No need for translation

(From the Aug. 1-15 issue of The Fortnightly)

By Oliver M. Pulumbarit

It really is a small world after all when characters from foreign books, TV shows, and films suddenly talk in a familiar tongue. Tagalog-speaking audience members are pleasantly surprised, understandably, when their native language somehow finds its way into internationally released movies, however briefly:

‘Her Alibi’ (1989)

The rom-com stars Tom Selleck and Paulina Porizkova as a novelist and a murder suspect, respectively. In one of the film’s funnier scenes, Porizkova’s character is driven away by a fuming Filipina maid. “Ewan ko, hindi ko alam. Ang hirap sa iyo, layas ka nang layas… kaya hindi mo alam ang nagyayari dito!”

‘The Rock’ (1996)

Sean Connery’s character runs into a restaurant’s busy kitchen, knocking over bus boys and carts. An enraged chef can only scream at the disruptive intruder, “Hoy,” which is followed by a string of familiar Tagalog cuss words.

‘Big Fish’ (2003)

The Tim Burton-directed adaptation of Daniel Wallace’s book has a Korean ventriloquist who does his routine onstage and elicits no reaction from the audience. The character, through his puppet, surprisingly says in Filipino: “Kanina pa ako salita nang salita dito… pagod na pagod na ako…”

‘Fierce People’ (2005)

In the Griffin Dunne-directed movie, Anton Yelchin plays Finn, a 16-year-old with an anthropologist father. Finn likewise studies his surroundings and is more observant than most people. During a hazy dream sequence, a shaman (Eddie Rosales) from the South American tribe that Finn’s father documented offers sage advice in a different tongue. “Manggagaling sa puso mo,” the tribesman clearly says in Filipino.

‘The Campaign’ (2012)

The trailer to Will Ferrell’s new comedy “The Campaign” has been getting hearty laughs from Filipinos. The actor plays Cam Brady, a four-term congressman who keeps identifying and integrating various groups into his speeches. At one point, he referred to Filipino tilt-a-whirl operators as the “nation’s backbone,” and said “Salamat!” during his carnival visit.