Turo-Turo

Turo-Turo

Why do bad things happen to good people?

This might be the central thesis of Turo-Turo, a tale of a persevering father and his struggle to uplift the standard of living of his family of five drenched in the familiar facade of urban poverty. A number of important themes are abound from learned helplessness, migration, community-level politics, and even religion that a sociologist will have fun constructing a problem tree. We see power play and elitism between social classes separated by a few pesos and a large sense of privilege. Within days, the family is met with a series of unfortunate events, mostly from external forces, of intolerance, and random acts of violence. Such injustice throw the audience up and around. You don’t know if you should feel morose and sympathize with the breadwinner or be angry at him for not equipping himself of the right of education, which would then make you ashamed of yourself for being the intellectual elitist you’ve undeniably become. After all, you are just there sitting idly, comfortable on your seats without wondering which basic need will you allow your child to be deprived with, all for the greater good of life. You then direct your rage against the system for letting the status quo be. But in a few moments, you get warm with the micro-successes mostly credited to the unwavering support of his able and compassionate eldest son. And the cycle goes on.

Turo Turo MMFF New Wave 2015 (3)

As the spiral deepens, there is this subtle tone of inevitability that the ultimate anguish will be a disease, which in most cases has been proven to just the most palpable yet most dreaded symptom of poverty. For this end, credits go to the writer for not placing it as a diablo ex machina, an artificial element to keep the ball rolling.

Turo-Turo tells a story that is still relevant but the ebb and flow of such cardiac distress is quite absent to give a lasting feeling and a grave concern of the viewer outside the hyperbole of its generic plot. The cinematic form is disappointing from the basic dialogue further underwhelmed by the narrow-ranged acting of its main players, further overshadowed by the archetypal support. Cinematography is limited in its close-ups, a handful of nicely-framed shots and a twice-used gorgeous establishing shot of the house. The off-putting slow-fade transitions further hinder the full appreciation of the drama. Of all these elements, the score that could have lifted the barren atmosphere negates what is apparent to the eyes. These glaring spots and aimless direction try to overturn the story’s bleakness into something light-hearted, awkwardly resetting our emotions. What we see obscures what we feel and spoils the immersive experience this loud film ought to be.
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Turo Turo MMFF New Wave 2015 (6)

If this was the first film tackling the demented tribulations of those in the fringes of society, it would have been forgivable. A number of thematically similar movies, which are both excellent in vision and execution, from last year’s tremendously heartbreaking Magkakabaung, the bittersweet father-son bond in Alagwa, and the classic Magnifico, are must-watch alternatives for those in deep need of diving in and coming back ashore with a lasting realization.

Complicating our already confused emotions is stabbing the beast with a flimsy stick called wishful thinking. Along with determination as the solution, culturally resounding with the multitude of self-help books and inspirational quotes littering our new feeds, fizzle the authenticity of the plot. Delivering a convenient resolution to the perils of our modern-day Job is a disservice to what our characters have suffered. For a life riddled with chaotic evil, a deeper discussion of morality in the eyes of an illiterate is the best unpursued challenge of Turo-Turo. Pointing the finger back to ourselves, to bring the change we want to see in the world, is quaintly justified if it was just a mere marital drama or a straightforward coming-of-age narrative. With how determined reality is in tearing up this small family, an acceptable approach could have been mere ambiguity, leaving us out of a sealed fate, of how we could bring the discussion elsewhere, to treat or prevent further iterations of innocent societal units from succumbing to daily horrors.

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