Manila in the Claws of Light

Manila in the Claws of Light (Tagalog: Maynila, sa mga Kuko ng Liwanag) is a 1975 Philippine neo noir drama mystery film directed by Lino Brocka from a screenplay written by Clodualdo del Mundo Jr., based on the novel In the Claws of Brightness by Edgardo M. Reyes. The film stars Hilda Koronel, Lou Salvador, Jr., Tommy Abuel, and in his film debut, Rafael Roco, Jr. The film features cinematography by Mike de Leon and editing by brothers Edgardo and Ike Jarlego. It tells the story of Júlio Madiaga, a young man from the province of Marinduque who arrives in Manila for a mission to find his lover Ligaya. While making plans for his mission, he has to survive the conditions in the capital city, contending with issues like crime and prostitution.

It is one of the many films in the Philippines released during the Marcos era which lasted until the 1986 revolution, and in retrospect, one of the few films to gain international critical recognition. It is widely considered the greatest Philippine film of all time by voters, especially the local and international filmmakers and critics.

Julio Madiaga is a young man from the island of Marinduque who arrives in Manila in 1970. From time to time, he passes by the corner of Ongpin and Misericordia, staring at a peculiar building from a distance. While pursuing his quest, he has to work to survive urban life. At first, Julio works in construction and at the site, he befriends coworker Atong, who was hired some five weeks before. Another coworker advises Julio that city life is quite difficult without the income to enjoy urban comforts. Julio begins to slowly observe the harsh reality of society, culminating in the accidental death of a worker.

One day, Julio and Atong shop for clothes at a marketplace when a woman dressed in black and wearing sunglasses catches Julio's attention. She reminds him of Mrs. Cruz, the woman who brought his girlfriend Ligaya to Manila for schooling. Julio runs through the crowd to follow the woman and tries to approach her, but before he can say anything, the lady shrieks in distress. Julio flees to not make a scene, running back to Atong and leaving the marketplace with him. This is followed by other occasions of spotting Mrs. Cruz, leading Julio to discover that Ligaya was brought to Manila for prostitution. He continues encountering people in Manila including callboys (male prostitutes) and the relatives of coworkers, eventually reuniting with former workmate Pol, who supported him earlier and was a good friend.

Julio eventually locates Ligaya, and she explains everything that has happened to her since leaving home. Julio plans with Ligaya to return to Marinduque with her four-month old baby. They agree to meet at Arranque Market, but she fails to appear at the appointed time.

Despondent, Julio returns to Pol's home, where he's been staying. Pol informs him the next day that Ligaya died that night - she allegedly fell down a flight of stairs, but her bruising suggests she was killed by Ah-Tek, the man who rented her from Mrs. Cruz and kept her and their baby imprisoned. Enraged, Julio stalks Ah-Tek, whom he saw at Ligaya's funeral. The following night, Julio goes to Ah-Tek's house and kills him. Afterward, a mob pursues, corners and strikes the fearful Julio. A heavenly silhouette of Ligaya is shown as the film fades to white, then sky blue.

The film is based on a story, Sa mga Kuko ng Liwanag (lit. "In the Claws of Brightness'"), written by Edgardo Reyes. It was originally serialized in Liwayway magazine from 1966 to 1967, and was later published into a novel.

The adaptation into film originally started out life as a writing exercise. In 1970, Ateneo de Manila graduate Clodualdo del Mundo, Jr. re-enrolled in his alma mater to take a short course in film writing. There, he wrote Pepot Artista (a screenplay he would later revisit in the 2000s). Del Mundo finished his script for Pepot Artista, which was supposed to be a major assignment, by the middle of the semester; earlier than what was expected. His professor, Nestor Torre, requested him to make another screenplay as way of filling in the extra time. Because he had just written an original screenplay, Del Mundo tried his hand at adapting a literary source for a change. He chose Reyes' story, already a novel by then, as the subject for his next assignment. After turning in the spec script, Del Mundo completed his course and relocated to the United States to continue his studies at the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas.