''Patrolman'' is a 1988 Filipino action film directed by Cesar SB. Abella and starring stuntman Baldo Marro as the titular patrolman. It also stars

Melissa Mendez Melissa Mendez (; born July 27, 1964) is a Filipina film and TV actress. Mendez was nominated for a Best Actress FAMAS Award for the film ''Kalakal'' (2008). Mendez produced an independent movie, ''Hilot'' (2009) with Empress Schuck. It was dire ...

Sunshine Sunlight is a portion of the electromagnetic radiation given off by the Sun, in particular infrared, visible, and ultraviolet light. On Earth, sunlight is scattered and filtered through Earth's atmosphere, and is obvious as daylight when th ...

Raoul Aragonn Raoul Aragon was a former Filipino actor in drama and action movies in the Philippines. Aragon was nominated in Gawad Urian Award 1980 as Best Actor in the movie ''Ina ka ng Anak Mo'' and he won the Best Actor award in Metro Manila Film Festival ...

Dick Israel Ricardo Vizcarra Michaca (10 December 1947 – 11 October 2016), known by his stage name Dick Israel, was a Filipino character actor who played mostly villain and sidekick roles in many Filipino movies. He later branched out in television playi ...

, Zandro Zamora, Arwin Rogelio, and Odette Khan. Based on a true story, the film is about a dedicated and honest policeman who becomes a target of the

New People's Army The New People's Army ( fil, Bagong Hukbong Bayan), abbreviated NPA or BHB, is the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), based primarily in the Philippine countryside. It acts as the CPP's principal organization, aimi ...

's Sparrow Unit. The film was produced by El Niño Films and released on December 25, 1988 as part of the

14th Metro Manila Film Festival The 14th Metro Manila Film Festival was held in 1988. An unheralded and obscure movie, ''Patrolman'' was named the Best Picture in the 1988 Metro Manila Film Festival. The lead star, once unknown stuntman-actor Baldo Marro won the Best Actor awa ...

(MMFF). ''Patrolman'' won three MMFF awards, for

Best Picture This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

Best Actor Best Actor is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards to leading actors in a film, television series, television film or play. The term most often refers to th ...

(Marro), and Best Supporting Actor (Israel). Marro's win for Best Actor is considered an upset by many, as

Christopher de Leon Christopher Strauss de León (born October 31, 1956) is a Philippine film actor and politician. He is recognized as the “''King of Philippine Drama''” has appeared in over 120 films since the early 1970s. Regarded as an "acting genius" and ...

was more critically favored for his performance in ''

Magkano ang Iyong Dangal? Laurice Ilagan Guillen-Feleo (born January 31, 1947) is a Filipino actress, film and television director, and college professor. Early life and acting career Guillen studied at St. Theresa's College, Cebu City, earned an AB English degree befor ...

''. Critic

Lav Diaz Lavrente Indico Anciro Diaz (born December 30, 1958) is a Filipino independent filmmaker and former film critic. Frequently known as one of the key members of the slow cinema movement, having made several of the list of longest films, longest na ...

gave a negative review for the film, criticizing its excessive moralizing and unclear reason as to why the enemies would target the titular character.

Cast

* Baldo Marro *

Raul Aragon Raoul Aragon was a former Filipino actor in drama and action movies in the Philippines. Aragon was nominated in Gawad Urian Award 1980 as Best Actor in the movie ''Ina ka ng Anak Mo'' and he won the Best Actor award in Metro Manila Film Festival 1 ...

* Zandro Zamora * Odette Khan * Arwin Rogelio * Ramon 'Bong' Revilla Jr. *

Robin Padilla Robinhood Ferdinand Cariño Padilla (; born November 23, 1969), known professionally as Robin Padilla, is a Filipino politician, television personality, martial artist, actor and director currently serving as a Senator of the Philippines since ...

* George Estregan Jr. *

Philip Gamboa Philip, also Phillip, is a male given name, derived from the Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominent Philips who populariz ...

*King Gutierrez *Eddie Nicart *Robert Miller *Ushman Hassim *Romy Nario *Ernie David *Vic Varrion *Ernie Forte *Boy Ranay *Danny Labra *Nonong de Andres *Philip Henson *Edward Luna *Ray Alsona *Andrew Guevarra *Dave Guanson *Mark Tiongson *Billy Viña *Nemie Gutierrez *Jing Caparas *Donn de Vera *Benjie Corpuz *Bebeng Amora

Release

''Patrolman'' was given a "P-15" rating by the

Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (English: "For Intelligent and Responsible Viewing") , employees = More than 33 , chief1_name = Diorella Maria Sotto-Antonio , chief1_position = Chairperson , agency_type = Film and television classification , parent_agency ...

(MTRCB), and was released on December 25, 1988 as part of the

(MMFF).

Box office

On its opening day, ''Patrolman'' grossed ₱381 thousand, the least grossing film among the six MMFF films. By January, however, the film was able to surpass ''Itanong Mo sa Buwan'', and ranked fifth out of all the entries to the festival.

Critical response

, writing for the ''

Manila Standard The ''Manila Standard'' is a broadsheet newspaper in the Philippines. , it is owned by the Romualdez family. The Romualdezes, through incumbent speaker of the House Martin Romualdez, also own Journal Publications, Inc., the owner of tabloid pap ...

'', gave ''Patrolman'' a negative review, criticizing the film for putting excessive emphasis on its theme of the ideal policeman in both dialogue and visuals, with his own review being titled "Propaganda of the police". He also questioned why the Sparrow team of young rebels and hitmen targeted Marro's character, an overall righteous policeman, without a clear reason for doing so. However, Diaz admitted that the film is able to effectively hit upon a person's conscience, accidental or otherwise.

MMFF Best Actor controversy

Baldo Marro, a stuntman who had solely received supporting roles before ''Patrolman'', won the MMFF Award for Best Actor. His win is generally considered an upset by many, as he beat out favored actor

, who received acclaim for his performance in ''

''. Actress

Armida Siguion-Reyna Armida Siguion-Reyna (born Armida Liwanag Ponce Enrile; November 4, 1930February 11, 2019) was a Filipina singer, film and stage actress, producer and television show host. She was the chairperson of the Movie and Television Review and Classific ...

expressed the sentiment that both de Leon and

Mark Gil Raphael John "Ralph" Gil Eigenmann (25 September 1961 – 1 September 2014), better known by his screen name Mark Gil, was a Filipino actor. Gil was often cast as a main villain in Philippine action films that was popular during the late 80s t ...

, the latter from ''Itanong Mo sa Buwan'', were more deserving of the MMFF Best Actor award than Marro, stating that "I like Baldo – but that is beside the point. Let us not be cruel to him by making him believe that what he did is great acting."

Accolades

Sequel

A sequel, ''Amok: Patrolman 2'', was released in 1989.

References

External links

* {{Metro Manila Film Festival 1988 films 1988 action films Action films based on actual events Filipino-language films Films about police officers Philippine action films