NHCP: Battle of San Juan Del Monte VR

By
Ed Geronia Jr.

Ver. 1.4 - 27JUN2018

(c) I AM CARDBOARD PHIL

EXT. BACKYARD AREA. UNDER A TREE SHADE. SITIO OF BALAKBAK,
MANDALUYONG, AUGUST 28, 1896. SCENE 1: BONIFACIO’S ARRIVAL
Even with the impending battle, Katipuneros are in high
spirits at the arrival of the Supremo Andres Bonifacio from
Marikina. Accompanying Bonifacio is his trusted aide and
confidante, Emilio Jacinto.
Gathered around Bonifacio are a dozen or so men who are all
eager to hear what the Katipunan Supremo has to say. He is
standing in front of a makeshift table where we can see a
hand-drawn map of San Juan and the surrounding area.

ANDRES BONIFACIO
Mga kapatid, bukas ay isang
mahalagang araw. Higit ang ating
bilang sa mga kalaban ngunit
kailangan pa rin nating manguha ng
mga sandata. Ano ang kasalukuyang
bilang ng ating mga armas, Kapatid
na Emilio?
(Brothers, tomorrow is a very
important day. We outnumber
the enemy but we still need to
gather any weapon we can.
What’s our current tally,
Brother Emilio?)
EMILIO JACINTO
Sa huling bilang ng ating Kapatid
na Genaro, mayroong tatlumpu’t
walong riple, pistola, at escopeta.
Mayroon tayong limangdaang katao at
pagsapit ng dilim, aabot tayo ng
isang libo sa aking tantiya.
(By Genaro’s last count, we
have around 38 rifles,
revolvers, and shotguns. We
have around 500 men now, and
by nightfall, we estimate it
will be a thousand.)

ANDRES BONIFACIO
Ibigay ang armas sa mga asintadong
bumaril. Huwag nating sayangin ang
mga bala. Kamusta ang iyong mga
tauhan, Commandante?
(Give the weapons to those who
can really use them well. We
need to make each bullet
count. How are your men,
Commandante?)

(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 2.

GENARO DELOS REYES

Pangulo, sila ay nabigyan ng mga
bolo, karit, at mga sibat. May
panglaban sila kahit papaano.
(Pangulo, we’ve also armed the
men with bolos, scythes, and
bamboo spears. They would have
a fighting chance at least.)
ANDRES BONIFACIO
Tibayan ang inyong loob, mga
kapatid. Hindi madali ang laban
ngunit tayo ay magtatagumpay.
(Be strong, brothers. The
fight will not be easy. But we
will prevail.)

EMILIO JACINTO
May inaasahan pa tayong parating
mula sa Hagdang Bato. Mula sa San
Pedro Makati ay mayroon pang isang
libong katao.

(We are expecting more men to join

us in Hagdang Bato. From San Pedro
Makati, there will be a thousand
more men.)

ANDRES BONIFACIO
(Looking intently at the map)
Lulusob tayo bukas ng hatinggabi.
Sasalakayin natin ang El Polvorin,
ang imbakan ng armas sa San Juan
del Monte.
(Looking intently at the map)
(We attack by tomorrow
midnight. We will seize El
Polvorin, the munitions depot
in San Juan del Monte.)

GENARO DELOS REYES

May sapat na armas sa doon para sa
ating mga sundalo.
(There’s enough weapons in
that place to arm our men.)

ANDRES BONIFACIO
Oras na makuha natin ang mga armas,
tayo ay tutungo papuntang Maynila.
(Once we have the weapons, we
shall make our way to Manila.)

(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 3.

EMILIO JACINTO
Sasabihan ko sa mga komandante sa
ibang bayan. Antayin nila ang ating
hudyat sa pagsimula ng paglusob.
Papuputukin natin ang ating kanyon
at paliliparin ang lobo.
(I’ll send word to the
commanders in other towns.
They will await for our signal
that our assault has begun. We
will fire our cannon and
release the signal balloons.)
ANDRES BONIFACIO
Ang araw ay sisikat sa mga nasa
tamang panig ng kasaysayan.
Magbabayad ang ating mga kalaban.
Para sa kalayaan!
(The sun will rise for those
on the right side of history.
Our enemies shall pay dearly.
For freedom!)

KATIPUNAN SOLDIERS
Mabuhay ang mga Anak ng Bayan!
Mabuhay ang Katagalugan!
(Long live the sons and
daughters of the Katipunan!
Long live the Tagalog nation!)

EXT. BACK OF A HOUSE NEAR EL POLVORIN, SAN JUAN. AUGUST 30,

1896. MORNING. SCENE 2: EL POLVORIN BATTLE

A small group of soldiers are going round the corner of one

house. They are on their way for the assault on El Polvorin,
a munitions depot in San Juan Del Monte.
The soldiers are led by Andres Bonifacio who has his pistol
out. As the group is emerging from the corner, they are met
with a volley of sniper fire.
ANDRES BONIFACIO
Dapa! Dapa!
(Take cover! Take cover!)

The troops take cover near a low wall. Bullets whiz by the
edge of the wall. Bonifacio has taken cover a few meters way
from them. Bonifacio takes a quick peek and signals that he
has spotted four riflemen from his vantage point. The
Katipuneros emerge from the cover and return fire. They
manage to hit one of defenders.

(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 4.

KATIPUNERO SOLDIER 1
Tinamaan natin ang isa. May tatlo
pang bumabaril.
(We got one. There’s three
more gunners.)

ANDRES BONIFACIO
Bantayan niyo ang inyong tagiliran.
Tanaw tayo ng mga fusilero sa El
Deposito.
(Watch your flanks. The
snipers from El Deposito can
see us.)
The defenders continue firing at the Katipuneros.
KATIPUNERO SOLDIER 2
Hindi na tayo makakarating sa El
Deposito
(We can’t go towards El
Deposito.)
Gunfire turns into artillery fire. There is a shower of dust
and debris near the Katipuneros.
ANDRES BONIFACIO
Huwag matinag, yuko lang. Habang
sila ay nagkakarga ng bala, abante!
(Stand your ground, keep
cover. Wait for them to
reload, then move forward.)
At the sound of another cannon fire, a few of the soldiers
panic and wildly discharge their weapons. From the second
floor of the houses, we hear an old woman barking orders at
the men.
OLD WOMAN
Mga sundalo! Dinig niyo ba ako?
Kita ko kung nasaan ang kalaban.
Makinig kayo sa akin. Wag kayong
magsiksikan. Tatamaan kayong lahat
ng kanyon. Kumalat kayo para
maikutan ang kalaban.
(Soldiers! Do you hear me? I
can see the enemy position
from where I am. Listen to me.
Don’t crowd together. You’ll
all get hit by the cannons.
Spread out so you can surround
the enemy.)

(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 5.

KATIPUNERO SOLDIER 1
(Shouting towards the old
woman)
Bueno. Gracias senyora!
ANDRES BONIFACIO
Sino ang kausap niyo?
(Who are you talking to?)

KATIPUNERO SOLDIER 1
Isang senyora na tanaw ang kalaban,
Pangulo. Aabante na ba tayo?
(A woman who can see where the
enemies are, Pangulo. Shall we
push forward?)

Another volley of enemy rifle fire and artillery. The entire

area gets covered in thick smoke.

EXT. SMOKING FIELD FARTHER OFF FROM EL DEPOSITO. AUGUST 30,

1896. SCENE 5: BATTLE OF SAN JUAN AFTERMATH
The field is littered with dead soldiers. There are one or
two who are severely wounded and they are crying for help.
Some Katipunera field nurses are attending to the wounded.
Andres Bonifacio approaches one of the wounded soldiers as
he is being attended to by a nurse. There are no visible
serious injuries on his limbs and body. He is possibly
suffering from internal injuries. Bonifacio half-kneels to
meet the soldier’s eye level.

ANDRES BONIFACIO
(To wounded soldier)
Ano ang nangyari dito, senyor?
(What has happened here,
senor?)

DYING SOLDIER
Ang mga sundalo ni Heneral
Echaluche...pinaputukan kami ng
kanyon mula sa El Deposito. Para
kaming dinaanan ng bagyo ng mga
Kastila.
(General Echaluche’s
forces...they fired their
cannons from El Deposito. The
Spanish troops charged here
like a typhoon.)

ANDRES BONIFACIO
Ilang sundalo natin ang nandito?
(How many soldiers were here?)

(CONTINUED)
CONTINUED: 6.

DYING SOLDIER
Umabot sa isang libong sundalo,
senyor. Marami ang nabihag, at
marami ang namatay. Ang iba ay
tumakas sa kagubatan.
(There were a thousand
soldiers here, senor. A lot of
them were captured, and a lot
of them died. Maybe hundreds.
The rest fled to the woods.)

As the soldier finishes his sentence, he begins to cough up

blood. The nurse tries a last ditch effort to help him.
ANDRES BONIFACIO
Magiting kang lumaban. Maari ka
nang magpahinga. Natalo tayo ng
kalaban dito sa San Juan ngunit
hindi sila mananalo sa lahat ng
distrito.
(You have fought well. The
enemy may have defeated us in
San Juan, but they can’t win
in all districts.)
The soldier breathes his last. The nurse closes the dead
soldier’s eyes. Bonifacio stands up, and takes a moment to
look around the area. And bows his head.