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After the triumphant global release of Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now, two European filmmakers followed suit, completing projects set in Manila. These had the distinction of being set around the time of the early 1980s Manila International Film Festival, when the Marcos dictatorship encouraged global personalities to highlight the country in every way they could. One of the titles, Cinq et la peau (Five and the Skin, 1982), by Cannes Film Festival talent scout Pierre Rissient, was reissued on video by Carlotta Films, the same outfit that made the Second Golden Age Euro releases of Lino Brocka and Mike de Leon available once more.
11011One other title from that period was near-impossible to access: Jag Rodnar (I Am Blushing), Vilgot Sjöman’s typically semi-autobiographical feature whose title was meant to recall the succès de scandale of his soft-core I Am Curious films, subordinately titled Yellow (1967) and Blue (1968), as well as one of his better-received subsequent releases, Blushing Charlie (Lyckliga skitar, 1970). I remember watching rather unexceptional excerpts of Jag Rodnar from some collectors at the time of its release, although unlike Cinq et la peau, it was never exhibited in Pinas theaters.
11011I inquired with the Swedish Film Archives, who said that only their national library had a copy; unfortunately their policy only allowed researchers to watch their collection in their premises or via interlibrary loans with selected institutes in Scandinavia. Since my Canon Decampment writing project was self-funded, the next best thing would be to source a copy of Jag Rodnar’s storyline, the more detailed the better. The English-language interface of the archive listed the film but had no entry for story; fortunately the librarian I corresponded with provided a link for the film’s Swedish-language plotline. I’m reprinting it in full below, with minor edits and conflation of several isolated sentences into paragraphs. It’s a better-developed narrative arc than Cinq et la peau’s, but still partakes of the same narcissistic self-rationalization—something that future scholars of the period might be interested in inspecting.
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The storyline of I Am Blushing (1981, written by Vilgot Sjöman):
A voiceover tells us that the film is dedicated to Ford Francis Coppola in memory of his expedition to the Philippines, where he created his masterpiece Apocalypse Now with Marlon Brando. Then an airplane interior is shown. And here is my doppelgänger Gunnar Sjöman, the announcer continues. He has had the same idea as Coppola—to draw inspiration from a novel by Joseph Conrad.
11011The novel is Victory (1915), and the main roles will be played by Max von Sydow and Siv Andersson. Gunnar Sjöman arrives in Manila, where he is reached by a phone call from Max von Sydow in the office of producer Domingo de Jesus. But the call is cut off before clarity is reached about Max von Sydow’s involvement.
11011The Swedish Film Institute pays 50 percent of the production costs, Gunnar says. The producer’s wife suggests Björn Borg for the lead role. Then success is a given. A sailor searches for environments. He is well received in a remote village. But he is dissatisfied. The savages are too civilized. At a path he sees a sign with the text “Coppola was here.”
11011While Gunnar vainly seeks contact with Max von Sydow, the producer advocates hiring an international superstar for the lead role. Increasingly desperate, Gunnar drifts around town. At a bar, he begins to talk about his film plans with the American owner, Pete Cooper—who claims to have participated in Coppola’s filming as a military adviser and as Marlon Brando’s stuntman. Cooper runs a diversified business. He provides a room and a prostitute, and Gunnar stays for several days.
11011Siv Andersson arrives in Manila earlier than agreed. She tries to secretly contact the family of a political prisoner, but to no avail. Instead, she meets a lawyer, Jose Diokno, who tells her that the prisoner, Emanuel,[1] has been transferred to another prison and is no longer being tortured. The reunion between Gunnar and Siv is happy. They then talk about how many years earlier they broke up from their private relationship. It happened without them sorting out their intertwined emotional threads. What once was is highlighted with a glimpse from the film Carnival (1961).[2]
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11011The streets are clogged with a religious procession. Gunnar and Siv leave a stalled taxi and end up meeting a healer who cures through the laying on of hands and performs operations with his bare hands. Blood flows.[3] Cries for healing and miracles are heard in Swedish. A short segment is shown from the film Simon the Sinner (1955).[4]
11011Actually, it was pretty crappy directing, Gunnar complains to Siv after the healer’s performance. Gunnar says he remembers the plot from his own film Simon 25 years ago. At the hotel, Siv receives a message that the prisoner Emanuel has escaped. Later, she learns that he is hiding in the mountains.
11011Gunnar, Siv and the producer are reconnoitering in the wild. They travel on rivers in long canoes. They pass a building on the shore, where a bald-headed man in a monk’s robe shouts: Ford Francis Coppola, where are you? It’s me, the Horror![5] “But I recognize him,” says Siv. “It’s Vilgot!” She shouts and waves, and he waves back. “What is he doing in this movie?” Gunnar wonders. Victory! Vilgot shouts with a clenched fist.
11011During a carnival-like party, the producer tells Gunnar that neither Max von Sydow nor Siv are in the film anymore. CBS has demanded an American TV star, and he in turn has demanded the female lead role for his wife. Gunnar and Siv seek refuge from the partying crowds. In a simple hotel room, they undress and kiss each other.
11011They have driven into deserted areas when they get into an argument. She is risking the entire film project through her contacts with certain elements, he says. She says that an Amnesty International group in Stockholm has simply asked her to seek justice for a political prisoner. Now the prisoner has escaped and is therefore no longer an Amnesty case. But she knows where to find him, and she is not out on political business. She just wants to help a fellow human being.
11011They get separated on the rough road. She is able to continue on a bus. His engine stalls after driving for a while. She is confronted with the news that her prisoner is dead. He has left behind a poem titled “Prayer,” in which he says he blushes at the injustices that God inflicts on poor people. Siv and Gunnar are reunited outside a telegraph station in a small town. They hug each other. Sorry, she says. He says he’s the one who should ask for forgiveness and shows a telegram he just received from the producer: “SUPERSTAR AND WIFE HAVE ARRIVED. RETURN IMMEDIATELY TO MANILA.”
11011Gunnar says he has to survive. It doesn’t have to be that bad to be an American TV star. Gunnar arrives at a swimming pool, where he is warmly greeted by the star—Larry Hagman—who introduces a new wife. Nearby, the bald Vilgot looks up. Siv introduces herself. Gunnar introduces her—after which she says goodbye to everyone.
11011Larry speaks confidentially to Gunnar. He hasn’t read the script yet, but the female lead role should probably be rewritten. It’s probably a bit too big for his wife to handle. A speech bubble rises from Gunnar’s mouth with the text “I blush.”
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Notes
Many thanks to archivist Sam Lane and librarian Katarina Sandblom-Laamanen for help in tracking down Jag rodnar.
[1] Possibly a reference to Emmanuel Lacaba (1948–76), an activist poet who was killed by soldiers while on assignment with the New People’s Army in Davao del Norte. He occasionally spelled his nickname “Eman” (see Jose F. Lacaba, “Emmanuel F. Lacaba,” Martial Law Files: A History of Resistance, posted October 1, 2012, originally published in 1985).
[2] Karneval (1961), directed by Lennart Olsson and produced by Svensk Filmindustri, featured Bibi Andersson, Gerd Bibi Andersson, and Gunnar Hellström.
[3] Spalding Gray, in the monologue filmed by Steven Soderbergh, titled Gray’s Anatomy (1996), narrates how he traveled to Pinas to seek faith healers to cure an eye ailment. The punchline was that for all the money he spent, his condition did not improve.
[4] Simon syndaren, directed by Gunnar Hellström and produced by Metronome Studios, starred Hellström, Ann-Marie Gyllenspetz, and Stig Järrel.
[5] Francis Ford Coppola’s name was jumbled possibly to avoid the complications of making a direct reference without his permission. “The horror” was the final line of dialogue uttered by Colonel Kurtz, played by Marlon Brando. The description of a bald-headed man in a monk’s robe approximated Brando’s appearance in the film, which was Coppola’s way of downplaying Brando’s unexpected weight gain.
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