Never Not Love You is straight-forward and it’s a classic example of simplicity at its best.
This isn’t for you if you expect a grandiose finale where antagonists kiss and hug to signal the ending of a movie. This is not for you if you expect a mob-effect and public confessions to wrap up the story or even a lengthy monologue to cap it off. There’s no airport scene where the lead chases the other and then there’s heavy traffic hence the intense build-up that the film is about to end.
Never Not Love You is straight-forward, real, and it’s a perfect example of simplicity at its best. It’s a film that you will never forget.
NNLY is intelligently written. Intelligent in a way that the movie technically propelled me to innovate as a thinking viewer and not just someone who wants to be entertained. It is a far cry from the staple offerings of mainstream love teams in the Philippines.
Mmkei. What’s the catch?
Never Not Love You has a common baseline: LOVE versus CAREER. But knowing Direk Tonet, she has this unconventional way of telling a story. Far from clichè. How she orchestrates each story layer is interesting and hardworking. Unpredictable. Raw. Brave. Totoo pero hindi mababaw.
Para siyang nag cross-stitch na pati likod malinis. That’s how she writes her film.
Heading straight, let’s talk about the tagline. Love changes you. Life changes love.
Love changes you.
Think about how millennials fell in love with the idea of ‘love’ so much that they forget a lot of things. They are so ‘in the moment’. They are impulsive. And there goes, as long as we are happy. You plan things and those get superseded all because… you fell in love.
Life changes love.
That sense of fulfilment depends on the person. The spin on Gio and Joanne’s career trajectory and priority shift will make you reflect what fulfilment really means. That as you age, a lot of things may happen; a lot of things may change. As you age, you redefine happiness. You define fulfilment according to your inner feel. And sometimes, it doesn’t involve love.
That, I think my friend, are important points that millennials need to ponder — even the young professionals. This could also be any parent’s subtle message to their kids. An artistic form of saying — bata ka pa. pag tanda mo, tatawanan mo na lang yan pag laki mo.
Don’t get me wrong. This is not another hugot film. Hindi ito cheesy.
I appreciate how Direk Tonet Jadaone wants her viewers involved while and after watching the film. Like say for example, the movie doesn’t show a time stamp to determine the run of Gio and Joanne’s relationship. You have to carefully follow the dialogue of Gio and Joanne so you would know the time lapse of the story. That’s what you call trusting your audience.
It is the silent narrative of NNLY that makes it appealing. It’s never spoon-fooding. Some scenes are implied and the creators of the film give the viewers freedom to interpret and have a moment of realisation shortly after watching the film. Look into the before and after set-up of Joanne’s house in Zambales. The dreams she specifically mentioned to Gio on their first visit — all these are implied later on and you should be smart enough to follow. It doesn’t need a dedicated sequence to bluntly narrate the development of their lives.
It’s commendable that the director doesn’t take advantage of the templated kilig formula of loveteams. The director clearly wants an ‘acting’ material for James and Nadine. I am actually impressed that they accepted this material.
While other oh-so-common plots can give you instant box-office success all thanks to fan-driven effort and mass appeal of the artists, James and Nadine would rather challenge themselves to doing something out of the box; something that’s unexpected of them.
It gives me an impression that box-office is not James and Nadine’s priority, it’s the CONTENT that matters. They are protective of their brand and how they associate themselves to each project that they are given.
Side comment though: It’s also a strategic move that they want to capture a different market. Ayaw nilang tumanda sa masa crowd. It’s clear that they get to do what they want and they are no push-over.
In NNLY, they are not a loveteam. They are great actors here. Pang best-actor and best-actress material itong NNLY.
One moment I hated Gio. At the latter part of the film, I cried with him. James is at his best when he cries. James Reid carries a different charm in this film. It’s not a ‘given’ charm, it’s a ‘charm’ needed to characterise Gio. That’s what you call smart acting. Dahil ba sa mustard yan?
And Nadine, goodness gracious… I never thought you can be this good. You don’t have to scream to get that best actress award. Who you ang hysterical acting if you can pull off that deep eyes with confused blank face that conveys a lot of emotions. Those pauses. Those long stares. Those quiet moments. You master that silent acting. LSS ako sa “Cafe Assistant.. Brand Manager (2x with matching hand gesture)!”
Another high point here is the cinematography. The real-screen conversation treatment of couples in LDR is witty. The writer took so much effort in writing her script. Just want to share this though, a guy friend of mine commended Direk Tonet for being realistic on how men talk. He says: “If babae kasi, kakampihan niya yung kaibigan niyang babae. Pero if lalaki sa lalaki, sisisihin niya yung kaibigan niya. Ang galing lang kung paano nakuha ni Direk, yon.” It’s hardworking.
Now, here goes the talk of the town: The ending of Never Not Love You. There’s no trying-hard twist this time. Until this point, it’s loyal to the theme of the story — Reckless Love. I like how it mirrors the underrated resolution of struggling relationship. Some say that ACT 3 looks quite rushed, for me, that’s just the way it Is and I like it that way.
I absolutely love how Direk Tonet left us with that ending scene. But she couldn’t have done it without the excellent acting of James and Nadine. THAT. LAST. FRAME. THAT. SILENT. NARRATIVE.
Hindi natatapos ang story sa credits or sa blank screen. Ikaw ang tatapos sa storya. You’ll create your own interpretation. It’s something that you’ll discuss with your friends over coffee. No wonder the after-effect of this film is strong. Hindi yung basta “Ayon, nagkatuluyan sila. Ayun nag kiss sila. Ayon kinasal sila’.
For me, you’d know it’s a good film if you can’t stop talking about it. It gives you an experience.
Never Not Love You is a solid screenplay; one would wish that this could have been their idea.
If you are tired of formulaic rom-com plots and if you want to innovate as as movie goer, go watch this. I am a film buff and watching film like this makes me hopeful. We deserve this kind of film. Thank you Direk Tonet. Thank you James and Nadine.
And also, thank You Ebe for Prom and UDD for Sana. LSS ako. Malala po.
Never Not Love You is now showing in cinemas nationwide. Watch Full Trailer here:
Ang gusto ko lang naman sabihin… PANUORIN MO ‘TO. Hindi ito modus. Hindi din ito paid review. Maganda lang talaga. ANG TALINO lang.
