“Shoes.” That’s what everyone
thinks of when they hear this films’ title. Well, all right,
they might also remember lots of dresses, extravagant palaces, parties
with George Hamilton (?!!), a headline-grabbing trial in New York.
Whatever details you recall, you’ll be dazzled by this incredible
film.
One of the richest and most powerful women in the world- she lives
today in immaculate splendor in the Phillipines- Imelda Marcos defies
description. But, this film comes pretty close. Acquiring unbelievable
access, the filmmakers start at the beginning and show us Imelda’s
Eva Peron-like rise to power. Imelda’s intelligence, perseverance,
resilience, and guile are evident at every step. Her uncanny ability
to bend any reality to her own sense of the world is startling-
watch for the interview with the juror from her trial in New York.
She shows us her wardrobe as happily as she patiently explains
her worldview through her wondrous pictographs. We see her driven
through the streets of Manila, ensconced in her custom van with
the plastic encased seats, while her driver hands out pictures to
the crowds that jog alongside. The whole thing is just amazing.
After screening at the 2004 Maryland Film Festival, Imelda
was set for release in the Phillipines until Imelda Marcos went
to court to try to prevent it from screening in theaters. After
some legal wrangling it did open there and became a huge box office
hit out-grossing Spiderman 2.
--Jed Dietz
Presented By: Ramona Diaz
Biography: Ramona Diaz made a film about the 1986
People Power movement in the Philippines called Spirits Rising which
won numerous awards. She was an associate producer on the PBS documentary
Cadillac Desert, and worked on a 24-part documentary about the Philippines;
Apple Pie, Patis, Pate, atbp. Ramona currently lives in Baltimore.
