The quiet man
The quiet man
Updated 02:23am (Mla time) Dec 15, 2004
Inquirer News Service
Editor's Note: Published on page A14 of the December 15, 2004 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer
IN "MEASURE for Measure," there is this Shakespearean line: "Some rise by sin, and some by virtue fall."
Fernando Poe Jr. was, first and foremost, that rare example of a man, the self-made aristocrat. There is no other way to understand him than by comprehending the implications of this characterization. He was heir to a great name, a beloved one: his father was both a hero of the screen and a hero of the resistance to the Japanese invader. And yet, his father having died young, Ronnie Poe had to carve out for himself a life and career that would both honor his father and make up for the loss of income and support caused by his father's death.
In an industry whose glitz and glitter never quite outshine the ruthlessness, intrigue and self-indulgence that is its dark side, Poe honed his creative talent and used his great capacity for discipline to overcome and achieve. He mastered the rules, even breaking them when he had to, by defying producers and directors (and becoming one himself) in order to establish himself as a star no longer at the mercy of the industry. He molded the industry to his will, and forever changed it.
He had, on his side, an instinctive understanding of the requirements of his craft, fundamental among them, an appreciation of the thinking of his audience. He mastered the tricky combination of illusion, of establishing, and thereafter promoting a heroic figure on screen, while maintaining a kind of authenticity that merged what he saw as his own virtues with those his audience believed in, and wanted to see. He was generous, he was kind, he was helpful. He was also quiet and remote, a lone wolf that became a pack leader.
There was a near-mystical bond between not only his fans and himself, but between his fellow actors, producers, directors and technicians in the movie industry and himself. He was always grateful, in a society in which gratitude is a supremely important virtue. He was generous, in a society that demands generosity from achievers. He not only made, but maintained, lasting friendships. He was, within the forgiving bounds of his generation's attitudes, not only loyal to his wife, but gave her every courtesy and respect. He was also a genuinely loving foster father.
And yet in acquiring everything a self-made man would want, from wealth to professional prestige, to property and a respected family, he was autocratic and patriarchal in his professional and personal life. That is, he was not only acknowledged as king of Philippine cinema, but he was kingly in his behavior, as our society sees kingship: remote yet approachable, stern yet forgiving, commanding yet courtly, but always remembering and never failing to remind that he was boss. He had the common touch, but there was nothing common about his tastes, his habits, even his politics.
Because of his last, and unsuccessful, role as presidential contender, the reckoning of his life must necessarily include the political. He may have always viewed it with suspicion and contempt, but he definitely had specific ideas about it. He and his wife were loyal admirers of Ferdinand Marcos, who, rightly or wrongly, was viewed by many as the personification of a self-made aristocrat. Poe's own quest for the presidency was not merely motivated by loyalty to an old friend, Joseph Estrada, whom he loved but whose trust he never abused. It was spurred on by a self-made man's desire to provide the kind of leadership conservative, self-made men want, and miss: devoted to property; desirous of order and peace; hierarchical, patriarchal; a datu for the common man. Malakas for a weak society.
His fans grieve for Poe today. It is fair to say all Filipinos of a certain age see in his passing one more sign that the virtues of traditional Filipino society are receding even more firmly into the past. With the passing of a famous man, it is tempting to excuse his faults and pay tribute only to his virtues. The truth is, Poe was what Filipinos like to see: simple virtues tempered by occasional faults, the whole made marvelous by the imperfection of its parts. For in the end, both the private and public man were built on an appeal to every person's conviction that they can at least dream of being a hero.
Updated 02:23am (Mla time) Dec 15, 2004
Inquirer News Service
Editor's Note: Published on page A14 of the December 15, 2004 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer
IN "MEASURE for Measure," there is this Shakespearean line: "Some rise by sin, and some by virtue fall."
Fernando Poe Jr. was, first and foremost, that rare example of a man, the self-made aristocrat. There is no other way to understand him than by comprehending the implications of this characterization. He was heir to a great name, a beloved one: his father was both a hero of the screen and a hero of the resistance to the Japanese invader. And yet, his father having died young, Ronnie Poe had to carve out for himself a life and career that would both honor his father and make up for the loss of income and support caused by his father's death.
In an industry whose glitz and glitter never quite outshine the ruthlessness, intrigue and self-indulgence that is its dark side, Poe honed his creative talent and used his great capacity for discipline to overcome and achieve. He mastered the rules, even breaking them when he had to, by defying producers and directors (and becoming one himself) in order to establish himself as a star no longer at the mercy of the industry. He molded the industry to his will, and forever changed it.
He had, on his side, an instinctive understanding of the requirements of his craft, fundamental among them, an appreciation of the thinking of his audience. He mastered the tricky combination of illusion, of establishing, and thereafter promoting a heroic figure on screen, while maintaining a kind of authenticity that merged what he saw as his own virtues with those his audience believed in, and wanted to see. He was generous, he was kind, he was helpful. He was also quiet and remote, a lone wolf that became a pack leader.
There was a near-mystical bond between not only his fans and himself, but between his fellow actors, producers, directors and technicians in the movie industry and himself. He was always grateful, in a society in which gratitude is a supremely important virtue. He was generous, in a society that demands generosity from achievers. He not only made, but maintained, lasting friendships. He was, within the forgiving bounds of his generation's attitudes, not only loyal to his wife, but gave her every courtesy and respect. He was also a genuinely loving foster father.
And yet in acquiring everything a self-made man would want, from wealth to professional prestige, to property and a respected family, he was autocratic and patriarchal in his professional and personal life. That is, he was not only acknowledged as king of Philippine cinema, but he was kingly in his behavior, as our society sees kingship: remote yet approachable, stern yet forgiving, commanding yet courtly, but always remembering and never failing to remind that he was boss. He had the common touch, but there was nothing common about his tastes, his habits, even his politics.
Because of his last, and unsuccessful, role as presidential contender, the reckoning of his life must necessarily include the political. He may have always viewed it with suspicion and contempt, but he definitely had specific ideas about it. He and his wife were loyal admirers of Ferdinand Marcos, who, rightly or wrongly, was viewed by many as the personification of a self-made aristocrat. Poe's own quest for the presidency was not merely motivated by loyalty to an old friend, Joseph Estrada, whom he loved but whose trust he never abused. It was spurred on by a self-made man's desire to provide the kind of leadership conservative, self-made men want, and miss: devoted to property; desirous of order and peace; hierarchical, patriarchal; a datu for the common man. Malakas for a weak society.
His fans grieve for Poe today. It is fair to say all Filipinos of a certain age see in his passing one more sign that the virtues of traditional Filipino society are receding even more firmly into the past. With the passing of a famous man, it is tempting to excuse his faults and pay tribute only to his virtues. The truth is, Poe was what Filipinos like to see: simple virtues tempered by occasional faults, the whole made marvelous by the imperfection of its parts. For in the end, both the private and public man were built on an appeal to every person's conviction that they can at least dream of being a hero.
posted by Dante at 2:23 AM
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