Guzman in “Citizen Jake”
First of all, he should not be mistaken for Teroy de Guzman, the comedian—who’s more than a generation ahead and was one of Dolphy’s sidekicks.
This Teroy Guzman is an accomplished stage actor, who’s equally at home inhabiting Shakespearean classics, alongside newer pieces like “The Kundiman Party.”
Lately, most cinephiles would recognize him as the father of “Citizen Jake”—the crooked Sen. Jacobo Herrera, Marcos crony and all-around bad guy.
Theater undoubtedly primed him well for this big-screen detour. Under the mentorship of Tony Mabesa, Guzman said he had “developed very strong foundations in theater: sensitivity, analysis, technique, delivery, discipline.”
Guzman explained: “Theater (living and experiencing it) is the only true ‘workshop.’ Anything else pales in comparison.”
How did theater prepare him for the singular challenge of working with director Mike de Leon on the set of “Citizen Jake”?
“It was a very humbling experience working with Mike,” he told the Inquirer. “He knew that I came from a theater background and took the time to discuss the entire script with me, much like what we do when preparing for a play.”
Guzman volunteered that he had heard all that talk about De Leon’s mercurial moods.
“He warned me himself, telling me that he was sometimes difficult to work with. But this was the Mike de Leon, and nothing was going to stop me from working with him,” Guzman exclaimed. “He is a master craftsman. And, in the end, my experience working with Mike was anything but difficult.”
There are now plans for a reunion movie with another “Citizen Jake” graduate, Max Collins. “I believe Mike is thinking of creating another film with some of the ‘CJ’ cast involved. If he does, I certainly hope I will be considered to be a part of it.”
Untapped
“I wish I had more time to get to know Teroy as a person and as an actor,” De Leon told the Inquirer. “There is a great deal in him that is still untapped in cinema for more complex or conflicted roles. When I heard him speak at an open forum, I saw a new facet of his persona that I could’ve used to greater effect in the film. He’s scary. And cool about it. And his face says so much in a medium shot or a closeup. So exciting to direct such actors.”
Teroy Guzman
Guzman recalled that he didn’t base Senator Jacobo on a real politician.
“I am not a great fan of ‘character pegs,’” he explained. “After reading the script, I created my own version of Jacobo. Given the way the character was written, the challenge for me as an actor was how not to make Jacobo a caricature of evil. That would have been too easy and would have made the character too shallow.”
In creating Jacobo, he tapped into his “own experiences as both son and father.”
Back in the day, he was more Jake than Jacobo. “I was in UP during the latter half of martial law,” he recounted. “I took to the streets and, like many other students, aired our convictions through rallies, marches, barikadas on and off campus. I distinctly remember one of the hardest things I did: giving up beer during Cory Aquino’s civil disobedience campaign.”
Greatest antidotes
A nation’s artists, he pointed out, “are makers and caretakers of a nation’s soul. The artist’s commitment to Truth and Beauty are the greatest antidotes to revisionism and Duterte. I miss the days when artists were at the forefront of the struggle against tyranny and dictatorship. Where are our Behn Cervanteses and Lino Brockas now? That’s why I am deeply grateful to Mike for making ‘CJ.’ We certainly need more voices like his.”
Guzman is back treading the boards in a restaging of “RD3RD.” “It’s the first time an Ateneo production will be shown in La Salle. Things are looking up for the resistance when a deep rivalry like this is set aside for a common cause.”
“Citizen Jake” is still showing in microcinemas all over the city: Black Maria, Cinema Centenario and Cinema ’76 Anonas. It will also have special screenings under the auspices of Dakila.