Loving tribute

“DAHLING NICK.” Tough cinematic row to hoe.

Since too few film bios are being made about outstanding Filipino artists, we went out of our way to watch Sari Dalena’s “Dahling Nick,” on the uniquely vivid and virtuoso contributions to our national cultural patrimony by National Artist for Literature Nick Joaquin.

Expectedly, there were only a precious few viewers at the Cinema One festival screening we caught, but the Nick-nuts on hand made up for their paucity with their with-it, “knowing” reactions.

Early on, we sensed that filmmaker Dalena, whose dad Danny was one of Old Nick’s best (younger) buddies, had given herself a mighty tough cinematic row to hoe: How could anybody “dare” to sum up such an amazingly, astoundingly major artist—and person? But, such film tributes to the best and the brightest should be made—lest we forget.

—Fact is, that’s the “holy” mission Joaquin set for himself, as voiced by the narrator character, Bitoy Camacho, in his “Portrait of the Artist as Filipino.”

Thanks to Sari for carrying the torch, in turn. Truth to tell, “Dahling Nick” is too long and sometimes even self-indulgent, with too much time taken up by relatively minor matters—as well as the occasionally self-conscious use of “magic realism” devices and images to approximate Nick’s overwhelmingly ornate, orchidaceous and even “operatic” storytelling oeuvre.

But, after the overlong screening, we still found ourselves beaming beatifically and “solved-ly” grateful for the rare opportunity to once again raise a glass—of cinematic beer—to toast the gruff and tipsy artistic “force of nature” who has been such an influential inspiration in our own literary and journalistic growth.

In Sari’s film, Nick’s colorfully cantankerous character was brought back to life by the on-cam reminiscences of a number of other acclaimed artists—who obviously still adored and missed him!

Their anecdotes made viewers realize his profound personal impact on his ardent acolytes—and the occasional chosen co-equal. Indeed, when comes such another?