Aishite Imasu 1941 (Japanese meaning I Love You / Filipino title Mahal Kita 1941, “Mahal Kita” also

meaning I Love You) is a drama, romance, and war movie released in the Philippines in 2004 and is a
story of love, betrayal, and honor in wartime set in the Japanese Occupation of the Philippines (1941–
1945) during World War II. It stars Judy Ann Santos, Raymart Santiago, Jay Manalo, and Dennis Trillo. It
is directed by Joel Lamangan.

Aishite Imasu is set in the town of San Nicolas in 1941 when Japan was spreading its wings over the
archipelago. It is a story of a love triangle. A refreshing treatment of relationships, though, as it proved
that true love doesn't have to be mushy. The triangle involves Inya (Judy Ann Santos), Edilberto
(Raymart Santiago) and Ignacio (Dennis Trillo). The three were childhood friends, caring foster siblings
to each other. Inya and Edilberto would later get married; Ignacio, from the start, was in love with
Edilberto. Ignacio was gay, but was not hysterically gay. He was forced to cross dress to stand in for a
singer in a town program. At this juncture, the Japanese commander of the occupying troops (Ichiru,
played by Jay Manalo) saw Ignacio and was drawn to his feminine charm.

Edilberto convinces Ignacio to continue the game so he could be close with Ichiru and pass on
information about Japanese plans to the Filipino guerillas. Love for Edilberto or love of country made
Ignacio do it. Before the Japanese occupied the Philippines, the struggle of peasants for land was gaining
momentum. When the Japanese arrived, they shifted focus to fight the new invaders. They resisted
Japanese rule through armed guerrilla and propaganda tactics. In the movie, Ediberto was part of the
armed-peasant and –guerrilla liberation movement. Inya and Ignacio were supporters, like majority of
the town folks.

Spurred by tension

As the personal relationship of Edilberto and Inya is spurred by tension due to his commitment to the
guerilla movement, the relationship between Ichiru and Ignacio was developing to be romantic. Amidst
these developments is the intensifying guerrilla attacks vis a vis the intensifying Japanese ferocity. The
attack scenes were a military strategists' nightmare, but it showed the courage and determination of the
Filipino freedom fighters. The graphic presentation of Japanese brutality would help us understand why,
even after several decades, Filipinos of that era would run after any Japanese with a bolo.

Aishite Imasu 1941 (Japanese meaning I Love You / Filipino title Mahal Kita 1941, “Mahal Kita” also
meaning I Love You) is a drama, romance, and war movie released in the Philippines in 2004 and is a
story of love, betrayal, and honor in wartime set in the Japanese Occupation of the Philippines (1941–
1945) during World War II. It stars Judy Ann Santos, Raymart Santiago, Jay Manalo, and Dennis Trillo. It
is directed by Joel Lamangan.

The film centers around the life of a newlywed couple Inya and Edilberto whose lives changed forever
after the Japanese forces arrived and occupied the Philippines. The story also tackles transgender and
gay life during the Japanese occupation. The death of Edilberto prompted Inya to become a guerilla
leader and fight against the invaders.

The film begins with an old Inya telling the story of three friends: Ignacio (Dennis Trillo), repudiate by
society because of his sexuality, Inya (Judy Ann Santos), who adopted Ignacio into her family to keep him
away from his abusive father, and Edilberto (Raymart Santiago), who is a member of the peasant
movement with his father. Since they were children, Inya and Ignacio had a crush on Edilberto. On the
other hand, Ignacio kept his feelings for Edilberto hidden because he knew Inya and Edilberto were in
love.

When the Japanese soldiers arrived in the town of San Nicolas, Japanese Captain Ichiru (Jay Manalo)
immediately expressed interest in Ignacio, who clad as a woman at the time. Ignacio agrees to be a spy
for the anti-Japanese guerilla movement because he can never say no to Edilberto, the man he loves. He
does, however, fall in love with Captain Ichiru, who is a light-hearted character as he continues to do his
dangerous tasks. Ignacio was perplexed because he did not want to betray his love for his country,
which resulted in a conflict, especially when Edilberto's family was murdered, which fueled Edilberto's
desire for vengeance, only making his relationship with Inya grow cold.

And when Edilberto dies in battle, Inya insists on fighting for their country, earning her the title of
Kapitan Berto. Ignacio maintains a relationship with Ichiru, leading many to believe he has betrayed his
country. But when his true identity is known, Captain Ichiru confesses that he still loves Ignacio for who
he is. But because he had betrayed his own country, he decided to commit suicide, and Ignacio was
apprehended by Ichiru's men shortly after. Ignacio was tortured by the Japanese because he refused to
say who Kapitan Berto was. Inya leads the townspeople in liberating the town from the Japanese at this
time, but Ignacio was killed while attempting to save Inya from bullets fired by a Japanese soldier. On
the sixtieth anniversary of the town's liberation, all three friends and those who led the liberation are
honored as heroes.

The film sends a message to us that love knows no bounds. There's no way out once you've fallen into it.
It is unrivaled by any challenging circumstances. Whether it's a love for one's own country or a love for
the person one chooses to love for in the end, love is unaffected by gender, form, or even the most
dangerous human endeavor of all time: war.
Aishite Imasu 1941: Mahal Kita is a film directed and written by Joel Lamangan which stars Judy Ann
Santos (Inya), Raymart Santiago (Edilberto), Jay Manalo (Ichiru) and Dennis Trillo (Ignacio/Inya). The
movie Aishite Imasu 1941: Mahal Kita portrays the colonization period of Japan in the Philippines. It also
depicts how patriotic Filipinos are to the Philippines during that time. The setting of the movie is in the
place of San Nicolas during the period of Japanese Colonization. Inya, Edilberto, and Ignacio were
childhood friends until the moment where Ichiru and his Japanese men came to San Nicolas and stated
that all they need is cooperation of the Filipinos for them to defeat the Americans. They also said to the
Filipinos that Japan was their ally and not the America. Ignacio, who is a gay in the movie, was told by
Edilberto and the guerillas (group of men that fought the Japanese troops) to pretend as a real woman
to attract Captain Ichiru. The latter later on, was attracted to Ignacio who replaced his name as Inya, for
her to be believed as a real woman and the original Inya was renamed as Vinya.

The guerillas knew where and when they can attack the Japanese through Ignacio, who served as a spy,
and took advantage of Ichiru. Maura, the Japanese interpreter, revealed to one of the Japanese army
that Ignacio is a gay who later on was revealed to Ichiru. However, true love prevails as Ichiru already
knew that Ignacio is a gay yet he continues to love him. Ichiru said that love is equal and had no gender.
The original Inya and Edilberto are married after which also signifies true love.

Edilberto’s family died because the Japanese army knew that his father was a part also of the guerillas.
This makes Edilberto more patriotic and focuses on loving his country by killing more Japanese but
Edilberto also died. Many Filipinos were also killed by the Japanese. Ignacio changed the heart of Ichiru
and the latter set free some Filipinos who were in jail and that lead him to also kill himself for he
dishonor his country – Japan. Ignacio were arrested by the Japanese army and saved by Inya, who lead
the guerillas as Kapitan Berto, but at the end of the movie, Ignacio saved Inya by tooking the fatal shot
to Inya by using his body as cover. He said before his last breath that he was a traitor and feels sorry for
Inya and for the country.