Contreras Gang (1991)

movie

Country: Philippines
Genres: Action
Release: 1991-12-25
Director: Pepe Marcos
Writers: Nomar Rodavlas , Humilde ‘Meek’ Roxas
Language: Tagalog | Filipino
Stars: Edu Manzano , Cristina Gonzales , Johnny Delgado , Monsour Del Rosario , Rez Cortez , Kevin Delgado , Dindo Arroyo , Willie Revillame , Eric Francisco , Delia Razon
Runtime: 111 min
Awards: 2 nominations
AKA: Contreras Gang (Philippines)
Plot: Pepe Marcos' 1991 masterwork with versatile actor Edu Manzano is a surprisingly above the grain hard action film, proving Manzano could carry the weight and responsibility of an action film through his inspired portrayal of a cunning psychopath.Marcos' movie is an unapologetic (though somewhat romanticized) dramatization of a criminal lifestyle; there's no preachy undertone of moralism to be found here unlike in other films that portray the lives of criminals. The movie's amoral protagonist is not some downtrodden, poverty stricken loser who needs to rob a bank or snatch a woman's purse in a desperate attempt to pay ballooned hospital bills or to put food on the table, but is the well-off scion of a wealthy family. Manzano's character in the film chose crime as a career in much the same way that a college freshman would choose law or medicine as a profession. And it's not just any sort of criminal activity he engages in but the monstrous act of abduction for ransom which make him truly evil in the eyes of civilized society. The script was co-written by action film scribe Humilde Roxas and is commendable for its refreshing lack of cheesy, soap opera style drama. There's no forced, needless displays of crying and overbearing scenes of sentimental melodrama to blackmail the audience but the narrative builds its story in a more efficient and economical manner. The only instance of cliched melodrama is in the scene between Johnny Delgado and Monsour Del Rosario's characters where the former is bitching about the unfairness of police work and where his brutal methods of extracting information from suspects are not allowed (It seems Roxas wrote Delgado's character to be a generic angry cop). Other than that, the film's few dramatic sequences revolve around unresolved domestic issues involving the protagonist's dysfunctional relationship with his father and with his role as the black sheep of the family.Meanwhile, the action scenes were reasonably well directed and staged; there's only two fight scenes in the film, deviating from the usual formulaic trend in Filipino action movies of inserting a fight scene at every opportunity. The script could've easily shoehorned a fight scene during the protagonist's downtime in prison but thankfully this was avoided, allowing for a tighter and evenly paced story (though a fight scene isn't really bad in this context but it would have to be something that rises above the mountain of choreographed mediocrity).On the film's music; I usually hate Mon Del Rosario's music score for its overt mushiness and lack of class or subtlety but one of the themes he used here is surprisingly good. Though he uses this same theme too many times in the movie, and it gradually lost its power to capture the mood of the scene. Compare this to the variety of music written by Rey Valera for Anak Ni Baby Ama and it's evident that Del Rosario should be writing music for campaign jingles and not for action films.As for the lead star, Manzano is a revelation in the film and one of the few actors with a background in drama and romance movies who transitioned gracefully into an action role (re: Eagle Squad). It's quite telling though that Marcos' film is obviously the actor's only legitimate action vehicle as his debut solo outing in the genre and his other follow-up actioners (including his movies with Donnie Yen and Cynthia Luster) were nothing more than unremarkable, disposable celluloid fodder.In conclusion, this film may very well be Marcos' best movie for its right blend of storytelling and thespian elements. It is a noteworthy crime/action drama.
IMDB:tt0349237