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12-Jul-2004

Imelda Marcos documentary banned in the Philippines

by: Clare Wilcox

Philippines: Filipina filmmaker Ramona S Diaz has made a documentary about the controversial and intriguing character of Imelda Marcos, widow of the former dictator Ferdinand Marcos. After 21 years of presiding over a regime built on corruption and repression, Marcos faced a successful uprising in 1986 and was booted out of the Philippines. The pair sought refuge in Hawaii where the exiled leader died three years later. While in power, vast sums of money went missing from the country's coffers, (allegedly funding Imelda's remarkable and infamous shoe collection) while the people suffered in poverty.

Today, aged 74, Imelda's curious life as the glamorous wife of Ferdinand has been immortalised on film. She was observed, filmed and interviewed non-stop for a month by the filmmakers. Diaz describes the time she spent with Mrs Marcos as "crazy" and her philosophical beliefs as "insane".

Philip Cu-Unjieng of the Philippine Star describes Imelda, which is currently in its fourth week of screenings in the US as "a must-see for every Filipino."

Imelda herself, however, does not concur and has succeeded in temporarily banning the film in the Philippines, arguing that if shown, "extreme and irreparable injury and injustice" would result.

Stephen Holden of The New York Times comments: "Imelda is a devastating portrait of how power begets self-delusion."

Imelda is currently being shown in New Zealand and the US. The Filipino distributor, Unitel Pictures Inc. has strongly criticised the ban, calling it "undemocratic", and has appealed to the Supreme Court to have it overruled.