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Summer MMFF Movie Reviews: Unremarkable romance tropes galore

YUNG LIBRO SA NAPANOOD KO

Directed by Bela Padilla
MTRCB Rating: PG

One good thing I gleaned from Bela Padilla’s second film as a writer and director is that she must be someone with genuine enthusiasm for how forms of art and expression like books and TV shows help people cope with their lives.

Yung Libro sa Napanood Ko follows Lisa (played by Padilla herself), who writes a book inspired by a K-drama and meets a kind Korean fan named Gun-hoo (played by relative newcomer Yoo Min-gon).

From the opening scenes, it appears that the film is shaping up to be a simple love letter to the K-drama genre. But as Lisa gets whisked away on a spur-of-the-moment trip to South Korea with her new friend and visits spots where K-dramas were shot, it seems like it could fall into underwhelming territory.

By merely pandering to Filipinos’ infatuation for anything Korean, it runs the risk of feeding us “recycled air,” as a few of the characters have put it. In its defense, the narrative has touches of potential but sadly is overrun with budding romance tropes and cliches that have already been done a million times better.

In terms of acting, Ms. Padilla is excellent, as she always is in pretty-lady-with-emotional-baggage roles in romance-centered films. However, her scene partner Yoo lacks the star power of a K-drama leading man, coming off as cheesy more than anything else. It wouldn’t be surprising to find out that he was cast for narrative purposes, since he can speak the fluent English required for the story.

And though the sudden romance that seemingly sprouts out of nowhere is later explained by a hefty, exposition-filled reveal, the genre switch from cutesy to dramatic feels callous and heavy-handed. The film tries to touch on themes of female empowerment, mental health issues, and the plight of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs), but it’s all lost in clunky storytelling and comes across as forced.

Lisa’s mother (played by the largely underutilized Lorna Tolentino) is the hidden crux behind much of the narrative weight that pulls the second half squarely into melodrama. Her deep involvement with both Lisa and Gun-hoo is shown only in flashes, the OFW theme she represents taking a step back to make way for Lisa’s personal story.

It’s clear that Ms. Padilla is a passionate, talented storyteller who has a fair amount of knowledge about both Filipino romance and K-drama genres, making this film an easy imitation of tropes. Ultimately, Yung Libro sa Napanood Ko adds nothing to those existing films.

The best thing to do would be to bask in the passable cinematography and color grading that depict South Korea, and place yourself in Lisa and Gun-hoo’s shoes if it makes you feel better.

Hopefully for the next step in her filmmaking journey, Ms. Padilla moves past this messy, half-baked effort and gives us something worthwhile.

LOVE YOU LONG TIME

Directed by JP Habac
MTRCB Rating: G

At first I was wary of the reappearance of the now-common Filipino romance movie trope of a stressed or heartbroken Metro Manila-based character going to Baguio as a form of escape.

It’s been done so many times, from Joyce Bernal’s Don’t Give Up On Us in 2006 with Judy Ann Santos and Piolo Pascual, and, most recently and effectively, Antoinette Jadaone’s That Thing Called Tadhana in 2015 with Angelica Panganiban and JM De Guzman.

Given that, this one surprisingly turns out to be interesting and worthwhile, albeit a bit rough in execution.

Love You Long Time opens with Ikay (played by first-timer to the big screen Eisel Serrano) who seemingly rejects and leaves her boyfriend (played by Carlo Aquino) to focus on her career as a screenwriter. Afterwards, she’s shown unwilling to compromise on a screenplay where she channels her feelings about the failed relationship.

To be inspired and finish the difficult screenplay, she travels to Baguio to visit her aunt (Ana Abad Santos). That’s where she comes across a two-way radio or walkie-talkie, which they frustratingly keep calling an “old phone” for some reason.

Out of curiosity, she uses it and starts speaking to a stranger named Uly (also played by Aquino), marking the start of a new friendship-to-love story set in both Baguio and Atok, Benguet.

Ms. Serrano as the independent and career-driven Ikay is passable, but it’s clear she’s a newbie to the big screen, highlighted by awkward acting moments and the inability to match the charm and star power of Mr. Aquino as Uly. Perhaps it would have been better to have chosen a different film for her big screen debut, as the gap in talent and experience does her no favors here.

The film has a promising story, which starts as a cutesy long-distance romance but later tackles the idea of how love transcends time (evoking Your Name, the hit 2016 time-travel animé film by Makoto Shinkai, albeit with less Japanese quirkiness and more Filipino indie sensibilities).

A twist drives home the film’s theme of writing as a form of expression. But the hard punches of this final act fall flat, due to the relationship forged through the radio feeling rushed and focused more on kilig than true connection.

Kara Moreno’s cinematography delivers the creative compositions expected of a romance across time (think split screens showing the divide between characters in one location). Meanwhile, JP Habac’s direction is standard but rough around the edges, given that it’s for a complex love story that tries to take clever turns. Still, it’s the most notable of his works since I’m Drunk, I Love You in 2017.

Sadly, despite Patricia Lasaten’s good score, this film is marred by the terrible sound mixing, especially when the theme song by Ben&Ben is playing. It’s as if the editors decide to crank it up to quadruple “the feels” without caring if the spoken dialogue is drowned out.

Ultimately, though it succeeds at providing a romance drama that isn’t completely run-of-the-mill, its tendency to dwell on sentiment and melodrama takes away from what could have been better executed. — Brontë H. Lacsamana

GMA reports 28% profit slide, shares slump by 10%

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GMA Network, Inc.’s attributable net income declined by 27.7% to P5.44 billion in 2022 from P7.53 billion in the previous year amid lower revenues and high expenses.

Last year, GMA’s top line dipped by 3.9% to P21.56 billion from P22.45 billion in 2021.

Of its revenues, P19.37 billion came from advertising, P774.87 million from subscriptions, P624.34 million from digital, and P327 million from the sale of goods. Revenues from production reached P122.69 million.

Production costs reached P7.28 billion in 2022, up by 24.9% from P6 billion in the previous year. Cost of sales was lower by 27.7% to P302.14 million from P418.14 million in 2021.

The network’s gross profit in 2022 totaled P13.78 billion, which showed a 14% decline from the P16.04 billion booked in 2021.

Expenses for the company’s general and administrative needs were a bit higher at P6.64 billion in 2022, up 8% versus P6.14 billion in the previous year.

GMA, despite booking a P9 million loss due to a joint venture in 2022, recorded a P181.31-million other income, which is more than three times the P52.49 million it booked in 2021, due to a P39.93 million gain from foreign exchange.

GMA is primarily involved in the business of radio and television broadcasting. Its subsidiaries include Alta Productions Group, Inc., GMA Network Films, Inc., GMA New Media, Inc., and Citynet Network Marketing and Productions, Inc.

On Tuesday, shares in GMA slipped by P1.24 or 10.39% to P10.70 each. — Justine Irish D. Tabile

Robinsons Retail Holdings, Inc. to hold annual meeting of shareholders via remote communication on May 12

 

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Instituto Cervantes marks World Book Day 2023

THE INTRAMUROS Branch of Instituto Cervantes de Manila will be hosting a celebration of World Book Day, or Día del Libro, on Saturday April 22, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

From fiction to non-fiction, poetry to prose, thousands of books will be gathered around Instituto Cervantes’ premises in Intramuros. Día del Libro will feature Manila top bookstores and publishing houses that will be selling a wide array of books at a 20% discount. Following the tradition in Spain, every book purchase would entitle one to a free rose.

And for this year’s celebration, Instituto Cervantes will be giving out hundreds of books for free.

Apart from the book market, visitors to Día del Libro will be treated to poetry recitals, free Spanish classes, book presentations, street art, games, exhibits, storytelling sessions, Spanish food, as well as fun activities for the children.

First introduced in Manila by Instituto Cervantes in 2006, the tradition of Día del Libro began in Barcelona, Spain. The tradition is commemorated on St. George’s Day (April 23), during which Spanish people exchange roses and books. This date also honors two of history’s greatest writers — Miguel de Cervantes and William Shakespeare — who coincidentally died on the very same day, April 23, 1616. These significant incidents prompted the UNESCO to declare April 23 as World Book and Copyright Day.

April is also the birth month of the classic Filipino poet Francisco Balagtas, and to honor him the National Commission for Culture and the Arts declared April as National Literature Month.

To commemorate the Day of Miguel de Cervantes, in this edition the Instituto Cervantes is challenging visitors to join a Quixotic attempt: to handwrite Don Quixote de La Mancha. The final hand-written book will be deposited in the Library of Instituto Cervantes. People interested in taking part in the writing of Don Quijote can join on the same day with no prior registration. Participants in the handwriting chain will receive a rose.

Through the 2nd Recital of Filhispanic Poetry, Instituto Cervantes is inviting poetry lovers to recite verses written in Spanish by Filipino poets. All the recorded recitations will be compiled in a video that will be posted on the Instituto Cervantes Youtube channel at https://www.youtube.com/@InstitutoCervantesManila at the end of April. Interested poetry aficionados can register at https://forms.office.com/e/EZwcmKDsTN

Thanks to the collaboration of publishing houses, visitors will have the opportunity to meet authors who will be signing their works. Among the writers who will be signing copies are Jessica Zafra, Charlson Ong, Wilfredo Liangco, Katrina Martin, Kannika Claudine D. Peña, and Vince Groyon. Book lovers will also have the chance to attend book presentations organized by some publishers. The program schedule can be found at https://www.facebook.com/events/1224034514883637

As one of the perks of Día del Libro, Instituto Cervantes will offer a 10% discount and special gifts for those enrolling for Spanish classes on April 22.

And to cap it off, Instituto Cervantes will close Día del Libro 2023 with a live concert featuring Filipino rock band Talahib People’s Music at 5:30 p.m.

Día del Libro is organized by Instituto Cervantes de Manila, in collaboration with the Embassy of Spain in the Philippines and Intramuros Administration, and with the support of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines, Consejería de Educación of Spain, and the embassies of Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Panama and Venezuela. Participating bookstores and publishing houses include: Ateneo University Press, Milflores Publishing, National Historical Commission of the Philippines, Vibal Publishing, Far Eastern University Publications, La Solidaridad Bookstore, Kahel Press, and Artbooks.ph.

Admission to all Día del Libro activities is free on a first-come, first-served basis. For more information about World Book Day 2023 and events at the Intramuros Branch of Instituto Cervantes de Manila, visit the website www.facebook.com/InstitutoCervantesManila.

Tax court upholds denial of Carmen Copper’s refund claim

CTA.JUDICIARY.GOV.PH

THE Court of Tax Appeals has affirmed its ruling that denied Carmen Copper Corp.’s refund claim worth P32.16 million allegedly representing its excess value-added tax (VAT) traced to zero-rated sales for the third quarter of 2014.

In a decision dated April 5 and made public on April 17, the CTA full court said the firm failed to prove that its direct-export sales to its foreign clients were paid for in acceptable foreign currency approved by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.

“We clarified that for a VAT-registered taxpayer claiming VAT zero-rated direct export sales like petitioner, it must present a bank credit advice, certificate of bank remittance, or any other document proving payment of goods in acceptable foreign currency or its equivalent in goods and services,” Associate Justice Lanee S. Cui-David said in the ruling.

The tribunal partially granted Carmen Copper’s petition to review the refund claim last year, agreeing to consider the plea again.

The firm argued that the court should have granted its refund claim since it earlier agreed that the right to due process was violated when the commissioner of internal revenue (CIR) denied the dispute without explaining why.

The tax court disagreed, saying Carmen Copper still had to prove its entitlement to the refund despite the due process violation.

“The court in its decision believes that in spite of the due process violation, the court must still be allowed to proceed with the factual determination of the entitlement of the taxpayer’s claim in a full blown trial,” it said.

“It must be stressed that an applicant for tax refund or credit must not only prove entitlement to the claim but also comply with all the documentary and evidentiary requirements such as VAT invoicing requirements provided by tax laws and regulations.” — John Victor D. Ordoñez

Altus Property Ventures, Inc. announces annual stockholders’ meeting on May 12

 

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Gov’t makes partial award of new 13-year bonds

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THE GOVERNMENT made a partial award of the new Treasury bonds (T-bonds) it auctioned off on Tuesday as investors continued to ask for higher yields amid rising benchmark borrowing costs.

The Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) raised just P19.475 billion from the fresh 13-year bonds it offered on Tuesday out of the P25-billion program, even as total bids reached P48.769 billion.

The bonds were awarded at a coupon rate of 6.25%. Accepted yields ranged from 6.1% to 6.35% for an average of 6.24%.

The coupon fetched for the tenor was 3.10 basis points (bps) lower than the 6.281% quoted for the 13-year tenor at the secondary market prior to the auction, based on PHP Bloomberg Valuation (BVAL) Service Reference Rates data provided by the Treasury.

However, the coupon was 0.1 bp higher than the 6.249% fetched for 25-year bonds maturing in 2025 being traded at the secondary market.

The BTr partially awarded the fresh 13-year bonds as they want to align rates with secondary market levels, National Treasurer Rosalia V. de Leon said in a Viber message to reporters after the auction.

“The 13-year T-bond average auction yield of 6.24% and coupon of 6.25% similar to the comparable 12-year PHP BVAL at 6.2552% as of April 17, 2023, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said in a Viber message.

The market continued to ask for higher returns to match rising benchmark borrowing costs, which led to the partial award, a trader said in a Viber message.

“The 6.25% coupon is good for the government as that lowers their borrowing cost, but at the 13-year tenor, that may be a stretch for some investors,” the trader said.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) last month hiked borrowing costs by 25 bps to help bring down elevated inflation, bringing the rate on its overnight reverse repurchase facility or its policy rate to 6.25%.

Since May 2022, the central bank raised benchmark rates by a total of 425 bps.

Its next policy meeting is on May 18.

Mr. Ricafort added that the partial award came as rates rose amid lower global crude oil prices.

Brent crude futures fell $1.55 or 1.8% to $84.76 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude dropped $1.69 or 2.1% to $80.83 a barrel.

Investors also wanted higher rates after the peso returned to the P56 level against the dollar on Tuesday, he said.

The peso opened Tuesday’s trading session at P56 per dollar.

“However, these are offset by large amount of maturing Treasury bonds later this week as some of these maturing funds would search for reinvestment opportunities,” Mr. Ricafort said.

The BTr wants to raise P160 billion from the domestic market this month, or P60 billion via Treasury bills and P100 billion via T-bonds.

The government borrows from local and foreign sources to help fund its budget deficit, which is capped at 6.1% of gross domestic product this year. — A.M.C. Sy

Arts&Culture (04/19/23)

ArtistSpace shows Tam-awan artists exhibit

THE CHANUM Foundation, Inc. and Tam-awan Village Artist Group celebrate their 25th anniversary at the ArtistSpace through “CORDI EDWANI,” a group exhibition of works by the Baguio-based artists. It is currently on view until April 25 at the ArtistSpace, at the Ground Level, Ayala Museum Annex, Makati Ave. corner De La Rosa St., Greenbelt Park, Makati. Chanum Foundation, Inc. was founded to establish not only a cultural base, but to create a haven for artists with Igorot heritage and/or strong cultural influences. The Tam-awan Village Artist Group was first formed to nurture, mentor, and promote its artist members. It has since produced gifted artists who have gone on to become big names in the art industry. It continues to take on new members, encouraging their growth through year-round exhibitions, art festivals, and art workshops. For this exhibition, the participating artists reveal their personal (at the same time universal) perspectives of a life that combines the old and the new. The 19 participating artists are: Kubong, Gretta Apolinar, Ja B, Marlyn “Lin” Bulayo, Kathleen Mae Bullong, Lily V. Castillo, Eden Cawang, Kesayah Dacaimat, Alfred Dato, Sirk Deuda, Pa Nim Dim, Freya Jadormio, Jen Lorenzo, Edwin Macadaeg, Jordan Mangosan, Randy Nimer, Santos “Xandy” Oyan, Rhesa Payangdo, and Sheela May “Sheela Ming” Tabuno. The gallery is open daily from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Admission is free.

MCAD marks Earth Day with graphic design workshop

IN COMMEMORATION of Earth Day on April 22, the Museum of Contemporary Art and Design (MCAD) of the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde will host a free graphic design and lettering workshop on climate change for children ages 12 to 16. Entitled “A, B, C’s of Climate Change,” the hybrid event explores how visual communication increases the awareness and understanding by the youth on messages that pertain to current environmental issues. It will educate the participants on how to plan and project their ideas and experiences into visual and textual contents. The workshop will be facilitated by Filipino contemporary artist and painter Tia Avila. The workshop is free. It will be held on Saturday, April 22, at 2 p.m. Interested participants may register through https://forms.gle/oif8Uzvnm76hKZGWA. For more information, e-mail mcad@benilde.edu.ph or call 8230-5100 local 3897.

CASA San Miguel’s faculty recital

CASA San Miguel will be holding the CUERDAS Faculty Concert featuring Renee Vie Soterio on April 23 at 3 p.m. At the young age of 12, Ms. Soterio began to learn the violin as a scholar of the CASA San Miguel music program and later became a student of Alfonso “Coke” Bolipata. Soon after that, she was made a member of the Pundaquit Virtuosi, now an active teacher of the Cuerdas School, mentoring some of the current members of the Pundaquit Virtuosi. Tickets are P200. For details call 0907-082-6692 or 0917-838-2752.

Ortigas Foundation Library holds talk on WWII

THE ORTIGAS Foundation Library will host “A conversation with Fely Zafra-Reyes recounting the arduous days of Manila’s liberation.” It will be held on April 25, 5 p.m. (4 p.m. registration and refreshments). The Ortigas Foundation Library is on the 2nd floor of the McKinley Bldg., Greenhills Shopping Center. Seats are limited. Reserve seats by e-mail (provide your full name and contact information) at ortigasfoundation@ortigas.com.ph, or through the website ortigasfoundationlibrary.com.ph or jsilva79@mac.com.

Exhibit features large portraits of Filipino tycoons

FORTY original acrylic paintings, all completed in just two and a half months, are on exhibit at Art Lounge Manila (Ground Floor, Podium Mall in Ortigas Center, Pasig) until April 23. Simply entitled “Portraits,” the exhibit features portraits of Filipino tycoons and entrepreneurs that painter Celeste Lecaroz created in spontaneous realism style. Each portrait measures 5 by 4 feet and the works were painted from July to September 2019, in time for the 40th anniversary celebration of Hi-Cool Engineering whose chairman Conrad Acedillo is a supporter of Filipino visual arts. Among the subjects of the portraits is the late industrialist Leonardo Ty of Ajinomoto and Hitachi.

Lui Medina shares creative process in talk

CONTEMPORARY artist Lui Medina shares her creative process in a talk, “Maps: In the Folding of Strata,” a free hybrid event organized by the Museum of Contemporary Art and Design (MCAD) of the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde. Ms. Medina will discuss how she utilizes landscapes as a framework to interrogate form and figure. Her works in exhibitions such as The Notion of the Edge (2018) and Where does landscape begin? (2016) were both at Artinformal. They explored the plasticity of topography and how expanses can become isolated parcels, islands into sprawls, landscapes without landmarks, mainly with the use of graphite. This interest in shapes and the organic has in turn also molded the materials and the canvases that she uses for her drawings and paintings. Ms. Medina’s works are part of MCAD’s ongoing exhibition “Adaptation: A Reconnected Earth”. The show proposes an approach to determining the present within the realities of a changed climate, a despairing planet and a recently renewed humanity. “Maps: In the Folding of Strata” is free and open to the public. It will be held on April 20, 3 p.m. Interested participants may register through https://forms.gle/uMJ7gHAJn6i3Khy36. For more information, e-mail mcad@benilde.edu.ph or call 8230-5100 local 3897.

Kate Bautista’s second solo exhibit

IMAHICA Art Gallery presents Kate Bautista’s second solo exhibition, “Emotions All Over The Place,” ongoing until May 6. The exhibit focuses on a realm suffused with themes of femininity, sensuality, and empowerment.  The gallery is at 2-A Lee Gardens, Shaw Blvd., Mandaluyong City.

Megawide opposes ACI’s counterclaim, plans arbitration filing

MEGAWIDE Construction Corp. plans to file before an arbitration panel its objection to what it called “permissive” counterclaim from ACI, Inc. amounting to almost P1.53 billion.

“Megawide intends to file, within the allowed period, an opposition or objection to ACI’s permissive counterclaims for due consideration of the CIAC (Construction Industry Arbitration Commission) Arbitration panel,” the company said in a disclosure on Tuesday.

On Jan. 10, Megawide filed a complaint against ACI before the CIAC involving a contract for the design and construction of the Araneta Cyberpark Tower 2.

Megawide’s aggregate claim against ACI amounted to P339.65 million, to which the ACI filed a counterclaim amounting to P1.53 billion.

The counterclaim was founded on alleged violations of a construction contract worth P4.25 billion for the construction of Gateway Mall and Ibis Hotel in Quezon City. ACI is formerly Araneta Center, Inc.

In an unrelated ruling, the Supreme Court said a permissive counterclaim “does not arise out of or is not necessarily connected with the subject matter of the opposing party’s claim.”

It added that a permissive counterclaim is an independent claim that may be filed separately in another case.

PREFERRED SHARES LISTING
Meanwhile, Megawide announced that it had successfully listed its Series 5 preferred shares worth P1.5 billion, which were fully subscribed.

“The warm reception for our latest fund raising also reflects the investment community’s continued confidence in Megawide’s prospects,” Megawide President and Chief Executive Officer Edgar B. Saavedra said in a press release.

The shares, which carried an initial dividend rate of 7.9% per annum, were offered to the public from March 28 to April 4.

Proceeds from the offer will be used to refinance the maturing P2.6 billion Series 2A preferred shares of the company in May, while the balance will be internally funded.

“The Series 5 preferred share issuance is part of Megawide’s comprehensive long-term financial management program, which aims to strengthen the balance sheet and develop a more efficient capital structure,” the company said.

On Tuesday, shares in Megawide climbed by a centavo or 0.34% to P2.99 apiece. — Justine Irish D. Tabile

BDO books higher net profit in Q1

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BDO UNIBANK, Inc. (BDO) saw its net income grow by 40.44% year on year in the first quarter as it recorded “broad-based growth” across all its businesses.

BDO’s attributable net income stood at P16.528 billion in the January- to-March period, rising from P11.679 billion in the same quarter last year, based on its quarterly report disclosed to the local bourse on Tuesday.

This translated to a return on average common equity of 14.45%, up from 11.09% in the same period in 2022, and a return on average assets of 1.64%, also up from 1.29% a year prior.

Net interest income grew by 27.95% to P43.391 billion in the first quarter from P33.912 billion in the comparable year-ago period.

This came amid an increase in interest earnings from loans and trading and investment securities, which helped offset a rise in interest expense on deposits.

Net interest margin rose to 4.58% from 4.03% “following earning asset expansion in a rising interest rate environment.”

Meanwhile, other operating income likewise grew by 33.52% year on year to P18.919 billion on the back of an increase in earnings from service charges, fees and commissions and a higher net trading gain.

On the other hand, operating expenses (opex) climbed by 17.5% to P37.42 billion, which BDO said was due to volume-related costs, such as credit card interchange fees and documentary stamp and gross receipts taxes, “consistent with increased activity.”

“The bank also sustained its IT (information technology) investments and branch expansion, with 97 new branches opened since 1Q 2022,” BDO said in a statement.

“Revenue growth continued to outpace opex growth, resulting in pre-provision operating profit accelerating to P24.9 billion,” it added.

BDO said its gross customer loans increased by 8% to P2.6 trillion, while total deposits grew by 14% to P3.22 trillion.

Its nonperforming loan (NPL) ratio improved to 1.98% in the first quarter from 2.72% a year prior. NPL coverage increased to 170% from 120% “as the bank maintained its conservative credit and provisioning policies.”

“Given the uncertainty, the bank has maintained a healthy balance between loan growth and sufficient liquidity for unforeseen events, maintaining its liquidity ratio at 35%,” it said.

BDO’s capital base was at P475.9 billion in the first quarter. Its capital adequacy ratio stood at 14.81%, up from 14.64% a year prior, while its common equity Tier 1 ratio was at 13.7%.

Total assets stood at P4.087 trillion at end-March 2023.

“While macroeconomic challenges persist with still elevated inflation and interest rates, the bank believes it is in a good position to weather short-term volatility and capitalize on long-term growth opportunities given its sound balance sheet, established business franchise and strong and diversified earnings streams,” BDO said.

BDO shares fell by 40 centavos or 0.31% to close at P127.90 each on Tuesday.

Caveat emptor: a new book on the best lines in Latin misses the bigger picture

CAVE CANEM: mosaic at the House of the Tragic Poet. —WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Book Review
Et tu, Brute? The Best Latin Lines Ever
By Harry Mount and John Davie
Bloomsbury

One of my favorite Roman artefacts to show visiting school groups or beginner’s Latin classes is a floor mosaic from the House of the Tragic Poet in Pompeii. The mosaic depicts a chained dog accompanied by the Latin words, CAVE CANEM (“beware of the dog”).

The cute familiarity of the image never fails to generate a chuckle or two. But importantly, it provides me with an opening to explore more important issues with the students, from Roman social history to the intricacies of the Latin imperative (used for commands and entreaties, like “beware”!)

Latin is perhaps most familiar today as the language of practical short-cuts (etc, e.g., i.e.) and quotable lines, beloved by creators of school mottos and political speechwriters alike.

Harry Mount and John Davie’s book, Et tu, Brute? The Best Latin Lines Ever, brings together many of Latin’s greatest hits, from “Fortune favors the brave” to “Who will guard the guards?” But collecting the lines is easy — the difficulty is trying to work out what they add up to.

Mr. Mount and Mr. Davie take the easy way out. “The fundamental reason for reading Latin is because it’s the language of Western civilization,” they write.

I couldn’t disagree more. We should read Latin because it is fun, challenging, amusing, and exciting, not because it forms part of any putative “inheritance” of the West.

But for these authors, Latin exists within a very limited thought-world. Yes, the book contains some funerary inscriptions and graffiti, and the occasional early modern philosopher, but again and again the authors return to the poetry and prose of the late Republic and early imperial period, which have long been the staple of English public (read: private) school and university (especially Oxbridge) curricula.

There is no doubt that within these traditional boundaries, Mr. Mount and Mr. Davie know their stuff. We are treated to the poetry of Catullus, Horace, and Propertius, the satires and epigrams of Juvenal and Martial, and the histories and biographies of Tacitus and Suetonius.

Cicero’s speeches are likewise combed for memorable lines, from the instantly recognizable Cui bono (“Who benefits?”) to his invectives against Mark Antony.

The translations themselves are witty and evocative, but the contextual material is often weak or lacking. Catullus Poem 16, which comes billed as “the rudest poem in Latin,” features raw, confronting sexually violent language. Yet there is no discussion of why Catullus uses such shocking obscenities or of the purposes of sexual invective in Latin.

The treatment of Ovid, most famous for his Art of Love, is little better. While the authors acknowledge that his sexual advice — that young men should take advantage of drunk women and rape them — is “evil” and “wicked,” they also state that Ovid “wouldn’t last a second these days,” as if modern cancel culture is the problem, rather than the poet’s own words.

I acknowledge that, as a university academic who thinks, writes, and teaches about the Romans on a daily basis, I am not the intended audience for this book. Instead, it is clearly aimed at the general reader with no prior knowledge of Latin and Roman history, or those with long-buried school Latin, eager to reacquaint themselves with the language. But I think these readers deserve better than what Mr. Mount and Ms. Davie have to offer.

Women, in particular, come off badly in this book. This is admittedly, partly the result of the fact that most surviving Latin literature was written by men. But there is something decidedly uncomfortable about the parade of female lovers, goddesses, and Pompeiian sex workers offered here, which is not really alleviated by the inclusion of the famous letter from Vindolanda in which an officer’s wife invites another woman to her birthday party.

I missed texts like The Passion of Perpetua, which contains the first-hand account of a young Christian woman from North Africa, written while awaiting execution at the imperial games in the early 3rd century AD. One cannot but helped be moved by Perpetua’s account of her separation from her baby, whom she was still breastfeeding.

After being granted permission to keep her child with her, Perpetua wrote: “prison was immediately transformed into a palace for me, so that I preferred to be there than anywhere else” (factus est mihi carcer subito praetorium, ut ibi mallem esse quam alicubi).

The resonance of these heartfelt words only increases when Perpetua abandons her child, and her life, for her Christian faith.

The rise of Christianity and the entire course of Roman history after the early 2nd century is not well treated by Mr. Mount and Mr. Davie. Their account of Roman emperors comes to a sputtering halt with the reign of Domitian, erroneously credited with fighting against the Sarmatians “in modern Iran” — actually eastern Europe. A famous (and misleading) quotation from Edward Gibbon about the age of the Antonines then suffices for the next hundred years or so.

The poetry, panegyric, and pilgrim’s tales of the vibrant world of Late Antiquity are all but absent. Had they been included we could have journeyed to Persia with the soldier-historian Ammianus Marcellinus or to the Holy Land with the Christian woman Egeria.

Most of Et tu, Brute? could have been written decades ago with nary a word being changed. Our understanding and appreciation of Latin and Roman culture has long moved on, for the better. Caveat emptor (“Let the buyer beware”).

Caillan Davenport is an Associate Professor of Classics and Head of the Centre for Classical Studies, Australian National University. He has received funding from the Australian Research Council and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation.

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