After weeks of lying in my underwear drawer, I finally had the energy to watch last Sunday the VCD of Imelda: The Documentary which was given to me by The Madam’s ever-loyal publicist, Sol Jose Vanzi.
According to Sol, Mrs. Marcos is miffed about certain untruths in the docu which was megged by Ramona S. Diaz. Among these are shots of the Mendiola Massacre which was used in the movie (“it happened during the Cory Administration”) and the how the director allegedly tricked the former First Lady into granting the interviews. Allegedly, Imelda spoke her mind because she thought it was for a university thesis and will not be shown for commercial purposes.
I thought Imelda was an entertaining movie, as colorful as the legendary subject herself. It is a fascinating parody of power and shows the former First Lady in her best and worst elements. It stands on record that nothing beats Imelda on the popularity/notoriety scale — not her equally beautiful daughters, not Lea Salonga, not even Cory Aquino.
There is definitely more to the docu than her 3000 pairs of shoes. It was interesting to know how much power she wielded behind the throne, how she changed the image of Philippine First Ladies (she went around the world as a de facto ambassador and hobnobbed with everyone, from Mao to Qaddafi) and how much the late dictator relished her being a trophy wife (“You have to eat this much food only, darling.) Viewers will also be privy to her obsessive rantings about the True, Good and Beautiful.
Among the movie’s quotable Imeld-isms:
‘Thank God when they opened my closet, they found shoes, not skeletons.’
‘There is a little Imelda in all of us.’ – ad for a brand of designer shoes in New York
On the other hand, a new acquaintance, Erick San Juan has given me a copy of his book Conspiracies and Controversies: The Philippines’ Favorite Conspiracy Theories and Most Controversial Filipinos of the 20th Century.
One of the most startling issues raised in the book is the murder of Ninoy Aquino , which remains unsolved even when his widow, Cory Aquino, assumed power.
The book posits that Rolando Galman was already dead the night before August 21 and the hitman could have been Sgt. Ben Casta of the Presidential Security Command whose name did not appear in any of the investigations. It also questions the role of the CIA and Former Gen. Fidel V. Ramos in the assassination.
Read it and see for yourself.
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