Maximo Oliveros, or “Maxi”, is a 12-year-old gay boy who lives in a neighborhood with his father and two older brothers. Despite his young age, Maxi is already open about his sexuality and has been fortunate to be accepted by his own family. He took responsibility for female roles in their household – cooking, doing laundry, sewing old clothes, etc., which is not likely for children his age. Like him, I also started taking on these kinds of responsibilities in our house from a very young age, the only difference is that I am blessed to take them on with convenience. But having to live below the poverty line, Maxi would have to face his difficulties. One of them is that he lives with criminals. His father sells phones stolen by his brother, Kuya Bogs, and his older brother, Kuya Boy, eventually becomes a murderer midway through the film. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay But despite everything, Maxi's family surrounded him with a lot of love and care. This probably caused him to do the same. He takes care of the people he loves, taking the place of his deceased mother. He also shows compassion, notably towards Victor, a new police officer in their town, for whom he had developed a crush. His compassion conflicts with his loyalty to his family, now that he's involved with both parties. One thing I love about him is that he develops a sense of mindfulness; he is thrown into a world full of harsh realities and he begins to question whether what he sees is good or bad. Poverty, which underlies these harsh realities, is evident throughout the film. This is what makes a person think that crime is the only solution to last a day. There was this scene where Paco, his father, wouldn't want to risk his health working in a factory, so he insists Maximo says it's their life. Another sign of poverty is that Maximo is deprived of education. He also said that when he grew up, he would just sell DVDs, not knowing that they were pirated. His father appears to be the head of a union and has connections with corrupt police officers. Victor calls them “mga pulis na malalaki ang tiyan,” meaning that these police officers tolerate illegal activities as long as they benefit from them. There was also a case where a police officer was involved in illegal gambling, he bet on “hueteng”. A new leader was appointed to their district and it took its toll. At the same time, Victor swept the streets of crime, thus also killing Maximo's father. This caused the siblings to start a new life, leaving behind their theft and eventually sending Maximo to school. Another one of these issues is that although Maximo's sexuality was embraced inside his home, there was an instance where he was harassed by teenagers while walking home. He was also mocked by the police when he entered their police station. This symbolizes that during this time; homosexuals are considered monsters and are not welcome in our society. One character I like is Kuya Bogs, because of his overprotectiveness towards Maximo. He was closer to him than their older brother, Kuya Boy. He was also supportive and was there when Maximo needed his comfort. One character I didn't like was Kuya Boy. His recklessness landed his brother in prison, and he didn't even admit it. There is also a passage in the film where Maximo says that after his mother died, Kuya Boy felt "lazy" to take care of himself. But at the end of the movie, it was revealed that Kuya Boy just isn't that showy..