This particular film focused on Philippine-born Filipinos, who are all friends that leave the Philippines and become exiles in an American community. The “adobo” in this film is used as a symbol for the social gatherings these Filipino friends have as a way to communicate with one another about their lives in this new American community. The setting takes place in New York, and opens with Tere cooking adobo, her specialty and setting the table. Her friends are introduced and each of them has a story to be told. The adobo that Tere makes is that one dish that each of the friends enjoy, which eventually brings them together. The characters in the film—Tere, Marissa, Raul, Gere, and Mike, each face different kinds of dilemmas. However, the life of the group revolves around Tere and her cooking.
Tere is the typical Filipino, religious and extremely nice to everyone. She believes the idea that “everything happens for a reason,” even if it meant putting everyone else above her instead of putting herself first. The problem with Tere is that she carries the burden of everyone else and that she’s too nice. Although she doesn’t like to admit it, it becomes a big problem throughout the film. Unlike her friend Marissa, who can probably get any man she wants, Tere faces the problem of being the “sisterly” type and not “girlfriend material.” More or less, she’s like a sister to everyone, the “best friend,” and so when she begins to like this man she speaks with on the phone, every time she plans to have dinner, the man flakes out and gives her excuses, obvious excuses that the man doesn’t like her in that way she thinks he does. Being the kind of women she is, she shrugs it off and plans for another time. However, each times she tries, it the same story. Instead of doing anything about it, she goes insane towards the ending of the film.
In comparison with Marissa, she’s seen as the materialistic, Americanized, career-oriented kind of Filipina women. Although it seems like she has everything, the money, a career, the rock star boyfriend, she can’t even do a simple thing like cook. Instead, she does take-out or goes to Tere’s house. Being that kind of women, she’s really cocky, and has that mindset of being better off than everyone else. She’s over confident in everything she does and even though she’s very successful, she’s also very unhappy. Her dilemma is that she doesn’t know when to draw the lines. Her rock star boyfriend cheats on her, yet she takes him back, knowing that he could eventually cheat on her again. Having that mentality of being over confident, leads her into disrespecting herself in terms of her relationship with her boyfriend. Knowing that he cheated, yet she goes back to him. Although it takes her the entire film to realize it, at the expense of her friend Tere being in the fire.
With the three men in the movie, they each had a different story. Mike was the married man, who married a women who inherited the riches of the world and cared more about gambling than she did about her family. Raul, was the man who’d have a different women every night. He was the “player,” who was into one night stands. And there was Gene, the man that was into another man. Each of them had their own dilemmas. Mike, who had a family, couldn’t quite keep them together. His dilemma was leaving the wife versus leaving his children. Although he wanted to leave her, being Catholic, it was taboo to divorce and knowing that he had children that he very much cared about, he couldn’t do it. Raul, living the way he did, he never thought about the bigger picture—catching AIDS from sleeping with all kinds of women. His dilemma was either to have fun and sleep with all kinds of women or get AIDS and die early. His lifestyle was “live like there’s no tomorrow,” but at the same time, “live like you want to live tomorrow,” because the choices he made were obviously the wrong choices. It didn’t hit him, until he was faced with the reality that he could die. Gene however, was a different story. He wasn’t true to himself. His deal was that he didn’t want to disappoint his mother, as he was the only child, and tried to maintain that image of being a “mommy’s boy” and doing everything wonderful in his mother’s eyes. However, his dilemma was being who he was or being what his mother wanted him to be. All in all, the characters in the end faced the music and eventually decided what was best for them. Although doing what they did might have had consequences, or hurt a lot, their lives changed because of Tere and her cooking. It brought them together, and made them better people.
Overall, I thought the film was interesting. I suppose I was always interested in watching this film, but never got around to watching it. However, not one of the best films I’ve seen, but something that I could easily write about in my reaction. The film did get me thinking about the decisions that each of the characters made as a whole. The idea of being an exile to a country that is not theirs, but somewhere to run away from all the problems that they faced back in the homeland. I think that it’s very important to point out. Knowing that your homeland is facing a social and political crisis, and the best thing you can do is run away to a far away land not even thinking twice about your people suffering is I think cowardly. Those people become traders and took the easier way out and left their country. Even though they did leave their country, they did nothing to help them but cause problems more problems in their lives while being exiled in America. While I thought about the injustices that was happening in the Philippines during that time, I also thought about what their decision was based on. Was decision a moral one? I think it all depends on how you look at it. If they left to better their lives, but at the same time gave back to their homeland, then yes, I think it was morally correct. However, if it was to benefit themselves only and forget about their country, then no, I think they made the wrong decision. But perhaps it was more than just making the right choice. People were suffering, they were killed for no reason—maybe the choice they made was right after all.
R.M. Aurellano
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