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Ricky Lee's Films

Ricky Lee has written more than 180 produced film scripts, earning him more than 80 trophies from award-giving bodies, including

life achievement awards.

1973

DRAGNET (co-writer, uncredited)

An undercover police officer runs up against a powerful drug lord who runs an opium lab. He tries to convince a Chinese martial arts expert to help him.

1976

ITIM
(co-writer, uncredited)

During a return to his provincial home, a young man gets involved with a woman who is ultimately possessed by her sister's spirit, paving the way to revealing the painful truth about her unsolved disappearance.

1979

PABONGGAHAN
(a full-length documentary on Pinoy Rock)

JAGUAR (co-writer)

Kuwento ng isang security guard (Phillip Salvador) na napadikit sa mga mayayaman, at natutunan na ang mayayaman ay iba talaga sa mga mahihirap.

1980

MISS X

BRUTAL

This true-to-life film exposes the exploitation of a Filipina who is illegally recruited to work in a red light district in Amsterdam.

Imbestigasyon ng isang peministang writer (Charo Santos) sa pagpatay ng isang babae (Amy Austria) sa kanyang asawa  at mga kabarkada nito (Jay Ilagan). Di nagtagal ay makikita kung papaanong sangkot din ang best friend ni Amy na si Gina Alajar, at ang isyu ng mababang pagtingin sa kababaihan sa ating lipunan.

MANILA BY NIGHT (consultant)

Explicitly unravels the hidden nightlife of ordinary people in Manila where lovers’ and families’ conflicts are radically pitted against each other as they live in the streets rampant with drugs and prostitution.

1981

CARNIVAL QUEEN

SALOME

Tatlong bersyon ng kuwento tungkol sa isang babae  (Gina Alajar) na parang sirenang nagdadala ng tukso, at kamatayan, sa isang fishing village.

Shot on location during the Rio 
de Janeiro Festival in Brazil. 

PLAYGIRL

A daughter unwittingly follows the path that her mother, a former prostitute, has dreaded, despite the latter's attempts to protect her child from falling into the trap of the flesh trade.

1982

PX

An unlikely love triangle involving a Filipina hooker, a Filipino gun-for-hire, and an American serviceman adds fire and passion to the equally-volatile tale of crime and corruption inside an American military base in Angeles City in Pampanga.

ITO BA ANG ATING MGA ANAK?

RELASYON (co-writer)

The film probes into the causes of teen-age delinquency and parental responsibility in this relatively unknown work by Ishmael Bernal.

Kuwento ng isang kerida (Vilma Santos), at ang kanyang pakikipagtunggali upang makakuha ng respeto at pagmamahal sa isang mundong mababa ang tingin sa mga kagaya niya.

CAIN AT ABEL

Inspired by the Biblical story of two brothers, Christopher de Leon and Phillip Salvador respectively played the roles of Ellis and Lorenzo, the two brothers and sons of Nyora Pina whose bitter conflict escalates into a violence that engulfs the entire town.

HIMALA

Coinciding with a total eclipse when people believe that the world is ending, Elsa witnesses an apparition of the Virgin Mary on top of the hill where as an infant she was found and adopted by Saling.

HAPLOS

​A man returns to his hometown where he becomes involved with two women: one he has known since his childhood and the other one, a mysterious woman he met in the town cemetery while visiting the grave of his departed mother.

MORAL

Kuwento ng apat na magkakaibigang babae na nagpapakita ng mga nagbabagong kamalayan sa pagtingin ng lipunan sa babae.

1983

KARNAL

Isang modernong babae, (Cecille Castillo) ang dinala ng kanyang asawa (Phillip Salvador) sa kanilang baryo noong 1930’s. Habang ipinakikita ng kuwento ang patriyarkal na pagtingin ng mga kalalakihan sa mga kababaihan ay unti-unting nagdadala ng trahedya ang pagdating na ito ni Cecille, at mababago ang buhay nilang lahat.

1984

GABI KUNG SUMIKAT ANG ARAW

The members of a cursed mysterious clan look old at daytime and regain their youthful looks after sundown.

ALYAS BABY TSINA

SINNER OR SAINT

Baby Tsina, infamous in the underworld, is sent to prison for murder. Seven years later, she receives justice and freedom after the Supreme Court declares she is innocent.

A restless young woman fails as a wife and mother, leaves her family for the city, and gets involved with a number of men. Frustrated in finding a satisfactory relationship, she heads back home but death overtakes her.

BUKAS MAY PANGARAP

​A peasant couple sell all their worldly possessions so that the husband can take advantage of an overseas job offer. Victimized by illegal recruitment, he is deported back to the country for trumped-up robbery charges and returns home. The tragedy is bound to bring his marriage and family life to vast ruin.

1985

WHITE SLAVERY

Three poor girls from the provinces of the Philippines are lured to the big city. In Manila they are tricked to work in the sex trade.

BOMBA ARIENDA

True-to-life story of popular, controversial radio commentator Roger Arienda, jailed for his anti-government harangues and activities.

1986

PRIVATE SHOW

A young woman falls into the lower depths when she is trapped in the shameless life of a torera, a performer in a live sex show.

NASAAN KA NANG KAILANGAN KITA?

A wife becomes bitter after her husband leaves her to raise their two daughters by herself.

FLESH AVENUE

A warped woman, herself a victim of oppression and dehumanization, throws her own daughter into the flesh trade which she personally operates. 

SILIP

​A young woman chooses celibacy, turns to religion, and demonizes men in order to control her intense sexual desire. Her sister suddenly visits her seaside village, which opens many old wounds and leads to tragedies.

THE RAPE OF VIRGINIA P. (co-writer)

Woman of simple means wins the heart of a rich young man over two unbelieving rich rivals who prove to be bad losers.

1987

PAANO KUNG WALA KA NA?

OLONGAPO, THE GREAT AMERICAN DREAM

The musty smell of a dingy hostess bar in Olongapo is an unlikely and dangerous place for dreams to come true.

A wife finally realises that there is life after her separation from her husband, and instead devotes her time and attention to their daughter, who gives birth out of wedlock.

REMEMBER ME, MAMA

When her marriage turns sour, a wife leaves her children in the custody of her husband, who then sues her for desertion with help from a female lawyer who subsequently becomes his lover.

1988

SANDAKOT NA BALA

KUMANDER DANTE

BIRDS OF PREY (co-writer)

This action-drama depicts the political development of one of the most celebrated leaders of the new people's army. "ka dante" or bernabe buscayno, who availed of the Aquino government’s political amnesty program.

A photojournalist accompanies an
actress to the Philippines to find her
daughter when her husband is killed
by military police. Starring Gina Alajar,
Susan Africa. Directed by Gil Portes. 

BABAING HAMPASLUPA

​An epic melodrama--Born and raised in poverty, an ambitious young woman vows to rise above her origins.

1989

ANG BUKAS AY AKIN

An ambitious young man steps beyond the bounds of propriety and fair play as he pursues his personal goal and material prosperity.

MACHO DANCER (co-writer)

A provocative film that explores the lives of teenage male prostitutes fighting to survive in Manila’s seamy red-light district.

SA KUKO NG AGILA

Depicts the struggle of a mini-bus driver in Olongapo between principle and practicality, a battle of healthy past and promising future and the quest for freedom and nationalism in the midst of the US colonisation.

BIHAGIN ANG DALAGANG ITO (co-writer)

Kakai, an impoverished cross eyed young woman, finds herself taken in by a rich matriarch and foretold to be married to the matriarch's snobbish son by a mysterious hermit.

DINO DINERO (co-writer)

​Dino dreams of becoming rich and works hard to earn money by making and selling the best ice cream in town. His rich neighbour does everything he can to steal his recipe.

1990

MUNDO MAN AY MAGUNAW

A devoted mother goes to jail for the sake of her children.

DYESEBEL

NAGSIMULA SA PUSO

Remake ng kuwento ng sirena (Alice Dixson) na nakatagpo ng kaligayahan sa mundo ng mga mortal.

When love and passion turn into obsession: A May-December affair develops between a mature schoolteacher and her young student.

GUMAPANG KA SA LUSAK

Isang babae (Dina Bonnevie) na naging kabit ng pulitiko (Eddie Garcia) at inapi ng isang mala-Imeldang karakter (Charo Santos) ang utni-unting matututong bumalikwas at lumaban.

HINDI LARUAN ANG PUSO

Two woman vie for the love of one man.

HAHAMAKIN LAHAT

HOT SUMMER

A Mayor (Gerald) and his wife (Lucinda), play dirty power games with other people's lives and each other.

A plot of love, lust, lies and revenge intertwine in one hot summer where multiple fates collide.

LUMABAN KA, SAGOT KITA SA DIYOS.

Linette (Cherry Pie) is an active student leader. She's frustrated that her boyfriend Dado (Julio) is apathetic towards the situation. But, this will soon change.

BEAUTIFUL GIRL (co-writer)

ANDREA, PAANO BA ANG MAGING ISANG INA?

Rebelde si Nora Aunor na nagbilin ng anak kay Gina Alajar. Ang kanilang pag-aagawan sa bata ay malalagay sa konteksto ng sosyo-politikal na kondisyon ng bansa, at matututunan nila na sa isang lipunang kagaya ng ginagalawan nila ay imposible ang maging ina hanggat ang katarungan ay di nakakamtan ng mga mamamayan.

A young man falls in love with a woman, but he doesn't realize that she is really his older brother's girlfriend.

1991

OCA: MURU-AMI

A short film on young muru-amis directed by Lino Brocka for a  six-film anthology for UNICEF depicting childhood horrors around the world. Together with Jean-Luc Godard and others. 

KAPAG NAGHALO ANG LANGIT AT LUPA

ISABEL AQUINO:
I WANT TO LIVE

ISANG GABI, TATLONG BABAE (Episode 2)

Based on the life story of Isabel Aquino.

PAKASALAN MO AKO

A woman asks his man to marry her for she is with child but the man is noncommittal. To save her reputation, she agrees to marry another man, who turns out to be a psychopath.

UBOS NA ANG LUHA KO

HINUKAY KO NA ANG LIBINGAN MO

A poor girl named Mona was forced to work as a dancer in a night club and the life she led as a consequence of her work.

Twins Anton and Elmo form an uneasy truce to take down big time smuggler Laroza and his henchmen.

MONGOLIAN BARBECUE THE MOVIE (co-writer)

A Mongolian man telling a story about one of his adventures to a group of children in a land named Lawang-Lawa 1,500 years ago before the presidency of Corazon Aquino.

ANG TOTOONG BUHAY NI PACITA M.

ANAK NG DAGAT

CLASS OF '91

DISGRASYADA

THE SECRETS OF PURA

A mother attempts to pull the plug of her comatose daughter and as a result, she is being sued by her aristocratic mother-in-law.

Alma plays a girl from Polangui, Albay who goes to Manila in search of her dream. She falls into the wrong hands and ends up a prostitute, until she meets a rich man who becomes instrumental in the realisation of all her dreams.

1992

LUCIA
(a full-length film for the British Broadcasting Corporation)

A compelling dramatic feature from the Philippines which starts off at dawn in a fishing village in Bataan after a tanker has spilled oil in the night. The film chronicles the efforts of Lucia and her family to stay in the village. But the social forces at play are too strong and Lucia is powerless.

NARITO ANG PUSO KO

APOY SA PUSO

A woman who regained her veterinarian lover after their son was accidentally shot by the son of a prominent politician must do her best to regain the life of their comatose son to bring back the old happy life they once had.

This is a love story as torrid and as passionate as a smouldering volcano.

STELLA MAGTANGGOL

​Femme fatale causing death to anyone she ever crossed paths with.

KAMAY NI CAIN (co-writer)

An ambitious young man steps beyond the bounds of propriety and fair play as he pursues his personal goal and material prosperity.

TAKBO TALON TILI!
(episode 2)

​Debora longingly believes that at midnight she will see the face of her future husband in a 100 year old mirror. Curious, she chants to a mirror and sees Fidel. Fidel was cursed and trapped in the mirror by the witch whose daughter committed suicide because of Fidel's infidelity (or so it seems...).

SA AKING PUSO

Depicts the struggle of a mini-bus driver in Olongapo between principle and practicality, a battle of healthy past and promising future and the quest for freedom and nationalism in the midst of the US colonisation.

1993

DAHIL MAHAL KITA (The Dolzura Cortez Story)

Dolzura Cortez has had several men in her life. One returns as an AIDS researcher and Dolzura is to be his unwitting subject. He encourages her to come out into the public so that she can dispel the social stigma that comes with the disease.

AKO ANG KATARUNGAN

HANGGANG SAAN, HANGGANG KAILAN?

​After their father's death, heiress Blanca ejects her illegitimate sisters Esther and Jocelyn from her vast hacienda and even deprives them of what is rightfully theirs. A few years later, hardworking, determined Esther returns, ready to turn the tables on her wicked sister.

THE MELANIE MARQUEZ STORY

​This melodrama is a true-confession story of one of the country's top models and international - beauty - title holders, who struggles to rise above her deprived childhood and unfortunate relationships.

INAY

​A happy marriage goes wrong when the husband is accused of raping his stepdaughter who eventually died. The wife, feeling hopeless from the courts, takes justice into her own hands.

KUNG KAILANGAN MO AKO (co-writer)

Two people whose paths are unlikely to cross. She's (Sharon Cuneta) a rich balikbayan who has returned home to do business; he's (Rudy Fernandez) a just released ex-convict who's trying to build a new life. But fate does work in strange ways.

MEMORIES OF OLD MANILA (short)

​A short, syncretic vision of a city that was once the envy of the Orient but has now sunk into despair - Manila.

1994

BAWAL NA GAMOT (co-writer)

MINSAN LANG KITANG IIBIGIN

The film is named after the hit song of Willy Garte and promotes the anti-drug campaign.

LORETTA

A movie about Loretta and her struggles as a woman.

Star Cinema's 1994 classic tells of how the close friendship between Terry (Maricel Soriano) and Melissa (Zsa Zsa Padilla) is tested when Melissa falls in love with Terry's husband Dave (Gabby Concepcion).

FOREVER

PANGAKO NG KAHAPON

Isabel (Mikee) runs away from her family upon knowing she will be forced to marry Albert (Tonton), the family's business associate whom she does not love. She moves to Manila and works as a waitress under her new identity. There, she meets and falls in love with Chito (Aga), a happy-go-lucky person.

Three sisters who are the daughters of a powerful landlord fight for ambition, power, love, success, and money.

SEPARADA

Buhay ng isang separada (Maricel Soriano) at kung papanong binago niya ang pagtingin ng lipunan sa kanya.

1995

IPAGLABAN MO: THE MOVIE

The melding together of two separate stories that share a similar premise - each detail the account of a young Filipino woman who becomes a victim of sexual violence and takes her attacker to court.

MINSAN MAY PANGARAP (The Guce Family Story)

THE FLOR CONTEMPLACION STORY (co-writer)

A migrant couple in New York is wrongfully accused of molesting their children. Their fight for justice exposes the prejudices and discrimination suffered by Filipinos overseas and the shattering of the myth of the American dream harbored by Filipino expatriates in search of greener pastures.

A Filipino domestic helper is accused of murdering her fellow domestic helper, and her employer's son in singapore.

MANGARAP KA (co-writer)

Nonoy and Jenny are childhood friends who move to the city to pursue a college education. Personalities change, but will their young love be able to stand the test of time?

SIBAK: MIDNIGHT DANCERS

Three young and good-looking brothers live with and support their parents in Manila; they dance at the male Club Exotica and work as "call boys." Joel has a wife and child; he and Dennis are saving money to buy back lost family land. Sonny has dropped out of university and sees dancing as a way to make money for now. When their nanay takes in a homeless youth who is not what he appears to be, a chain of events is set in motion that brings tragedy. 

TAGOS SA LAMAN

OKEY SI MA'AM

Three high school students each has their own personal dilemmas that affected their lives and education. Ms. Sonia Marasigan (Alice Dixson), with her unorthodox way of teaching became the student's model, mentor, counselor and friend.

PATAYIN SA SINDAK SI BARBARA

MULING UMAWIT ANG PUSO

This is the story of a popular singer-actress who went into seclusion after the traumatic experience of watching her pregnant sister die in the wake of a stampede of her fans. 

SAAN AKO NAGKAMALI

ASERO

Two young friends grow up to lead separate and opposite lives: one becomes a hardened criminal, the other a priest.

1996

MAY NAGMAMAHAL SA IYO (co-writer)

Isang inang (Lorna Tolentino) naghahanap sa kanyang anak ang makakatagpo at magmamahal ng ibang bata. At matututo na ang pagmamahal ay hindi sa dugo lamang.

HABANG MAY BUHAY

HANGGA'T MAY HININGA

Pia (Donna Cruz), the only daughter of Zeny, found herself in the same predicament as her mother did years ago. During that time, Zeny gave up her true love to marry a man who compromised her and whom her parents preferred.

SA AKING MGA KAMAY
(co-writer)

A handsome serial killer is on the loose, preying on unfaithful wives... and his next victim might just be the wife of the investigator of his case. 

UTOL (co-writer)

MADRASTA (co-writer)

LAHAR

Kuwento sa punto-de-bista ng isang madrasta (Sharon Cuneta), at kung paano sa wakas ay ipinaglaban niya ang kanyang katayuan sa buhay. 

A story of survival and hope amidst devastation, told with both humour and honesty. Based on true events. Set in tropical Pampanga, near Manila, Lahar chronicles the destruction of Mount Pinatubo's volcanic eruption as lava buried entire towns. 

THE SARAH BALABAGAN STORY

Sarah Balabagan, an OFW who was sentenced to death in the United Arab Emirates for killing her employer who was attempting to rape her.

ITATAYA KO ANG BUHAY KO (co-writer)

NIGHTS OF SERAFINA
(co-writer)

Anton, a wealthy logger marries Serafina, a woman from the slums of Manila. They move to Anton's house on a tropical island where they live with Anton's domineering and disapproving mother. 

1997

SELOSA

A story about love, jealousy and obsession. Guzman is the boyfriend who believes that the best way to keep his woman's love is to make her jealous.

CALVENTO FILES THE MOVIE

HANGGANG KAILAN KITA MAMAHALIN (co-writer)

MALIKOT NA MUNDO

Two stories where a mother investigates the death of her daughter and seeks justice but finds out that her daughter’s killers might be of someone close to them, and a wife who is troubled by the presence of a former suitor.

Mike and Lisa Reyes lived a happy life with a great family until one day the promotions at the company they both worked for chose Lisa instead of Mike to be promoted. Because of this incident, their lives changed when Mike's pride overcame him, which caused both problems at work as well as in the family.

MAPUSOK

KADRE

IPAGLABAN MO II

Starring Cesar Montano, Charlene
Gonzales, Anjanette Abayari, Bembol
Roco. Directed by Joel Lamangan. 

This second feature film based on the popular television series features two true legal cases. The first is of a nanny accused of kidnapping the child in her care, and the second is about how a rich family tries to cover up the murder of a poor man.

GOODBYE AMERICA
(co-writer)

In 1992 the US Navy closed its base at Subic Bay. A trio of Navy SEALS are involved with island women. Hawk, an idealist, the amiable Bladon who is deeply in love with a prostitute, and the increasingly mentally unbalanced Stryzack.

NBI: The Mariano Mizon Story

Wala Ka Nang Puwang sa Mundo (co-writer)

Mariano Mison, an agent known for his dedication and integrity, leads him to earning the NBI's director post. When the Vizconde family is shockingly massacred, he struggles against all odds to investigate the murders and find the culprit.

After many years of imprisonment, Miguel (Ronnie Ricketts) is finally freed. On the day of his liberation, Miguel promises himself a clean and honest life to win back the family he has lost during his incarceration. However, nobody wants to take in an ex-convict, his steadfast resolution finally breaks, and to find urgent money Miguel joins his former partner Roy (Chuck Perez) in his latest venture. 

1998

CURACHA

Kuwento ng isang torera (Rosanna Roces) noong panahon ng coup noong 1990’s.

MIGUEL/MICHELLE

Miguel, a young trans woman from Quezon province, leaves the Philippines for the U.S. After seven years, she returns home, and her family discovers she had a gender affirmation operation and is now Michelle. She declares she will stay until her family accepts her. 

MAGANDANG HATINGGABI

Teenagers experience a series of chilling events when they take a break from their road trip. Soon, they meet a heavily deformed man who tells them three hair-raising horror stories.

PUSONG MAMON (co-writer)

Annie tries her hardest to seduce uninterested co-worker Ron and after one late, drunken office party she manages to get him in bed. After learning she's pregnant, Annie forces her way into Ron's life further, despite her discovery that Ron lives with his boyfriend Nick. 

JOSE RIZAL (co-writer)

Pagsasadula ng buhay ni Jose Rizal (Cesar Montano). mula pagkabata hanggang sa pagkamatay niya. 

1999

SIDHI

Ana (Nora Aunor) is a mute woman living in a remote mountain area with her father Badong (Ray Ventura), who is sick and searching for a man to marry his daughter. He finds Michael (Albert Martinez), a man who expresses interest to wed Ana because of the land he could inherit from her father. In the absence of her traveling husband, Ana meets Mayang (Glydel Mercado) with whom she forms a great friendship. Then she discovers that Mayang is also married to Michael.

BURLESK KING

The son of an abusive American father and a Filipina mother, Harry escapes to Manila with vengeance on his mind. After finding work as a Macho Dancer in the city's gay clubs, Harry creates a nurturing circle of friends and finds the strength to confront the family he left behind.

MURU-AMI (co-writer)

Buhay ng isang makasariling pinuno ng mga barkong nagpapatrabaho sa mga muru-ami, at unti-unting pagkamulat niya hanggang sa makatagpo siya ng tinatawag na redemption.

BULAKLAK NG MAYNILA

Maestro Fredo, a tyrant captain, fixates to claim the treasures of the sea--no matter what, in whatever diabolical technique, for as long as he profits. He employs dozens of men, mostly children, in his dangerous expeditions. Conditions aboard the ships are oppressive. He blames the sea for claiming the lives of his family and he exacts revenge by plundering its depths.

Di Puwedeng Hindi Puwede
(co-writer)

Carding is tricked by Kristine into driving a get-away car in a hold-up, but is mistaken by the police and arrested.

2000

LABS KITA…OKEY KA LANG?

Ned and Bujoy's longtime friendship blossoms into love when they start to date other people.