Follow TV Tropes

Following

Context Creator / FernandoPoeJr

Go To

1[[quoteright:320:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fpj20190820.jpg]]
2[[caption-width-right:320:Long Live [[RedBaron Da King]].]]
3
4Fernando Poe, Jr. (Born Ronald Allan Kelley Poe; August 20, 1939 - December 14, 2004) was a [[FilipinoMedia Filipino actor, director, screenwriter, producer, singer, and attempted politician]]. He was dubbed [[RedBaron The King of Philippine Cinema]] and more colloquially, Da King or FPJ.[[note]]Close friends called him Ronnie, in reference to his real name.[[/note]] In the annals of Filipino cinema he is considered the country's answer to Creator/JohnWayne and Music/ElvisPresley, though his long repitoire of [[Main/ActionGenre action movies]] might very well make him a mix of Creator/ClintEastwood, Creator/CharlesBronson, Creator/LeeMarvin, Creator/ArnoldSchwarzenegger, Creator/SylvesterStallone, Creator/BruceWillis, Creator/ChuckNorris, Creator/BurtReynolds, Creator/TomSelleck, Creator/KurtRussell, and Creator/DavidHasselhoff.
5
6FPJ's career began in 1955 after the passing of his father, Fernando Poe, Sr. from rabies during production of ones of his movies, while the younger Poe was in junior high. Dropping out of school, he got his first acting role in ''Anak ng Palaris'' (''Child of Palaris''), before becoming a star in the [[LongRunner long-running]] youth comedy series ''Lo' Waist Gang''. The series was a massive success, having kickstarted the popularity of the titular pants. However it was 1961's ''Markado'' (''Marked'') a {{Swashbuckler}} adventure that crowned him as "Da King", as it was his first venture as an independent producer with his own studio, FPJ Productions. He spent the rest of the 60s in a series of urban dramas in the vein of ''Theatre/AStreetcarNamedDesire'' and more notably, a string of [[TheWestern Filipino westerns]], along with a few war movies, some of which were made with American companies. In 1968, Da King found his Queen when [[SuperCouple he married The Queen of Filipino Cinema, Susan Roces]], in a ceremony with [[UsefulNotes/FerdinandMarcos then-President Ferdinand Marcos and his wife, Imelda, serving as sponsors.]][[note]]Not unheard of in the Philippines, Marcos' predecessor Ramon Magsaysay did the same for a few film stars in the 50s.[[/note]] FPJ and Susan would remain HappilyMarried for the next 36 years, despite FPJ having more than one affair with a few of his female costars. FPJ would have three children with either Susan or his mistresses in this time, though he'd also adopt a daughter, Grace Poe, who would cameo in a few of his movies and successfully run for office as a senator.
7
8The 70s served as a transitional period for FPJ. He did a few more westerns before transitioning to his bread-and-butter action movies which lasted well into the 80s, 90s, and 2000s. (He would supplement these with the occasional ScrewballComedy.) However it was his four-part 80s FantasySeries ''Ang Panday'' (''The Blacksmith'') which some consider to be his greatest work. The four films swept the box office at every Platform/MetroManilaFilmFestival they were shown in, winning a Best Picture Award ''every time'' along with a slew of awards.
9
10Despite his lofty title and place in Filipino cinema as its unbeatable box-office top draw, FPJ was also well-noted for being an all-round NiceGuy and HumbleHero in RealLife, which only endeared him more to the masses. Stories of his endless generosity include him paying the bills for one of his colleagues who'd fallen on hard times, providing catering for his film crews (breaking a tradition in Filipino filmmaking and setting a new precedent), and anonymously donating massive amounts of relief goods to disaster victims, sometimes arriving way ahead of the government's own relief efforts.
11
12Acting chops aside, FPJ also [[DirectedByCastMember directed and produced]] many of his own movies under the [[PenName Pen Names]] [[SdrawkcabName D'Lanor]] and [[MeaningfulName Ronwaldo Reyes]][[note]]"Reyes" being his mother's maiden name[[/note]]. A well-known story is that when his one of his own movies won an award at the FAMAS Awards (the Filipino answer to [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAward the Oscars]]), nobody could claim to have met or seen "Ronwaldo Reyes" until FPJ himself went on stage and said that he was in fact Ronwaldo Reyes.
13
14In 2004, after a 49-year career on the silver screen, FPJ attempted to run for the presidency against the incumbent Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, despite a lack of political experience. After a close electoral race, FPJ lost the election by a narrow margin. FPJ himself would sadly pass away on December 14th of that year following a stroke. [[DeathByDespair Many close friends believed that the shock of losing the election despite his popular support with the masses was the cause of his passing.]] As an even bigger KickTheDog moment, it was revealed a few years later that Macapagal-Arroyo had in fact [[CorruptPolitician rigged the vote to her favor in certain provinces, thus delegitimizing her own victory.]]
15
16FPJ received a true sendoff fit for a king after a nine-day wake on December 22, with estimates for mourners going as high as ''two million''. Such numbers for a local public figure's funeral hadn't been seen since the funeral of Ninoy Aquino, Jr. in 1983 and the passing of FPJ's friend and frequent co-star Julie Vega in 1985.
17
18Despite his passing, FPJ's legacy remains strong in his home country to this day. Reruns of his movies draw well in the TV ratings, his two daughters are well-involved in local politics, a golden statue of him was erected in Manila, and as an ultimate tribute, his 1997 blockbuster ''Ang Probinsyano'' was adapted into a [[Series/AngProbinsyano a TV series]] with the full blessing and involvement of his estate.
19
20For his [[JapaneseMedia Japanese equivalent]], see Creator/YujiroIshihara. For his [[HongKongFilms Hong Kong equivalent]], look to Creator/ChowYunFat.
21
22!!Some of his major films include, but are no means limited to:
23* The aforementioned ''Ang Panday'' saga, with FPJ as Flavio, [[TheBlacksmith The Panday]], or Blacksmith, wielder of a [[CoolSword magic balaraw, or dagger, that turns into a magic sword]]. Flavio is pitted against the [[Really700YearsOld 300-year old]] DarkLord Lizardo, played by character actor Max Alvarado. An adaptation of a comic strip by Carlo J. Carapas, and considered the [[TransatlanticEquivalent Filipino answer]] to ''Franchise/ConanTheBarbarian'' and ''Franchise/TheLordOfTheRings.''
24* The ''Kapag Puno Na Ang Salop'' (''When The Measure is Full'') trilogy, where he portrays a CountryMouse CowboyCop pitted against [[CorruptPolitician a corrupt judge]] played by his frequent costar Eddie Garcia.
25* The ''Film/AngProbinsyano'' duology, which would later be adapted into [[Series/AngProbinsyano a successful TV series]].
26* The ''Isang Bala Ka Lang!'' (''One Bullet Is Enough For You!'') duology, where he plays a RetiredBadass CowboyCop. The first film won him a FAMAS Best Actor Award.
27* ''Uiimpisahan Mo, Tatapusin Ko!'' (''You Start, I'll Finish!''), where he plays another CountryMouse CowboyCop looking for his kidnapped bride-to-be in UsefulNotes/{{Manila}}. The film bagged him another FAMAS Best Actor Award.
28* ''Ang Padrino'' (''The Patron''), with him as an urban philanthropist. It won Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Screenplay at the 1985 FAMAS Awards. Also notable for including Filipino radio legend Rey Langit as a ProfessionalKiller hired to kill FPJ's character.
29* ''Muslim Magnum .357'', where he plays a Muslim cop transfered to Manila to fight against TheSyndicate, headed by [[CorruptCop the corrupt]] [[TheMole Police Captain Ramos]], played by again by Eddie Garcia. This won him his fifth and final Best Actor Award and a spot in the FAMAS Hall of Fame.
30* ''Alamat ng 7 Kilabot'' (''Legend Of The Dreaded Seven''), an [[AllStarCast All-Star]] [[TheWestern Western]] starring himself and his fellow [[ActionGenreHeroGuy action stars]] in a [[TransatlanticEquivalent Filipinized]] version of ''Film/TheMagnificentSeven1960''.
31* ''Pakners'' (''Partners''), his last movie, an action-comedy with billiards legend Efren "Bata" Reyes.
32* ''Aguila'' (''Eagle'') a three-hour historical EpicMovie directed by Eddie Romero, [[Creator/QuentinTarantino Quentin Tarantino's]] favorite Filipino director.
33
34!!Tropes that apply to his works are:
35* BerserkButton:
36** If you're a goon in his films and you decide to harm his friends and family (''especially'' the TagalongKid), then God help you. The obligatory NoHoldsBarredBeatdown is the least of your worries.
37** In RealLife, insulting the bit players or the film crew. The fact that the stunt crew became a part of his ProductionPosse surely must mean the amount of respect and dedication they had with each other.
38* BottomlessMagazines: A frequent occurrence in his action movies and westerns.
39* DirectedByCastMember: As D'Lanor or Ronwaldo Reyes.
40* DigitalDestruction: The Creator/{{ABSCBN}} broadcasts of restored FPJ movies on the Sunday "Ang Hari FPJ" block. While the quality of the restorations themselves are good (and necessary, given the deteriorated quality of the film stock on some of the movies), the network cuts the movies down by half to fit a 70-minute timeslot to make space for the commercials. Even worse, they do a poor job of censoring them by jump-cutting to black and white or using [[DigitalBikini pixelated blocks]] to any time someone gets shot and blood gets spilled on-screen. Elsewhere, for some films, they didn't even bother trying to clean them up.
41* KeepCirculatingTheTapes: FPJ movies are rare in Philippine home media, and the very lax video piracy laws there ensure that a lot of FPJ movies are readily available on Website/YouTube.
42* ImprobableAimingSkills: His characters are capable of hitting a bullseye target several times in a row and shooting blades off knives.
43* ImplacableMan: His CowboyCop characters played this to [[Film/{{Commando}} John Matrix-level degrees]].
44* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: His patented "Machine-Gun Punches".
45* OldShame: 1964's RomanticComedy ''Los Palikeros'' (''The Playboys'') was this for him, because it portrayed him as freewheeling playboy, at least according to Joseph Estrada. This was the only one of FPJ's movies that was a certified BoxOfficeBomb.
46* PlayingAgainstType:
47** He plays TheHeavy in 1956's ''Kamay ni Cain'' (''Hand of Cain'') and a SerialKiller in 1957's ''Bicol Express''.
48** His character in ''Alyas 1-2-3'' (''Alias 1-2-3'') is a reformed safecracker.
49** His character in 1988's ''Gawa Na Ang Bala Na Papatay Sa Iyo'' (''The Bullet That Will Kill You Has Already Been Made'') is no CowboyCop, but an ex-con seeking revenge for his daughter and brother's deaths.
50* ProductionPosse: His crew at FPJ Productions. Usually, he would have himself as producer (or director if needed), have character actors Paquito Diaz, his brother Romy, Max Alvarado, or martial arts expert Zandro Zamora as TheDragon, either Eddie Garcia or Subas Hererro as the ManBehindTheMan, the ever-ubiquitous Thunder Stuntmen as the expendable [[{{Mook}} Mook Army]], comedian Denicio Padillia as PluckyComicRelief, either Enrani V. Cuneco or Jaime Fabregas as a composer (the latter having the occasional cameo), Fred Navarro on story and screenplay, and Ver P. Reyes on cinematography.

Top