LITFILI Finals

Livin’ La Visa Loca

The main characters are Jess, the ‘limousine’ driver, his father, Mara and her son, Nigel Adams, and at some point, I think Jess’s overseas girlfriend, Anette.
Jess is a relatively good person. He is funny, cares a lot for his dad, and was shown to have compassion for Mara and her son, even without knowing at first that it was also his child. Throughout the story, he was constantly on the hunt for an opportunity to get his visa and follow his fiancé in the US. But towards the end of the movie, even though he was able to get his visa, he chose the people he loved at home and chose not to leave.

His father, whom he calls ‘Papang’ is a half-deaf, fat and diabetic old man who stays at home and depends on his son for money and care. Every scene in the movie shows him to be slightly clueless and very dependent on his son. He also relies on Jess for money, and even used it to buy different pills. But in the end, he is shown to have a lot of love for Jess—even protecting him from the truth that his mother left them—and missed him terribly when he thought he had left for America.

Mara is Jess’s ex-girlfriend, with whom she had had a son before, whose name is Jason; he carries his father’s side of diabetic illness and mannerisms. Mara seems to be a nice person, is shown to be very caring for her son unlike most unplanned and single mothers, and struggles to keep him happy, even denying a job abroad so that she could stay with Jason. During the movie, she falls in love with Jess after meeting him once more. Both she and her son are very fond of him.

Nigel Adams is Jess’s boss, the host of a show called Planet Strange which he shoots in the Philippines. He is a considerably decent boss, but was led at a wrong turn and viewed the country and Filipinos in general differently when he got cheated. In the end however, when Jess conceded to be part of his show, he seemed to have kept his end of the bargain in helping him gain a visa.



I realized that the main character Jess almost always wore red clothes in the movie: red shirt, polo, cap, etc. I'm not sure if that is symbolic of something, or it is just a running joke of the director, but maybe it is a representation of the hundreds of Filipinos who are also pining for a chance to go to the US for better jobs but are most often denied the chance.

The strong family ties and relationships of Filipinos were also shown in the movie: it could have just shown Jess coming back to Mara and their son, but his father was also a big deal in the story and given a great role. It shows that we really are close to our loved ones and that we value our family and the time we spend with them sometimes over the possibility of getting a job (ex. Most Filipinos would love a job that has weekends off so they could spend it at home with family).

Nigel Adams’ show, Planet Strange, also brings light to the different cultures we Filipinos have, and the rituals and beliefs we have that foreigners might find strange but we find common.




The movie somewhat depicts the harshness of Filipino living, and how hard it is to find a good paying job. Most people are desperate, like the man who accepted Nigel Adams’ money and ran away from them afterwards. Sometimes people forget about morals and do all they can to survive. Then again there are people like Mara, who continue to work hard even if it is an embarrassing job, for their loved ones.
It is also saddening to think about the cases of Filipinos who turn away from their heritage and pretend to be foreigners, regarding them uncivilized and without discipline, when they are Filipinos themselves. Nowadays though, more and more people are proud to be called Filipinos, and I find that more and more of us are getting well-known throughout the world.

I think the movie is mainly about two things. 1.) As I had mentioned before, it is about the many Filipinos who dream of being able to leave the country to seek better life abroad. I think it’s why we have a lot of nurses, not to mention the OFWs. Then again, mostly the reason for people working abroad is that 2.) they want better lives for their families. You have to admit that other countries give much better pay than here, and with that you could provide more efficiently for your family members at home. There are many cases here in the Philippines of children being left at home while their parents work abroad. However, I think what keeps other Filipinos tied down here is that they are too close to their loved ones to be able to leave them, like the case of Mara, who immediately disregarded the offer of a job in Italy upon seeing her son’s sad face. In the end people just find a way and cope, and sometimes the fact that you’re happy with your family helps you push through.




For me, it was pretty well done for a Filipino movie. It must have been that good for it to have English subtitles. I also enjoyed it whenever the choir suddenly sneaks in like a piece of singing furniture to either provide more information on Jess’s current predicament, or otherwise bring comic relief to each situation. It’s also nice how everything fits together: Mara and her son and how they relate to the story, and how the situation with Jess’s mother was not only given enlightenment, but a conclusion as well, so that you aren’t left wondering where she ended up. There were also ‘Aww’ moments whenever it concerned Jess’s dad, the cutesy moments he has with Jason and Mara, and the funny moments familiar to Filipino movies. It’s something I wouldn’t mind watching again.