“DEAD LIFE” REVIEW

Renowned American film critic, the late Roger Ebert once said that he preferred to evaluate a film on the basis of what it intended to do, rather than what he thinks it should have done. For a movie like Dead Life however, I deem both measures necessary to do it justice.

I would say right off the bat that despite having quite some room for improvement, I believe this movie achieved many things it sought to do. The story itself has got to be one of the best I’ve seen this year. Fundamentally gospel narratives aren’t widespread, but this is one, and Dead Life does as much as it possibly can with it.

A good story cannot result in a good movie without the right talents to act it out. I hereby celebrate God’s grace on Abosede Ilemobola as the female lead of Dead Life. Her Folakemi is quite the compelling character and her performance in itself is a selling point for the movie. She had good onscreen chemistry with male lead Dipo Eltrinati as Francis, whose delivery of weighty lines with practical panache gave credence to the production. Coupled with its intentional cinematography by Kunle Adepoju, this motion picture is a visual delight.

Though I consider Dead Life a very good film as a whole, it could have been truly so in all ramifications (and I say this in order for future film projects to surpass it) with better video and sound editing. Rough and prematurely conclusive transitions, and gaps between scenes disrupted the flow of the narrative at times. Also, too many cuts and unnecessary, repetitive flashbacks could have made its runtime a bit more compact. Finally on a note of propriety, I think the inclusion of a rating system should now be on the horizon for gospel movies; this one for instance contains drug use scenes which may be unadvisable for young audiences.

My major takeaway from this film as a believer is that God is always working behind the scenes for our good. As a metaphor, Dead Life is a great movie, a true gospel, love story if I ever saw one.

The link to the movie is https://youtu.be/jUutsEXI3Dg?si=K-edru3XN68RTLJb

Till the next review, stay blessed!

Film Credits
DEAD LIFE (July 9, 2023)
92 minutes
Redemptive Frame-works

Cast
Abosede Ilemobola as Folakemi
Dipo Eltrinati as Francis
Moses Olatundun as Ijoba
Afolabi Dipeolu as Baba Fola
Olufunbi Lasebikan as Chief Kalejaiye

Crew
Screenplay
Mike Ilemobola
Director of Photography
Kunle Adepoju
Editor
Mike Ilemobola
Director
Mike Ilemobola