Ma-an Asuncion-Dagñalan’s 2 Valid IDs begins with one long uninterrupted take that aptly summarizes what the movie is about. It starts with a couple racing through Manila’s traffic-filled streets to reach the hospital in time as the husband rapidly loses blood due to his injury. Once they arrive at the hospital, the focus shifts to the patients as the camera weaves through hallways filled with patients, who are forced to stay there due to the lack of rooms.
It ends when we reach the film’s protagonists in their shared room, as one of the first things we learn about them is that Ramon (Joey Marquez) needs to move to a semi-private room to have a better chance at getting his surgery, which means additional costs. It’s a striking opening, and one that highlights the unfortunately relatable world 2 Valid IDs operates in. In the everyday struggle of ordinary Filipinos, they are faced with a system that routinely lets them down time and time again.
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A Woman’s Convoluted Journey to Get Two Valid IDs
2 Valid IDs centers on Sylvia (Pokwang, who is credited with her real name Marietta Subong) and Ramon, two farmers from Ilocos who have been in Manila for over a month as Ramon gets treated at a public hospital. He needs an operation, but that isn’t happening because of the hospital’s lack of resources.
The couple is advised to get a semi-private room so that they’ll get a better chance at securing the medical treatment. But to do that, they need to pay, and they can’t afford the added expense. That is, until Sylvia’s aunt from abroad sends over 100,000 pesos to her to use for the couple’s medical expenses. All that Sylvia has to do is present two valid IDs to the remittance center to claim the money.
It seems simple and trivial on paper, but it’s here where the film’s premise kicks in as Sylvia’s PhilHealth ID from the province isn’t accepted and she has no other valid ID to offer. What follows is Sylvia’s complicated, needlessly unnecessary, and frequently demeaning and humiliating quest to secure two valid IDs to get the money.
Having Pokwang as the lead star might mean the movie will have some comedic elements, such as satirizing the situation, but there’s nothing funny about what Sylvia goes through. The horror here isn’t a corrupt government official, but the institutions that dehumanize and slowly desensitize regular Filipinos.
What sounds like a mundane task to some (especially those not from the Philippines) is a bureaucratic nightmare that puts to film just how hard and even dehumanizing the process is. Screenwriter Abet Pagdagdagan Raz based the screenplay on his own experiences taking care of his ailing mother, and the script captures the harsh truths most Filipinos have faced just trying to live their lives.
It’s aggravating seeing Sylvia have to wait in long lines (often in the heat) to fill out a registration form and pay all kinds of fees just to be told that she has to return after a set number of days to get her ID because most of us know what that feels like. It’s tedious, expensive, and the mere thought of having to go to a government office for whatever reason causes dread.
If it’s not regular Filipinos feeling the crushing weight of an outdated system, the movie also touches upon how the privileged few get to cut their way to the top. The irony of signs at government offices saying no to fixers while Sylvia pays for the services of one just because she has no other option left is not lost on viewers.
Anyone who’s ever had to apply for a government ID or service knows how challenging it can be, which is why even if the plot may be predictable due to familiarity, it leaves you wanting to watch until the end in the hope Sylvia somehow beats a system that has failed so many.
Beyond the seemingly never-ending cycle Sylvia finds herself in to get a valid ID is also the struggles she and Ramon face at the hospital. From rationing medicine because she either can’t afford more or the hospital doesn’t have any stock to being skipped over during doctor visits despite needing urgent care, it’s as if Ramon and Sylvia are slowly being destroyed by an institution that’s supposed to take care of them. Every breakthrough is met with additional roadblocks, which is sharply highlighted during the film’s final act that shows just how cruel the system can get.
A Broken System That Needs Changing
While the system treats Sylvia, Ramon, and many others as less than human, it’s the community that reminds the protagonists that they are still people at the end of the day. 2 Valid IDs finds the humanity in Sylvia through her conversations and interactions with her friends, family, and even other visitors taking care of their loved ones at the hospital. In the middle of the struggle are moments and scenes that highlight how Sylvia, Ramon, and many Filipinos who do honest work but are met with structures that do not are people who deserve to be treated fairly.
There’s a reason why 2 Valid IDs was met with sold-out screenings across Metro Manila and won the Audience Choice Award at Cinemalaya. Aside from being a well-done film with commendable performances, particularly from Best Actress awardee Pokwang in her Cinemalaya return following the underrated 2016 entry Mercury is Mine, who turns Sylvia into a figure of the mistreated Filipino who wants to do good but is forced into desperation that you can easily feel for, the movie is a stark look at what has sadly become the norm for many Filipinos.
However, that should not be the case. With 2 Valid IDs and the recent flooding from the frequent monsoon rains highlighting yet again how badly the system continues to fail many, we’re reminded that this life is not something to get used to. Filipinos will always deserve better, and the movie is a reality check that the rotten system today that tested Sylvia’s character, beliefs, and morality just to get two IDs doesn’t have to be our future. Kindness and understanding go a long way, but it can only do so much in a structure that doesn’t offer Filipinos the same.
2 Valid IDs is still showing in select cinemas with a wider commercial release planned for later this August.
Featured Image and Photos: CINEMALAYA, SUPER! ENTERTAINMENT
Frequently Asked Questions
2 Valid IDs follows Sylvia (Pokwang) and Ramon (Joey Marquez), two farmers from Ilocos navigating Philippine bureaucracy to secure two valid IDs needed to claim remittance money for Ramon’s hospital treatment.
2 Valid IDs stars Pokwang, credited under her real name Marietta Subong, alongside Joey Marquez, with a screenplay by Abet Pagdagdagan Raz based on his own experience caring for his ailing mother.
Yes. 2 Valid IDs won the Audience Choice Award and Special Jury Award (Full Length) at Cinemalaya, and lead actress Pokwang received the Best Actress award for her performance as Sylvia.
While not a direct true story, the screenplay by Abet Pagdagdagan Raz draws from his personal experience navigating bureaucratic obstacles while caring for his ailing mother.
2 Valid IDs is currently showing in select cinemas, with a wider commercial release planned for later in August.
