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“it’s a wholly cinematic, sensory experience, its straight-ahead reportage electrified by glaring streetlights and a panicked urban wall of sound; it would make a handsome companion piece to Filipino auteur Brillante Mendoza’s recent “Alpha, the Right to Kill,” a fictionalised Duterte-era action film that aimed for grainy docu-realism as much as Jones and Sarbil’s film trades in more sleekly immersive atmospherics.”
“A riveting account of the consequences of unfettered demagoguery”
“Shot like a Hollywood thriller, this visceral exposé lays bare the deadly heart of darkness behind Philippine leader Rodrigo Duterte’s single-minded war on drugs.”
“Shot with the stark precision and chiaroscuro tones of a Michael Mann film, James Jones and Olivier Sarbil’s On The President’s Orders would be one of the most harrowing escapist thrillers of the year if it weren’t for the sombre realisation that the horror captured is entirely, apocalyptically real.”
“A shockingly alarming investigation produced with the sensibilities of a social realist drama ”
ON THE PRESIDENT’S ORDERS
The searing story of President Duterte's bloody campaign against drug dealers and addicts in the Philippines, told with unprecedented and intimate access to both sides of the war - the Manila police, and an ordinary family from the slum. Shot in the style of a thriller, this observational film combines the look and feel of a narrative feature film with a real life revelatory journalistic investigation into a campaign of killings. The film uncovers a murky world where crime, drugs and politics meet in a deathly embrace - and reveal that although the police have been publicly ordered to stop extra-judicial killings, the deaths continue.
In 2019, the film was used as evidence by the International Criminal Court (ICC) as part of its ongoing investigation into the government-sanctioned killings. Deadline Article
WATCH THE FESTIVAL VERSION
AWARDS
- Emmy® Award for Outstanding Current Affairs documentary (Nominee)
- F:ACT Award at the CPH-DOX International Film Festival (Nominee)
- Royal Television Society for Photography in Factual & Non Drama (Winner)
Judges: “Every bit of the photography is beautifully and brilliantly constructed. The framing and lighting was extraordinary giving a cinematic effect that completely drew the viewer into a haunting, sinister and menacing world. It is a bold, brave and masterful use of the lens.”
- Best UK feature at the Raindance Film Festival (Winner)
- Special Prize at Human Doc Film Festival (Winner)
- Finalist Rory Peck Sony Impact Award (Nominee)
REVIEWS
-POV
CREDITS
Director and Cinematographer: Olivier Sarbil
Director and Producer: James Jones
Producers: Dan Edge, Raney Aronson-Rath
Editor: Michael Harte
Production Manager: Philippa Lacey
Original Score: Uno Helmersson
