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After years away, Daniel Giron (Mark Lapid), a Manila policeman comes home to Sta. Rita, Samar, just when his father (Roy
Vinzon) also a lawman, has been killed, shot from behind.
Daniel goes hunting for the culprits and meets up with the local officials and big shots: illegal logger Don Balderos (Dick Israel), the major who looks forward to a share of the income, and the police chief who is bribed to protect the logging enterprise. Giron's death is traced to the Don and his activities. Daniel is warned to keep off and away which is contrary to what he wants to do. His situation becomes further complicated by his romantic involvement with townmate and former schoolmate Katrina (Cristine Reyes), the logger's daughter.
In the attempt to include several matters, the story's development becomes complicated and unclear.
The investigation into Giron's death turns up the illegal logging problem which messes up Daniel's pursuit of his father's killers. Besides he could not simply ignore the devastation of the town's forest. At the same time his relations with Katrina poses more danger to his personal safety. The main cast of Lapid and Reyes, at the best is visibly still amateurish. Oropeza, Vinzon and Israel play typecast roles with not enough opportunity to show their worth. At times the music tends to overwhelm the dialogue. The story does not focus sufficiently on what is its central idea.
More action than drama, Apoy sa Dibdib Ng Samar
begins and ends with a series of gunfights, the longest exchange of fire settle the problems of Daniel and the town. From the beginning, Daniel Giron was alone versus the town bigwigs, for his father, to save Sta. Rita and for the love of Katrina. Though alone, he is joined by one person, a capable gun wielder towards the end – he manages to kill everyone pursuing him. No enemy was left standing. It is evident that some of the gunfights were shortened to allow younger viewers to watch the movie. But there is still something to be remarked on. Although it might appear that this is a movie on the pursuit of justice, the actions of the hero are easily perceived as acts of vengeance. There are no attempts to show efforts of capturing and bringing wrongdoers to face the law. The film also does not convincingly portray the disasters caused by treeless hills and slopes to make viewers appreciate maintaining the ecological balance of the environment. There is only a last scene showing school children looking after a field with three saplings. Stringing all the gunfights together shows the movie's intention of focusing on gunfights or violence.
(Date Reviewed: 12 May 2006)
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