Name: Armadilo A.

Palatan Subject: CFLM 1

Time: 1:30 – 3:00 Room: LCS 404

REACTION PAPER
(Goyo Ang Batang Heneral)

My reaction after watching the film, “Goyo” Ang Batang Heneral, is how flawed we
Filipinos and our leaders are. I would like to start with the character of Joven, who is a fictional
character that we thought was only created to be the storyteller who witnessed the wars. But on a
scene where he was talking with his uncle the photographer about not knowing what he could learn
from these people around him, his uncle simply said, “E di matuto ka sa mga pagkakamali nila.”
This is what we Filipinos should do at this moment in facing the adversaries we see today. Simply
put, the Revolution in 1899 - 1902 against the Americans failed because of wrong leading of our
government and leaders. And we may fail again as a country by choosing the wrong leaders who
govern our actions, blindly listening to our own principles and forgetting who we are.

There was a scene in the movie when Manuel Bernal was captured and tries to bully Goyo saying
that he is merely a dog of the President. That because of his loyalty to the President he forgot to
follow his own thoughts, principles, and morals. Setting aside the personal gains and sacrificing
for the greater good of the country. This was the mistake that our heroes have made that is most
likely to happen again in the present national leadership if we do not become one as a country.

I remember one character saying that Filipinos mostly care about their families first. But sacrificing
family for the country is not an idea that the Filipinos agree with. Though it is a trait that is to be
admired by others, it has also caused our downfall. But maybe it was never really a trait of “family-
orientedness,” but of fear of going into the unknown knowing your life is fragile. Even Goyo is
seen as scared many times because he remembers again and again that his life is on the line and he
is just a mortal. Fear was great. And Filipinos would rather change their costumes from a Philippine
soldier to a lowly Filipino and run for their lives. “Ginhawa kesa dignidad”.

History was made not just for appreciation or preservation but as a guide to know where we came
from and learn from the mistakes of the past. Americans have won the Philippine-American war
not because they are stronger and had more weapons, but they simply just sit back and watch as
we Filipinos stab and kill each other in the back. That because we were not one with all the others,
it created our doom. Goyo and Heneral Luna died, and so was the courage and dignity of the
Filipinos.

But the theme of the movie was never really to make Filipinos look bad and defeated but it revolves
around the quote, “Tandaan mo kung sino ka,” which was the phrase Julian del Pilar always
reminds Goyo when he is lost and afraid. We too should remind ourselves with this quote. To
come back to our roots. Remember our purpose, nationality, history, and cultures.

We need time for self-reflection, knowing what mistakes were made and learning from these. It is
time to remember that we are Filipinos.