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First in an announced trilogy, this biographical drama from the Philippines looks back at the life of multi-lingual ophthalmologist Jose Rizal, who wrote against colonial rule and Catholic Church. The foreign-educated Rizal became a key figure in Philippine's independence from Spain. Exiled to the remote village of Dapitan in 1892, Rizal (Albert Martinez) finds Father Obach (Chris Micelena) wants him to renounce his heretical statements. Eurasian orphan Josephine Bracken (Amanda Page) arrives on the island, and there is no Church blessing when she and Rizal marry. Shown at the 1997 Toronto Film Festival.