Are Filipinos truly adventurous by nature? Or are they forced to leave their land of birth for a better life in another country?
During the latter part of the Spanish regime, those with means – basically the ilustrados – left for Spain to further their education. There were also those, however, who made Madrid their permanent home.
But when the United States took control of the Philippines in the late 19th century, Filipinos had a new go-to place. The first known group of Pinoys who went to the US, however, didn’t necessarily go on their own volition. They were mostly indigenous people who were put on display like objects of curiosity at the St. Louis World Exposition in Missouri.
A few years later, batches of Ilocano people went on their own to work in the pineapple plantations of Hawaii, which was yet to become an official state, but was already a US territory. Most Filipinos who traveled to the US mainland before the war were scholars – pensionados – who were much sought-after by American companies after they were done with their studies.
When life became difficult in the Philippines after World War II, Filipinos began to look at America as a land of plenty. It was still quite easy to go to the US up to the 1960s. One simply had to walk into the US embassy and apply for a tourist visa that was usually granted on the same day.
For employment in the US, one only had to have a degree in either commerce or education to be able to work there. But for skilled laborers, Guam was the preferred destination.
Sadly, life became hard for Filipinos during the 1970s. This was when the migration to Saudi Arabia and other Middle East countries began.
Today, Pinoys are all over the globe. Believe it or not, there is an Onching’s lumpia store in a town in Alaska – in Barrow, which is a mere “tatlong tumbling” away from the North Pole.
Before the pandemic, it became a trend in Philippine cinema to shoot in places that were not necessarily taught in geography class. The character of Piolo Pascual went to New Zealand (to act as Alaska) to reunite with his son in the story of Northern Lights: A Journey to Love. Aga Muhlach romanced Alice Dixson in Greenland for Nuuk. In Untrue, Cristine Reyes and Xian Lim became violent toward each other in the former Russian territory that is now Georgia.
Nuuk is a film by Veronica Velasco. She chooses another icy location for her most recent project, A Faraway Land. Velasco goes this time to Faroe Islands.
But she was wise enough not to have done her shoots in the dead of winter. Although the sun doesn’t rise there until mid-morning, she still gets to show to the viewers what a beautiful place it is – oh, such majestic landscapes.
Faroe Islands is a territory that belongs to Denmark in the North Atlantic Ocean. Yes, there are Pinoys there. Some of them, in fact, were featured not very long ago in Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho. This was probably what inspired Velasco to do a film in this Danish territory.
There is actually a growing number of Filipinos living in Faroe Islands. Most of them are married to the natives there.
The name of the female lead character in A Faraway Land is Mahjoy. She is played by Yen Santos, who may yet earn the title Philippine glacial beauty – given the fact that she is also in Northern Lights. Mahjoy is married to a native, Sigmund, played by Faroese stage actor Hans Torgard. (The last letter in his surname does not appear in the English alphabet and isn’t on my keyboard so I took the liberty of turning it into a D and I hope and pray the people of Faroe will forgive me for it.). Sigmund and Mahjoy have a daughter who already goes to preschool.
Life is relatively peaceful for Mahjoy in Faroe Islands. Her husband quietly works as a fisherman, while she holds a double job that includes running her own food truck business that sells Filipino food.
The dreariness of her existence only changes when she becomes the local contact of a Filipino journalist, Nico Mendoza, who is doing a documentary in her adoptive land. Nico is played by Paolo Contis. It is a role so different from what he usually does in his other showbiz projects. He is a romantic lead here.
As expected, Nico and Mahjoy fall in love in the story. The speed in which they develop feelings for each other will put to shame Imelda Papin’s sappy song, “Isang Linggong Pag-ibig.” Everything between them happens in one week.
Should Mahjoy be condemned for such act of infidelity? It is easy to understand why she falls for Nico. Although her husband doesn’t beat her up, he is as cold as the fish he catches in the chilly waters of the North Atlantic Ocean.
If there is anyone to blame, it is Nico because he takes advantage of the fragile emotions of a woman feeling desolate in another country. Or maybe he is unable to help himself either – with loneliness getting the better of him in a far, strange land.
The sins of the two lead characters may be forgiven by the viewers – thanks to the very inspired performances of both Yen Santos and Paolo Contis. You feel the onscreen sexual tension between them early on in the film.
For all his Italian mestizo looks, Paolo is not your typical dreamboat. But he manages to pull off the romantic leading man part – maybe because of his strong sense of humor that is incorporated into his character in the story. His Nico Mendoza may not be all that dashing, but he is, at least, charming.
From Yen Santos’ end, she may not be drop dead gorgeous, but she is very pretty. Her sex appeal screams all throughout the film.
The performances of both Santos and Contis are aided by the more than competent direction of Veronica Velasco who tries to share with the viewers everything there is to know about Faroe Islands, but without turning it into some boring documentary film. In that archipelago where there is more cattle than people, for instance, we learn that one must report to the police even vehicular accidents involving sheep.
But more importantly, this film reminds us once more of the sad lives of Filipinos who have to work abroad because of financial troubles back home. Some of them may be so hard-up in the Philippines that they don’t want to return anymore, except perhaps for brief vacations.
In the case of Mahjoy, we can’t even judge her for being unfaithful because – in spite of the fact that she has a responsible and understanding husband – their cultural differences surely must be keeping them apart. That is why it is not difficult for her to fall for a man from her homeland. She may look like she loves staying in Faroe Islands, but you feel her loneliness deep inside.
Of course, for all the interesting facts about Faroe Islands that is shared to us by this movie, A Faraway Land is basically still a love story – actually a good one.
The film was put up by Netflix around the same time Paolo Contis was starting to get bashed online for his recent separation from partner LJ Reyes. A Faraway Land, however, is so well-made, even the haters of Contis will fall in love with it.
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The Butcher | Even the anti-Paolo Contis faction may find this film romantic
Source: Pinoy Ako News
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