Baler Summary 2h1m41

Baler is a 2008 Metro Manila Film Festival entry of Viva Films. Baler is a drama film that stars Anne Cutis and Jericho Rosales’s love story, where Jericho was a Spanish soldier and Anne was a Filipina Baler native. The film is based from a historical event during the Spanish era known as “The Siege of baler”. The Siege of Baler was an event wherein 57 Spanish soldiers held fort at the town of Baler during the final years of the Spanish occupation in the Phillipines, from October 1898 to June 1899. Baler won 10 out of the 21 awards of the 2008 Metro Manila Film Festival The movie starts with showing the forbidden love affair of Feliza Reyes (Anne Curtis) and Celso Ressurección (Jericho Rosales). The next scene then showed Feliza’s father, Daniel Reyes (Philip Salvador) as one of the heads of the rebel groups in Baler, attacking the Spanish soldiers in Baler. The rebels attacked during the night, taking the Spanish soldiers by supprise, giving the rebels the upper hand in their battle. When the rebels corned the head lieutenant of the Spanish soldiers, Lt. José Mota (Andrew Schimmer), Daniel asked him to surrender. Due to Lt. Mota not wanting to surrender to the rebels he resulted in killing himself by shoting himself on the head. With the rebels killing one of the Spanish soldiers, it became hard for Feliza and Celso to meet secretly. Daniel, being one of the leader of the rebels, wants to teach his son, Gabriel Reyes (Carlo Aquino) how to shoot a gun. But Gabriel does not show any interest in being part of the rebel group because he wants to be a priest. Feliza tried to talk to his father about being too harsh on Gabriel, but Feliza was just scolded by Daniel saying that she should pity Daniel when he is being tortured and molested by the Spanish soldier so he needs to learn how to protect himself. Feliza even tried harder by saying that not all soldiers are like that but Daniel just got madder because he himself felt the oppression of the soldiers because his sister was raped in front of him and his uncle was killed by the soldiers. He is angered more by the fact that Gabriel wanted to be a priest, because during Daniel’s time of need the church failed to helped him and his family.

Celso and Feliza met when Feliza and her friend Luming (Nikki Bacolod) was almost harassed by a drunk Spanish Soldier. Celso made stopped the Spanish soldier before anything bad will happen. He then showed interest in Feliza by asking her name. He also introduced his friend Lope Balbuena (Mark Bautista) showing interest on Luming. Because of the rebels increasing in number, Celso and Feliza was faced with a problem because the inhabitants of Baler needs to evacuate for the rumors of eventual war that will happen. Celso planned on eloping with Feliza by asking Luming give the message to Feliza that they would elope and they should meet at their regular meeting place. Since the day that Celso planned on eloping was also the day that the whole town of Baler would evacuate, and the possibility that her parents will find out about her and Celso’s love affair, Feliza did not show up leaving Celso devastated. Meanwhile, Gabriel decided that he does not want to evacuate with the who town because he believes that his home is the church, so he went back to the church of Baler leaving is father disappointed and angered. Later that night the rebels, together with some Filipino soldiers attacked the Spanish soldiers even with the agreement between the Filipino government and the Spanish government at that time to a ceasefire. With the Spanish soldiers taken by surprised by the attack they seek refuge to the church wherein Gabriel and the parish priest were staying. The Spanish soldiers were outnumbered by the hundred Filipino soldiers and rebels, so they decided to stay in the church. Daniel was asking for his son to be given back to him, but Gabriel does not want to because he considers the priest more of his father than Daniel. On the 88th day of siege when the parish priest suddenly dies while holding a mass, the head Spanish soldier, Lt. Enrique Fossí de las Morenas (Baron Geisler), suggested that he does not have to stay since his master already died. Since the start of the Spanish soldier’s stay inside the church, Lt. Morenas did not hels Gabriel as hostage it was his decision to stay with the parish preist. Celso and Lope insisted that Gabriel would go back to his family because their situation inside the church is getting worst every

day, with the limited food and the sickness brought by the decaying bodies. Before Gabriel goes back to his family Celso asked him to send his letter and Lope’s letter to Feliza and Luming. Upon Gabriel’s return Col. Calixto Villacorte (Leo Martinez), the head Filipino soldier, asked for the Spanish soldier to surrender within 24 hours or else the Filipino soldiers and rebels will free fire towards the church. Lt. Moreno answered saying that he would rather die than surrender to them, this resulted with the Filipino attacking. Another problem arose for Feliza and Celso because Feliza is carrying their baby. Celso then wanted more to escape and be together with Feliza. When Celso together with Lope decided that they woud escscape and surrender to the Filipino, Celso was caught before successfully trying to escape. The new commander of the Spanish soldier, 2nd Lt. Saturnino Martín Cerezo (Ryan Eigenmann), eventually believed that the Spain already surrendered to the Filipino government, and decided to surrender as well. On the 338th day of siege the Spanish soldiers surrendered to the Filipino Army in Baler. Feliza was happy with the great news of the Spanish surrendering, bringing their son to welcome Celso, but was deeply devastated when she saw the dead body of Celso because of the torture he experienced for being caught escaping.