Creating a film where irony is the main ingredient and mocking the main purpose sounds like a very dangerous business in these ridiculously politically correct times. Carlo Francisco Manatad, who is mostly known for his editing work with directors like Khavn and Chito S. Rono, but has also been directing movies for more than a decade, manages to pull off this “dangerous” endeavour, which actually starts with the title.
Most of the short takes place in a gas station, where Jodilerks, a middle aged woman, and a young man are working the night shift. Jodilerks tries to sell bottles with gas on the side while smoking, but when that does not work, she and her colleague decide to get drunk. As expected in the particular hours, their customers are also drunk, and furthermore, weird, not willing to pay and even dangerous. When her colleague is knocked out due to their drinking, Jodilerks decides to do something radical to get some business in the gas station and pass her time.
The film starts in a style that initially seems as a kind of noir/horror, courtesy of the excellent cinematography by Lim Teck Siang and the overall visuals, but soon becomes evident that the main element here is humor in its various forms. Evidently, considering the story and particularly the finale, the title is quite ironic, but this approach actually extends to the whole narrative, which follows an episodic and occasionally somewhat surrealistic path. The customer who wants to pee, the dancing one, the two employees dancing drunk to death metal (a wink to “Aggretsuko” or “Sexy Durga” maybe?) and the ambulance (?) all point towards this direction, and it is this approach that makes the film quite entertaining.
At the same time, Manatad pays a tribute to all the people who work nightshifts and the issues they have to face dealing with drunks and boredom, in an element that adds some depth to the film.
Another thing the viewer will immediately see is the quality of the production, as expressed by both image and sound (with the ending credits providing another highlight), while Lee Chatametikool’s editing induces the movie with a very fitting, quite fast pace, through frequent cuts.
Angeli Bayani is excellent as always in the titular role, highlighting her boredom, annoyance and eventual paranoia in the best fashion.
“Jodilerks Dela Cruz, Employee of the Month” is an impressive short, which highlights Manatad’s technical prowess while offering context and entertainment, and is an overall idea that definitely deserves a feature effort.
