With all the brouhaha on my FB wall regarding that supposed slur against the Pope by this presidential candidate, I thought it wise to talk about this movie I watched a few days ago about how beautiful the Catholic faith really is, if we just take the hypocrisy, the condescension and that intolerant attitude that some Catholics have.
The movie is entitled Philomena and I don't think it was ever shown here in Manila. It got 4 Oscar nominations last year including Best Picture, Best Actress (Judi Dench, OMG, she's just amazing here!) and Best Adapted Screenplay (Steve Coogan who was also the actor here).
I will not tell na lang the plot kasi I don't want to give anything away. Basta just bring tissue paper with you, lalo na if you have kids na, and pay close attention to the dialogue. This is really one of the best scripts I've seen in recent times where the views of an atheist and a very resilient Catholic are included in daily conversation. The tit for tat is delicious!
Any true Catholic will see how beautiful Philomena's character reacted to all the abuse the Catholic church gave to her. There's a must-see confrontation scene towards the end that would make you really understand what the Catholic faith is all about.
I guess one reason why this movie could not be shown here is because of, again, the CBCP. The nuns here are portrayed as callous, monstrous even, but it's easy to judge now because we are in 2015, but the events happened in 1950s Ireland and the social situation then was so different from what we have today. Still, there was no excuse for the abuse.
Because of this movie, I also understood why there was almost no opposition to gay marriage when they voted in Catholic Ireland.
Marami kasing Pharisees and hypocrites sa Catholic church so ayun, they totally lost their credibility sa mga Irish. Who are they naman kasi to judge that gay people will go to hell when the things the Catholic Church has done to Irish children (sex abuse of children, slave treatment of unwed mothers) were even more the works of the devil!
Atheists will love how Steve Coogan does his role here and I'm also proud of how Judi Dench's Philomena parries him word by word, and mostly through her actions.
A true Catholic doesn't have to appear prayerful or go to church everyday. See how Philomena's resilience and struggle with her beliefs led to her redemption. It's a beautiful film about forgiveness and being more kind to oneself.
I easily cry in movies and with this one, sa gitna pa lang, when one major revelation was given, ayun iyak na, tapos another bombshell towards the ending, iyak pa some more.
This is a movie which should be perfect for Mother's Day as well.
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