Cinema
Perfumed Nightmare
Mababangong bangungot
Kidlat Tahimik · 1977
Synopsis
Kidlat, a young jeepney driver from the village of Balian, whose father was killed by an American sentry, presides over the local fan club of Wernher von Braun and dreams of America and the conquest of space. An American takes him to Paris to look after chewing-gum vending machines; there he sees markets giving way to supermarkets and begins to doubt the progress he revered.
Context
The film was shot silent, on eight millimetre, for about ten thousand dollars, then given a soundtrack: its author, who had been living in Germany since 1972, plays himself in it and speaks the first-person narration in English. Shown at the Berlinale Forum in 1977, it was supported by Werner Herzog, whose protégé the author was, and was released in the United States by Francis Ford Coppola's company Zoetrope.
Who it is for
A short film, in Tagalog and English with subtitles, with artisanal editing. The tone is ironic and detached.
Prizes and reception
International Critics' Prize at the Berlin festival in 1977, with which Philippine cinema regained a worldwide audience; regarded as a classic of Third Cinema.