Twice blessed, twice cursed: A tale of two Noys

A film is an art form, therefore it is only right to judge it as a work of art. But when one is faced with a film like Noy, it is very difficult to look at it only as a work of art for the film delves into things that are very near to our hearts, things that affect our life in a major way just like the recent national elections, the not-so-recent but traumatic typhoon Ondoy, and the perennial issue of poverty in our beloved country, the Philippines. As a work of art, Noy is a product of excellent and intelligent filmmaking. It has the spirit of an independent film, but it is also mainstream in so many things. Dondon Santos did his job well as the director. The film is a combination of a documentary movie employing guerilla filmmaking tactics during the campaign sorties of Noynoy Aquino and the Liberal Party, and a dramatic feature film shot mostly in a depressed community struggling to survive above the floodwaters of Ondoy that have not subsided until today. The brilliant screenplay by Shugo Praico made possible the smooth interweaving of the documentary and the dramatic parts of the film. Kudos should also be given to the imagination of those who conceptualized the film’s story: Rondel Lindayag, Rodel Naciancena, and Francis Xavier Pasion (who megged the memorable film Jay based on the foibles of producing non-fiction TV). The production design by Glenn Herbert Adriano contributed to the verisimilitude of the dramatic part. Noy has a powerhouse cast, not because the actors in the film are the superstars of Philippine showbiz, but because they are the country’s best dramatic actors. The handsome and sexy Coco Martin played the part of Manolo “Noy" Agapito, a young man who is forced to find a job in order to feed his mother and siblings. He got himself fake academic credentials and applied as a journalist with a TV network, which assigned him to cover the presidential campaign of Noynoy Aquino. In this film, Martin is no longer the handsome and sexy guy next door. He is transformed fully into his reporter character, still handsome and sexy but in a dark and tragic way. Cherry Pie Picache as the loving and uneducated mother who is a manikyurista is simply perfect. There is no doubt that she is one of the best actresses of our country. Baron Geisler is also very good as the self-absorbed, opinionated, and intellectually intriguing video-editor. Erich Gonzales and Joem Bascon deliver surprisingly excellent performances. Gonzales plays the role of Noy’s girlfriend; she is full of dolor for her family is against her poor boyfriend and she is being forced to marry someone in the United States. Bascon is the older brother of Noy who becomes an invalid due to a work- related accident, and is forced to sell drugs in order to help his family. The film is full of symbolism. A crumbling house above the dirty flood waters, a clogged toilet bowl, a boat made from garbage, the absence and presence of a wheelchair for an invalid brother – all these images heightened the message of the film. It is a pity that when I watched Noy last week, there were only very few of us inside the cinema. This is sad, for the film tackles a theme that will touch us all. The film is about peace and justice, values that are wanting in our present society. According to Augustinian theology and philosophy, the foundation of peace is justice. To let some people live in a village floating on dirty water and a sea of garbage while other people live in palatial houses in an antiseptic and exclusive subdivision is a big injustice. To force some people to fake their academic credentials in order to get a job so that their family will be able to eat three times a day, all because they cannot afford to send their children to college, is a big injustice. To watch people working their bodies to death for a meager salary because landowners and business people want huge profits is a big injustice. This is the reason why there is no peace in our country. And as long as this sorry situation remains, no one will ever feel safe walking in the streets or lying on their bed at night. The beauty of the film Noy lies in its truthful projection of the acute and chronic poverty in our country. We are presented with two Noys—one is the blessed Noy and the other is the cursed Noy. One is the president-elect and the other one is a pseudo-journalist. Definitely, they have not chosen their fates. It is an accident of personal history that one is born to a family of hacienderos while the other one is born to a dirt-poor family. Nevertheless, they have the capacity to choose: the lucky one to help the unlucky one to improve his life, the unlucky one to help the lucky one reach out to the poor and become the best president of this country. But at the end of the film the poor Noy gets killed. He was shot by drug syndicate members after his brother failed to remit drug money. His body fell into the dirty water and floated with the city’s garbage. Is the film saying that for the unlucky Noys there is no redemption? That the poor will continue to die like rats and the rich will continue to live like kings and queens in this country? I would like to look at the positive side of the film. The dramatic part of the film is clearly fiction, but it is fiction that is founded strongly on reality. The technique is not only realism but naturalism, a dramatic form that is darker and more acute than realism. Meaning, there are many unlucky Noys in this benighted country if the flourishing trade of fake diplomas and transcript of records in Recto, and the ever-expanding informal settler communities in urban areas, are any indication. President-elect Noynoy Aquino has a respectable mandate. It is his duty now to serve, help, and save the unlucky Noys. The documentary part of the film is full of President-elect Noynoy’s campaign speeches promising to promote good governance and to continue the legacy of his parents of serving the people well in a society founded on democracy. By giving his consent to appear in the film as himself, he has the responsibility to make good his promises when he is already occupying the post in Malacañang. If he can do this, and if he will be able to help the unlucky Noys, he will be twice blessed—blessed to be the son of Cory and Ninoy Aquino, and blessed in being remembered as the loving and beloved president who dealt with poverty head-on. If he will renege on his promises, he will be twice cursed, for he will destroy the good memory of his parents and he will squander his chance to heal our very sick nation. Every Filipino who is concerned about our country should watch this film. – YA, GMANews.TV Noy is produced in 2010 by Cinemedia Films and is distributed by Star Cinema.