Kontrabida 101

Aside from hero/heroine which is the main character of the story and his or her love interest, of course, one of the most important and unforgettable element of a series or movie, is the villain, antagonist or kontrabidas. Whether in koreanovelas, telenovelas, movies and your favorite Pinoy soap operas, kontrabidas are equally important as the hero/heroine. They make the life of the hero/heroine miserable with their treacherous plots, their characters and eventually, screen presence. Audiences usually love to hate these kontrabidas and at the same time, will be more pitiful to the hero/heroine. As one blogger quotes, (hope this is not plagiarizing) "A good villain can save a bad movie. A great villain can elevate a weak film. A great villain in a great movie is matchless cinema history."

There are lots of good names in both Philippine cinemas and television that usually played as kontrabida. Some of them, in males, were Pacquito Diaz , John Regala and Johnny Delgado. In females, there is Bella Flores, Gladys Reyes, Jean Garcia, Cherie Gil and lot more.

Kontrabidas are characters that usually treats the hero/heroine miserably. They do it because the hero/heroine gets in the way of what they want i.e. love interest, wealth and family fortune, fame, power or a simple misunderstanding. They also do it out of revenge against the family of the hero/heroine or to the hero/heroine. The bottom line is that these characters also has a back story and they do things also with a purpose.

So what are the criteria to be a good kontrabida?

1. Must show anger and jealousy
2. Must be wiser than the hero/heroine
3. Or also, must be richer than the hero/heroine
4. Usually, must be spoil brat, arrogant etc. born with silver platter and also "maarte" to be convincing
5. Must be ready to do treacherous plots  from simple things to humiliate the main character to planting bombs.Must know how to slap (with precision and proper technique), even know how to use a gun
6. Must have a rich vocabulary  to give the best unforgettable quote in the end, and must be in English. But if in action films, must be in Tagalog.

Watch this video from Benchingko on how to be an effective kontrabida:

As usual, in the end, kontrabidas will reap what they sow. Oftentimes, they will meet the consequences of their actions in a tragic way. Audiences will just love it. There are some though that would ask forgiveness to the hero/heroine and will live a new life by either staying or going out of the country (usually going to the US). 

Cinemas and movies may not be good if there is no kontrabida in the film. Without villains, there is no hero/heroine and there is no conflict.