Ate Guy is a rebel.
Thus declared veteran writer Ricky Lee during the state necrological service for the late Nora Aunor held at the Metropolitan Theater on Tuesday, April 22, 2025. Both were declared National Artists for Film and Broadcast Arts in 2022.
“Rebelde si Guy. Sa loob ng pitong dekada ay nilabanan niya ang status quo. Binago niya ang kolonyal na pagtingin na nagsasabing mapuputi lang at matatangkad ang maganda sa puting tabing. Ginampanan niya ang papel ng mga babaeng palaban at makatotohanan,” Lee said.
Born Nora Cabaltera Villamayor on May 21, 1953, Aunor died on April 16, 2025, of acute respiratory failure after a medical procedure, at the age of 71.
“Marami siyang binasag at binagong paniniwala. Ipinakita na mahalaga ang mga nararamdaman ng mga taong nasa gilid ng lipunan. May mga boses na kailangang pakinggan. Pinili niyang huwag lang maging ‘Superstar’ kung hindi maging isang tunay na artista ng bayan,” Lee added.
With a darker skin tone compared to the half-Caucasian actors who dominated local cinema at the time, Aunor starred in 170 films and got her first break in 1967 in All Over the World.
She rose to prominence after winning the 1967 Tawag ng Tanghalan.
She is the most nominated actress for a leading role in the long history of the FAMAS Awards, having been nominated 17 times since 1973.
Since its release, a line from the 1982 film Himala has been inextricably linked to Aunor and Lee:
“Waláng himalâ! Ang himalâ ay nasa pusò ng tao, nasa pusò nating lahat! Tayo ang gumagawâ ng mga himalâ! Tayo ang gumagawâ ng mga sumpâ at ng mga diyos.”
Written by Lee and directed by Ishmael Bernal, the film follows the people of the provincial town of Cupang. At the center is Elsa, who—on the day the town witnesses a total eclipse—declares that the Virgin Mary has appeared to her and granted her the gift of healing. Her miraculous claims stir both fervent devotion and intense controversy.
Blind faith and fanaticism plague the impoverished town of Cupang, which represents a microcosm of a society desperate to cling to something that gives hope in a world full of hopelessness.
The film premiered at the 1982 Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF), where it won Best Film and Best Actress for Aunor, among other awards. I first watched it as part of my Humanities class at the University of the Philippines.
Himala is regarded as one of the greatest Filipino films, elevating Lee, Bernal, and Aunor to iconic status.
“Nilagyan niya ng hugis ang ating mga damdamin. Binigyan niya ng direksyon ang ating mga aspirasyon. Binigyan din niya tayo ng pag-asa at tinuruang puwede tayong lumaban upang matupad ang ating mga pangarap. Ipinakita niya sa atin ang kapangyarihang hindi natin akalaing meron pala ang ordinaryong tao. Ginawa niyang totoo ang ibig sabihin ng ‘sining,’” Lee said.
The last time I saw Ate Guy was in August 2024 during the Cinemalaya special screening of the 1980 film Bona, directed by Lino Brocka. She was in a wheelchair.
Despite being made in 1981, Bona retains contemporary relevance as it explores the phenomenon of fandom through the story of a young girl infatuated with a bit actor.
It was also at Cinemalaya where I got to meet her personally, through two of her film entries: Hustisya (2014) and Tuos (2016).
Hustisya is a Filipino political thriller-drama film written by Lee and directed by Joel Lamangan about a woman working for a human trafficking agency. Aunor won Best Actress for the role.
Tuos tells the story of an old binukot—a kept maiden of the Panay Bukidnon tribe in Panay Island—who must choose between preserving tradition by passing her role to her granddaughter or allowing the young woman to decide her own path.
With her famous line “My brother is not a pig!” I first saw Ate Guy in person in 1991 during her debut as a theater actor in the stage adaptation of her film Minsa’y Isang Gamu-gamo by the Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA). The film depicts the lives of two families affected by the American military presence in the Philippines.
We also grew up watching her weekend variety show Superstar, which aired from 1970 to October 1, 1989.
In 2014, former President Benigno Aquino III dropped Aunor from the list of National Artist honorees, citing issues related to her 2007 drug possession case in Los Angeles. She was shortlisted again in 2018 but did not make the final cut.
In 2022, Aunor was finally granted the award, along with Lee and Marilou Diaz-Abaya.
“Magiging kalansay na tayo lahat pero ang sining na ating ginawa ay mabubuhay nang matagal na matagal sa mahabang panahon,” a statement from Aunor as quoted by director Joel Lamangan during the necro service. “Ang katotohanan ay hindi dapat pagtakpan, ang katotohanan ay dapat sabihin, ang katotohanan ay dapat ipagtanggol.”
*** Peyups is the moniker of the University of the Philippines. Atty. Dennis R. Gorecho is the Junior Partner of the Sapal Velez Bundang Bulilan Law Offices. For comments, e-mail [email protected], or call 09088665786.
