Deathrow (2000)

   
   Genre: Crime/Action/Drama

   Directed by: Joel Lamangan

   Starring: Eddie Garcia & Cogie Domingo

               2000 Metro Manila Film Festival 2^nd Best Film, Best Actor (Eddie Garcia), Best Production Design (Joey Luna), Best Film Editing (Jess Navarro and Kelly Cruz), Best Sound Recording (Albert Michael Idioma and Rudy Gonzales)

                           Won FAP (Film Academy of the Philippines) Awards for Best Actor (Eddie Garcia), Best Editing (Jess Navarro), Best Production Design (Joey Luna) and Best Supporting Actor (Pen Medina)

Won Gawad Urian Awards for Best Actor (Eddie Garcia), Best Editing (Jess Navarro and Kelly Cruz) and Best Sound (Albert Michael Idioma and Rudy Gonzales)

It was also given the Prix Du Meilleur Film Engage au Service d’une Cause (Prize for the Best Committed Film Championing a Cause) at the 23^rd International Festival of Independent Films in Brussels, Belgium in 2001 for its sensitive yet realistic depiction of the plight of a juvenile delinquent on death row.

It was nominated for Golden Cairo Award in the 2001 Cairo International Film Festival.  It was shown and competed in other international film festivals.

Synopsis: An orphan raised among distant relatives in the slums of Manila, Sonny Corpus (Cogie Domingo) likes little more than hanging out with his buddies Celso, Jimmy, and Rodel. When Celso cons Sonny into participating in a robbery along with his friends, Jimmy and Rodel end up dead along with an old lady. Unable to prove his innocence of the crime (Celso pulled the trigger) and unable to prove his minor status, Sonny gets pinned with the crime and is sentenced to death. Sonny quickly learns the rules and hierarchies of the prison -- Mio is the boss who recruits Sonny as a pusher for his illicit smuggling business. His trusted henchman Gabino (Pen Medina) is quietly plotting a palace coup and tries to win Sonny over with gifts and favors. Yet when Sonny makes it clear that he's loyal to Mio, Gabino exacts an awful revenge. Later, Sonny is taken in by Lolo Sinat (Eddie Garcia), an aging gangster whom everyone in prison respects.

Proving the power of entertainment media, these three films successfully raised the consciousness of Filipino people regarding some societal ills and issues.  GMA Records and Home Video releases these “GMA Gems” to further extend social awareness locally and internationally.

 Release Date: March 2007

SRP: P 150