"Noy" is a movie that makes us think about the social reality in which we live in here in the Philippines. We follow the lead a character Noy who lives in a flooded slum area with his family, composed of an illiterate mother, an invalid elder brother and a hapless younger sister. He fakes his college credentials to get a job as a TV journalist. His initial attitude towards his job is one of shallow pragmatism. His assignment was to follow presidential aspirant Noynoy Aquino around during his campaign, yet Noy only thought of how this reporter gig can help him and his family out of poverty.
We follow the arc of the story as Noy gets to know Noynoy more and eventually becomes more cognizant of what real journalists do. However with Noy's self-realization comes overwhelmingly complicating realities (and overly dramatic plot twists) involving the members of his family, which eventually catch up with Noy himself.
Coco Martin really shines in the title role of Noy. He was a cocky jerk yet you also knew he had a heart somewhere in there. The scene where Noy could not do anything but helplessly weep and silently gnash his teeth on the stairs outside his house as his cup of suffering literally overflows was an intense tour-de-force acting showcase for this Prince of Philippine Independent Cinema.
Cherrie Pie Picache, Joem Bascon and Cheska Billones had very realistic supporting performances as Noy's unfortunate family . Noy's love interest Divine was played with surprising maturity by upcoming young actress Erich Gonzales. But I felt this love story angle (and love scene) was largely awkward and even unnecessary (as it was largely ignored in the end).
I liked the movie as a whole. I liked the very first line where Noy lays down the premise of the film, that everything will be real, except himself. The scene between Noy and his editor (Baron Geisler) where they discuss what journalists are supposed to do was very well-written, among others. The docu-drama gimmick worked very well, as the scenes interposing the Noynoy campaign with Noy's personal travails were very realistic and quite well-edited. The generous cooperation of Mr. Noynoy Aquino to this film in the midst of the busy campaign was really commendable. In the end, this rather depressing movie still manages to convince us that hope will still spring eternal.
