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Exploring the Dolphy Bakla: Queerness in Philippine Cinema

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The Palgrave Handbook of Asian Cinema

Abstract

This chapter explores Philippine cinema’s representations of the bakla, a local gendered identity that conflates ideas of male homosexuality and transgenderism. By examining the films of Dolphy, the chapter outlines tropes that have become associated with the bakla, including the conversion trope, wherein the bakla are forced to conform to traditional notions of masculinity. The chapter also identifies tensions between contemporary representations of the bakla as the masculine gay man and as the transgender woman in films—tensions that also exist within the wider Southeast Asian context. Looking at the bakla as the primary queer figure in Philippine cinema enables film audiences to examine more closely similar figures in other Asian cinemas: the kathoey of Thailand, the waria of Indonesia, and the mak-nyah of Malaysia.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. De La Salle University, Manila, Philippines

    Mikee N. Inton

Authors
  1. Mikee N. Inton
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong

    Aaron Han Joon Magnan-Park

  2. School of Humanities, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong

    Gina Marchetti

  3. University of Macau, Macau, Singapore

    See Kam Tan

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© 2018 The Author(s)

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Cite this chapter

Inton, M.N. (2018). Exploring the Dolphy Bakla: Queerness in Philippine Cinema. In: Magnan-Park, A., Marchetti, G., Tan, S. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Asian Cinema. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-349-95822-1_28

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