Ricky Lee shares candid anecdotes on cinema greats at 100 Sine book launch
Having written nearly 200 film scripts and collaborated with some of the most esteemed directors in Philippine cinema, National Artist for Film and Broadcast Arts Ricky Lee maintained he never “clashed” with any of his colleagues.
“Out of my nearly 200 produced scripts, I think I’ve worked with almost everyone, and I don’t think I’ve had any conflicts with anyone,” Lee declared during the book launch of Summit Books’ 100 SINE.FILM.PELIKULA: The 100+ Greatest Movies of Philippine Cinema and talkback session with the book’s co-author and PEP.ph editor-in-chief, Jo-Ann Maglipon. The event was held during the Philippine Book Festival at SM Megamall.
SINE.FILM.PELIKULA was curated by Maglipon in collaboration with Joel David, featuring 16 films written by Lee.
Described by Maglipon as an “alpha guy,” Lee shared anecdotes about his experiences working with acclaimed Filipino filmmakers.
Lee recalled being ecstatic when he presented his script to “Himala” director and National Artist for Film Ishmael Bernal. “Tuwang-tuwa ako dun sa mga eksena na nasulat ko (‘Himala’). I was very proud, especially with the scenes. So, usually what would happen is dadalhin ko kay Ishmael Bernal na feeling ko ang ganda-ganda.”
“Si Bernal mahilig siyang binabangga niya. But for him, when something is easy, hindi siya maganda. It should be difficult. So, when I presented my idea, he would immediately oppose it.”
“So, magbabanggaan yung ideas,” Lee continued, who was a newbie writer at that time. “And when that happens, ideas start flying in the air, and I would call it ikatlong katas. Parang napipiga. So, nagtatalsikan yung ikatlong katas — from his idea and mine.”
Lee reflected on this, saying that the “beauty of collaboration” made him more open to working with other creatives. “We don’t agree right away. Mas maganda yung ikatlong katas as compared to his idea or my idea.”
In contrast, Lee’s experience with Lino Brocka was different. “Lino would read my script and say, ‘Kulang ‘to, dagdagan natin ito, maglagay tayo ng ganito.’”
In response, Lee would pen a second draft. “It usually ended there. Hindi siya pabago ng pabago or pabalik-balik.”
When it came to Marilou Diaz-Abaya, he considered her an “ally,” even though they did not always agree on story ideas. For instance, they had opposing ideas about the endings of the award-winning films “Muro-Ami” and “José Rizal.”
“Marilou is very chatty. Ang haba ng sentences niya. Sabi ko, ‘Kailan kaya mag-e-end ‘to?’But it always turned out well in the end,” Lee recalled.
“Every time I submitted a script to her, what she usually did was read it as Ricky Lee and not as Marilou. So, if there was a portion of the script that she didn’t agree with, she wasn’t the type to say, ‘This is bad.’ She never made any negative comments.”
What Marilou would do was discuss the scenes with him. “Because she’s so talkative, i-di-discuss niya ng idi-discuss. Parang umiikot na yung idea ng eskena, hanggang by the time na dumating dito, ‘pag nabago na niya yung idea ko, hindi ko alam na nabago nya, nag-a-agree na ako sa kanya.
“Instead of excluding me, she included me in the circle. I felt like I was already part of the circle that she had created. And we were allies even if we didn’t always agree on ideas.”
Friends since Martial Law times
Maglipon and Lee have been friends since the 1970s, which made their banter during the talkback session all the more natural.
When she asked Lee how he had handled creative dynamics with other directors with whom he may have clashed, “I just pray,” the latter reacted.
“Yung iba ini-iwasan ko ng maka-trabaho. Sometimes, hindi niya yata nasakyan yung gusto kong sabihin. Medyo literal yata yung interpretation niya, hindi niya nakita yung loob ng kwento. Pero bihira, eh.”
When asked to name these directors, Lee quipped, “Hindi naman ‘to PEP.”
Maglipon likewise shared trivia from the book and reminisced about her days working with Lee, holding pages of yellow paper as she delivered her speech.
“I did not know how to work the printer,” she explained. “My daughter was out of town. So, I had to write it down. That’s how techie I am. Of course, the writing here is a little off.”
She went on, “Brocka has nine films here. Bernal has 10. Chito Roño has five. Mike de Leon has six. Nora Aunor has nine, and Ate Vi has eight. But the winner is Ricky Lee, who has 16 films in the book.”
“And since we go way back, from our underground days in 1972 when Martial Law came down, to prison time, an interrogation time in 1974 and so and so… we do owe each other a few kindness here and there.”
‘Judge a book by its cover’
From Brocka’s “Maynila sa Kuko ng Liwanag” and Bernal’s “Manila By Night,” SINE. PELIKULA. FILM presents 127 synopses and reviews of the finest in Philippine cinema, including movies released in theaters from 1937 to 2020.
It also features gems like Kidlat Tahimik’s “Mababangong Bangungot” and Arnel Barbarona’s “Tu Pug Imatuy”; blockbusters like Ronwaldo Reyes’ “Ang Panday” and Jerrold Tarog’s “Heneral Luna”; Gerardo de Leon’s “El Filibusterismo” and Gregorio Fernandez’s “Malvarosa”; popular rom-coms like Antoinette Jadaone’s “That Thing Called Tadhana” and Cathy Garcia-Molina’s “One More Chance”; as well as old and new comedies like Mar Torres’s “Jack and Jill” and Jade Castro’s “Zombadings: Patayin sa Shokot si Remington.”
“Creating a film canon was a case of ‘bravura,’” remarked Maglipon. “We committed to a Greatest Films’ List, not fully understanding that ‘greatest’ was not what we were going for. Certainly not, if listing the greatest meant comparing and ranking, pitting and judging, voting and awarding. We had no taste for going in that direction.”
They simply wanted an “honest list of wondrous, esteemed and outstanding films.”
“With more than a bit of reverence, we present our list,” Maglipon said. “Hoping to get all of you inquiring into our choices and searching them out. As for those among you already more driven, nothing’s to stop you from going loose and curious, plunging in, and making your own exciting cinema list.”
“Give it as a gift. Believe me, this is one time when you can judge a book by its cover,” she concluded.
(SINE. FILM. PELIKULA is available in Shopee and Lazada. It will be available in select bookstores soon.)
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