MEDIUM RARE
Jullie Y. Daza
Add two words to those two above and what do you get? A movie title that practically everyone in this country can sing. From Russia with Love was the second James Bond movie, produced in 1963, and though a parade of Bonds blonde and mostly not blonde have come and gone before our starstruck, espionage-thrilled eyes, the memory lingers. The song from the soundtrack of From Russia with Love was sung by Matt Monro, arguably the most popular and enduring of the series of 26 films (the 27th starring Daniel Craig to be shown next year, if the pandemic will allow.)
In the days of the Cold War, Russia was the “evil empire” nicknamed by US President Reagan. The Iron Curtain, as it was also called, was the twin of China’s Bamboo Curtain. Filipino activists -- leftists or communists or liberals or pinkies -- were the bane of President Marcos after he came to power in 1965. Marxists or Maoists, he blamed them for the communist insurgency that he needed to crush with Martial Law. The ideological back story may have contributed to the allure of James Bond, though the truth was that the great majority of 007 fans did not bother to distinguish between Trotsky and Mao, between Western propaganda and romanticized spy stories.
Suddenly it’s the 21st century and 007 is still sexy, licensed to stay young, not a day older than 44, the age Pierce Brosnan turned in his deadly toys to his producers. It’s 2020 and Russia’s in a race to manufacture the first COVID-19 vaccine for the world. Its Sputnik 5 has our President standing in front of the line for a shot, with nurse Honeylet’s permission. Filipino volunteers are said to be eager to join the clinical trials.
Aye, apparently they have no scientific prejudice against Russia and how Vladimir Putin convinced his daughter to join the Sputnik 5 trials. While my friends were glued to Korean dramas on Netflix, I was encouraging them to watch a Russian series, Sniffer, showing cities gleaming with handsome buildings and a technologically advanced police force. Is this Russia for real, or Putinesque propaganda?
If you had a choice, which vaccine would you trust, Russian or Chinese?