TIFF Review: Philippine Science

The 1980's were a time of tumultuous change in the Philippines. Ferdinand Marcos had declared martial law a decade earlier when he was refused a third term -- becoming the country's dictator while Imelda gathered shoes. After ten years of corruption, things began to change. Marcos lifted martial law; there was the first election in 12 years; Benino Aquino, Jr. was assassinated; attempts were made to impeach Marcos; a snap election was called; and finally, Corazon Aquino (Benino's widow) became the President of the Philippines. It is during these changes that Auraeus Solito places his new film, Philippine Science, otherwise known as Pisay.

The best and the brightest mathematical and scientific minds in the Phillipines get sent to Philippine Science High School. It is where Solito himself went, when his life was headed towards science and not filmmaking. In Pisay, the director revisits his time there -- dipping into the experience of high school while also discussing the dynamic changes underway in the country. Following one group of kids, Solito breaks the film down into four acts (one for each year of schooling) and focuses on a handful of kids each time with a quick-moving and sometimes spinning camera.
"Freshman" follows the entry of Rom (Gammy Lopez) into Pisay. An incredibly smart kid who comes from a poor family, he enters the school late, but has huge potential. He falls for Wena (Annicka Dolonius), and his studies begin to slip, which worries one of the school's top teachers -- Ms. Casas (Eugene Domingo). "Sophomore" follows Mat (Carl John Barrameda), a young kid who was the star pupil back in his hometown, but struggles with life away from home (not to mention some particularly irk-worthy bunkmates) and the challenges of doing well in a school full of super-smart students. "Junior" takes on the life of Liway (Shayne Fajutagana), a young girl who is more inclined to sciences that start with 'social.' Her father is a political dissident, which troubles her (with how it affects her family), but also imbues her with strength. And finally, "Senior" focuses less on the science, and more on the students' artistic leanings. This final act focuses on Euri (E.J. Jallorina), who is starting to discover that his interests lie not in Biology, but theater (he's modeled after the director). Euri writes a play that gets censored by Ms. Casas, and the students band together to perform it elsewhere.

While these major plot points come together, Solito hits on a number of the newsworthy events bubbling in the Philippines as the students go to school. For example, when Aquino is assassinated, the students discuss the event as a science problem -- discussing scientific aspects like speed and trajectory. It allows Solito to bring in context without diverging from the plot. You learn about the political climate, but always within the plot. The events fuel the characters and stories, rather than just being events that are mentioned. And politics isn't the only area Solito explores. There's another student, named Minggoy (Elijah Castillo) who dreams of space and the day when Haley's Comet will be visible in the night sky. Throughout his time at Philippine Science, he thinks of this moment, which is particularly bittersweet when you learn that he is also fighting cancer.

Pisay is, simply, a film about school in the Philippines, done Degrassi-style. It has the same, indie/gritty look, the same tone, and the same sort of problems. The kids study, interact, go to school dances, and also deal with the challenges of modern life. It is, by no means, a crisp cinematic achievement or carefully-plotted film, but within its grittiness there is a flawed, realistic, and inviting story, one that taps into your own school experiences, especially if you're a kid of the '80s.