Dead Sure | |
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![]() Film poster | |
Original title | Segurista |
Directed by | Tikoy Aguiluz |
Screenplay by |
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Story by |
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Produced by | Eric Cuatico |
Starring | Michelle Aldana |
Cinematography | Jun Dalawis |
Edited by |
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Music by | Jessie Lasaten |
Production company | |
Distributed by | Neo Films |
Release date |
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Running time | 111 minutes |
Country | Philippines |
Language | Filipino |
Segurista (International title: Dead Sure) is a 1996 Philippine neo-noir drama film directed by Tikoy Aguiluz. The film was co-written by Aguiluz, Jose Lacaba, and Amado Lacuesta and stars Michelle Aldana as the title role. [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] Segurista was screened at the Toronto International Film Festival and the Singapore International Film Festival. [8] In its home market, the MTRCB did not approve this motion picture for public viewing, "X-rated", [9] but later approved it with cuts for Philippine theaters. [10]
By day, Karen Fernandez (Michelle Aldana) is a sales agent for an insurance company. She constantly meets sales targets set by her company and is considered as their top agent. By night, she covertly works as a guest relations officer (GRO), which she uses to draw her daytime clients to buy into her insurance product. All of her activities day and night are for one reason: securing the future of her family. Amidst the temptation of falling in love with her clients, Karen is focused on working hard for the money.
A tragedy occurs when a night of having fun went wrong. Resisting the advances of her friend's lover, she flees by riding a taxi. But the taxi driver himself had other plans as he decides to bring Karen to a lahar-infested area and satisfy his lust on her before killing her off. Her death served as a catalyst for change as her beneficiaries finally receive the fruits of her labor. [11]
Dead Sure won seven awards in the 21st Gawad Urian Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, [12] Best Supporting Actor — Albert Martinez [13] — Best Screenplay and Best Editing — Edgardo “Boy” Viñarao and Mirana Medina-Bhunjun. [8]
The film was selected as the Philippines entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 69th Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee. [14] [15]
When, at the end of the decade, eleven Filipino film critics rated the best films of the '90s for the Philippine Daily Inquirer, Segurista was ranked second. [10]
Segurista has been cited in scholarly works on Risk Management, Game theory [16] and CO2 utilization in products in Small Island Developing States. [17]
Jema Pamintuan of Ateneo de Manila University, commented on how Segurista portrays, against a background of increasing female participation in the Philippine economy, the application of game-theoretic and probabilistic concepts for the Filipina struggling to manage the risk she faces in an economy characterized by a fluctuating economic and socio-political environment. [16]
Rated B by the Film Ratings Board. Strictly for adults only!