put them down.
Ligaya Paraiso is a reflection of a person who believed going to Manila is a good choice. She and her family believed that untrusted woman, even if they don’t know her long enough, to send her to school and give her work. Their naivety put them in such a situation. The movie opened our eyes in the true situation of Manila that day. There are blue-collar workers risking their lives every day to earn a decent living, but are subjected to unfair labor practices and remain uncertain of their safety and their future. What that one of the construction workers told Hulyo was true.
Even if they experience oppression and alienation to their work, they can’t do anything because if they complain, they will lose their job. Like what their exploitativ
boss told, if you can’t take the job then go. There are many people who will do anything to have a job. It really breaks my heart to see them being treated unfairly and how their salary can’t sustain their family’s need even if they work hard for it. Human trafficking was also shown in the movie. Same to the case of Ligaya Paraiso, women leave their provinces believing that fleeing to the city is their one chance to a better life, only to be driven into prostitution. And also the case of Perla, due to poverty she became a prostitute. Indeed, what the movie showed was filled with poverty and social injustice, where predators subsist on the blood and sweat of unwilling victims. People die and nobody notices; or maybe, nobody cares. Despite the fact that this is a film done in 1975, social conditions remain unchanged. The problem of wages for those with blue collar jobs and the human trafficking for men and women remains relatable even decades passed after its release. It really strikes a chord in my heart as much as it did on the Filipino in the '70s.
