Ronald Jimenez Jr. And The Life Of The Bien Family

The movie revolves between two stories. First, it talks about the life of Ronald Jimenez Jr. and the life of the Bien family. Ronald, a developmentally delayed seventh grader was accused of rape by his tutor/friend Bessy. This is where Ronald’s family met Atty. Julian Bien and Amanda Bien, a developmental psychologist. It happens that Ronald and Martin, their deceased son, were close friends. Over-all, it conveys the message of forgiveness.
II. In the first part of the movie, Ronald’s rape case was not disclosed to him by his parents and Atty. Julian because he might fly into a rage. However, their act of secrecy is a violation of the Section 14, paragraph 2 which stresses the need of the accused to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation against him but was said to him later on. This was

apparent when Atty. Julian and Amanda visited their house to discuss the Ronald’s situation while Ronald is in his room. Still, Ronald’s family sought a legal counsel despite their financial incapacity (Section 11; Section 12, paragraph 2). This was showed when Ronald’s family first met Atty. Julian. Regardless of Lallie’s anger, the case was given a chance to proceed with due process of law (Section 14, paragraph 1). Moreover, he was presumed innocent by claiming that he is intellectually disabled so the judge would dismiss the trial (Section 14, paragraph 2) though his parents were not convinced of this claim. This section was violated by Atty. Patricia and Lallie because they were certain of his guilt of the rape act because of the released sex scandal. It was also clear in the movie that Atty. Julian and Ronald was present in every proceeding which reflects the right of the accused to be heard by himself and counsel (Section 14, paragraph 2). In a fictional setting, since this is a movie, Ronald’s case was given a speedy, impartial, and public trial along with a speedy disposition of his case (Section 14, paragraph 2; Section 16). The only part where the movie lost focus on is the search for the source of the sex scandal but they put Lallie as a secondary witness of the scandal (Section 14, paragraph 2). This was done when Atty. Julian was testing her credibility as the principal of the school and in assessing Bessy’s performance as a teacher together when he cross-examined the doctor’s statement of Bessy’s medical report which is not indicative of rape. Likewise, the production of evidence was observed in the movie when the medical report of Bessy was released (Section 14, paragraph 2).
III.

What I like about the movie is that it does not only involve two different stories and problems but also, the characters are connected with each other. But most especially, the main focus of the story is the importance of a family and forgiveness. Although it focused on Ronald’s case, it has also an underlying story of the Bien family. I guess everybody will agree that their family have many problems—Julian’s third party, Amanda’s lack of time to her son and the couple’s frequent quarrel—that leads to Martin’s death. However, the unconventional set-up of Ronald’s family makes them also imperfect but contented. Every time Ronald will reveal something about Martin’s thoughts in his family, it is painful because I can already see the shortcomings of Martin’s parents. In the parents’ perspective, it is difficult to accept that you cannot change what has been done; what has been taught; what has been shown; what has been felt to your child. I admire Martin’s courage to surpass his parents’ hectic world. Though he found another family to share his problems to, he still go back to his parents. It is dramatic in a sense that it involves the weakness of a

family.
I am also thrilled by the movie’s sequence. It left me wanting to watch for more to see what really happened. Furthermore, Ronald’s sincerity is very moving. He really knows what he is doing and was shaped by his parents’ values and beliefs as well as Martin’s. Despite the ridicule of his peers, Ronald remains decorous and persevering. Nonetheless, in the real setting, adults like Ronald are often misunderstood by other people that molded their aggressive behaviors. It is sad to think that a lot of untreated special children feel isolated and rejected from others. For me, the unusual arrangement of Ronald’s family is not a disadvantage or a problem but a satisfaction because of the moral values he gained.