Azucena

Azucena

A film analysis

At first glance the film Azucena seems to hold an ill eye on ‘man’s best friend.’

But give it another look and you’ll find something more appalling.

The hunter has now deemed the title of the hunted.

Azucena is a film about dogs and how they have become a ‘nutritious’ part of a Filipino’s meal. When watched, mixed emotions can come to play. Some may think it appalling because they regard dogs as innocent and a member of the family. And others may think it as a fact of life: it is a dog of the streets, an animal made to satisfy man’s needs, be it for companion or for lunch; a victim of the code ‘survival of the fittest.’

Dogs, in reality, though they can be trained and loved, are still thought by many as just another animal; A mutt who bites and barks; A vicious, wild animal that needs to be slapped around just to be taught what to do and what not to do.

And no, I’m not talking about the animal.

The film shows the harsh reality of the possible brutality and harshness of man, especially when faced with an opportunity to showcase their prowess with bursting egotistical ignorance. Azucena depicts a reality that people in power, be it a policeman, a mother, a father, or even an ordinary man, are capable of doing good deeds…

Exhibit A

An ordinary man

A father

A man of the law

A criminal

A drunkard

A rapist

A dog

Exhibit B

A dog

A dog cooker

A dog butcher

A dog catcher

A protector

A father figure

An ordinary man

…and doing terrible things.

This is what you call the conflict perspective.

It displays a lust for power, a megalomaniac loose to prance and spit where ever he desires. In the film the power struggle is obvious yet it subtly shifts from one to the other. First, and the most obvious, is the struggle between men (the dog butcher), being on the higher end of the bargain, and the dogs being on the lower end. It slowly shifts to society and how it looks down upon the dog butcher. It again shifts to the corrupt policemen and society; and the most harrowing of all: The struggle between man and woman; man and wife, and a man and his child.

In the film one man seemed to be continuously at the top of the brutal cycle: the father. He, being a policeman and a father, holds power both publicly and privately. Though, he always did have a temper. As you may have predicted already, he abused his power. As a policeman he, instead of upholding justice by protecting others all he really did uphold was his pride by putting others down. As a husband he was no better. He, to put it simply, uses his ‘things’ and throws them after. And as a father, if he should even be called as such, he failed miserably (raping your daughter is not a good thing; to do it twice is hell itself).

And in a rare occasion we are able to witness, and may I remind you this is a film about the reality of the Philippines, a glimpse of what we can call poetic justice. In what began to be a power trip over animals, the film ended with a power trip over the dogs; the real monsters of society.

To put my two cents worth I must say that I loved the film. It stayed true to the theme and yet strayed from it in the cleverest way.

You can look at it in either two ways:

You’re either on top or in the bottom.

Take your pick.