Writer and Director: Peterson Vargas
Edging into magic realism, Peterson Vargas’s Some Nights I Feel Like Walking begins as a tough and sexy examination of the friendship between four Filipino hustlers looking to turn tricks in Manila. When the socials don’t offer up any clients, they go old-school and cruise the X-rated movie theatre. Despite the boys’ need for cash, their lives appear exciting and free.
But when Ono meets new boy-on-the-block Zion, the film takes a darker turn. Zion, inexperienced and nervous, is clearly terrified about what could be his first foray into prostitution. He’s calmed by watching Ono, who appears to enjoy same-sex sex. He’s not just doing it for the money. Ono’s lack of shame encourages Zion to fully embrace hustler life.
The dangers of such an existence are revealed when another one of the boys, Ge, dies from a drug overdose. As he takes his last breath, he tells Zion that he wants to go home. The boys decide to take Ge’s body back to his village just outside the capital: An act of mourning, Antigone-style.
With all the action happening in a single night, the boys begin their pilgrimage. Loyalties are tested and queer utopias are glimpsed. Miguel Odron is incredible as Zion, his face full of wonder and fear that queer love is possible. Sometimes, the miracle is too sharp and visceral, and he turns his face away from Ono lying beside him. Zion looks so young, but he yearns for wisdom. And yet, out of all the boys, he’s the one who makes the right decisions.
Jomari Angeles is Ono who has, literally, forged the bonds between himself and his friends. He ensures the others are safe when they meet their clients, displayed most vividly when he runs through the parking lot searching for Ge. However, in contrast to Zion, he would happily surrender his knowledge of the ways of the streets for security. But for Zion, the streets are freedom.
Often shot through with pinks and blues, Vargas’s film is a celebration of youthful friendship, although the subject is nicely tempered with jealousies, distrust and the occasional bursts of machismo. The final long take when the boys reach their destination is devastating, but like Antigone, they do well by their brother.
Some Nights I Feel like Walking is screening at BFI Flare 2025 from 19-30 March.
