Witness Gospel Movie Reviews

FANTALK: “PATRICK SYNDROME”

You’re welcome to another Fantalk episode. Today, we’ll be looking at a movie that promises to be really good; we’re talking about PATRICK SYNDROME from Seyi Obembe.

This movie perhaps holds a special place for us at this time because there are striking similarities between the movie and what the world is going through at the moment. The writer himself has confessed in an instagram post of his in March that the outbreak of COVID-19 has been like a déjà-vu for him because in Patrick Syndrome, there’s a white man that dies of an unknown virus in a village.

This is not the only work of art that has seemingly predicted this lockdown period. If you’ve been following the novels of Opeyemi Akintunde, you’d be familiar with THE SCIENTIST’S GOD, a novel that talks about a certain Islingbee virus. It’s a wonderful novel and I think the last episode was posted some weeks ago. You can check out Opeyemi Ojerinde Akintunde Official on Facebook to follow the story. She’s a writer of so many other novels – ISOKENE, STEPPING INTO MAGGIE’S SHOES, MY FATHER’S FARMLAND, and so on.

From instagram posts, the talk of the movie had been brewing since April 27 last year. By December 8, there was the first mention of Patrick Syndrome where we got to know Juliana Olayode would play Nkem. The production was in November and as at March 26, it was still in post production. By April 14, the movie was set.

We have a couple of production pictures to look at and a trailer to examine, and as usual, we’ll be making cast, crew and plot guesses. So, let’s do just that!

CAST

We see a host of actors here which includes Seyi Obembe (The Final Contest, 2017; It’s Complicated, 2017). Seyi Obembe is Patrick and the sickness was probably named after him. Doyin Hassan, whom I’m sure you remember from Captives of the Mighty also features, as well as Ifeoluwa Seyi Obembe. It’s an exciting prospect that this movie features the hilarious duo of the Wooli Agba skits – I’m talking about Wooli Agba Ayo Ajewole and his sidekick Dele Omo Wooli Mide Oladimeji. Patrick Syndrome also stars Sam Ajibola, Juliana Olayode, Seun Oni, Johnson Babatola, Adeola Oluwagbemi, and Toyin Okelola and Ben Schroeder. So, this production boasts a lot of talents and we should anticipate solid individual and collective performances.

2. CREW

Patrick Syndrome is directed by Adeoye Omoniyi, produced by Seyi Obembe, shot by Akin Alabi, and that’s not surprising because from the trailer, we can see that the picture quality is high. We could assume that Johnson Babatola would be in charge of set design here. If The Final Contest is anything to go by, this story is co-written by Seyi Obembe and Ifeoluwa Seyi-Obembe.

3. PLOT

A missionary from Sierra Leone is on an assignment to bring the gospel to a certain Nigerian village – the Ewenla community. Unfortunately, he comes down with a viral haemorrhagic fever which appears to be contagious because Juliana Olayode’s character seems to be showing symptoms of it. The situation described in the trailer bears a lot of resemblance to what we have today: she’s being questioned about whom she’s had contact with and her explanation shows she’s a graduate of Medicine on the compulsory one-year service to the fatherland. She’s isolated in less than desirable circumstances and the places she’s been are probably being fumigated.

Later on, we see that it’s like the virus has spread because when offered a handshake by Ifeoluwa Seyi-Obembe’s character, Dr Patrick declines, explaining verbatim: there’s a viral outbreak in the country and everyone is just advised to restrict body contact. That sounds a lot like COVID-19, doesn’t it?

Seyi Obembe and Juliana Olayode seem to have both graduated from the same university and course in the same year. It also seems like they have a relationship between them.

I think we have at least three scenes where we’ll be treated to some good music. If you’ve watched The Final Contest, you’ll understand what I’m talking about. This movie has a genre of its own that I think was launched by The Final Contest: DraMusiComedy. So, we’ll have a solo by Juliana Olayode, music accompanied by the solemnity of violins. I suspect we’ll have another musical between Seyi Obembe and Ifeoluwa and I wonder if it could be love.

So, is his love interest Juliana or Ifeoluwa? We’ll see.

We can only pray that God completely heals our land sooner than later, and that normalcy will be totally restored. When that happens, I believe Patrick Syndrome will hit the cinemas, just like The Final Contest did when it was first released.

In Toyin Okelola’s words:

Here’s a movie that saw the pandemic before it struck the globe. I’m sure the producer @seyiobembe didn’t see it coming too. The movie was shot in November 2019 and I’m happy to be part of this project. It’s going to hit a cinema near you after the lockdown lifts.

So, fingers crossed.

Link to the trailer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGCCgB6FlXs

“BEYOND I DO” REVIEW

“Beyond I Do” is a 2020 production from Ogongo TV (which is a YouTube channel created last year) that has a lot of Christian content on it, especially movies. The story was drafted by Adekunle Adeyemi Adepeter, written by Seyi Pedro-Adetola and directed by Adeoye Omoniyi, the founder of Ogongo TV.

The 66-minute movie begins with a really nice intro that was eventually different in tone to the film itself. It tells the story of a couple, Jide and Sharon, whose marriage is going through a storm as seen in Jide’s hateful attitude towards Sharon for no apparent reason. Before long, “Beyond I Do” creates a conflict that is shrouded in mystery because the cause of Jide’s hostility towards his wife is unknown.

This is a family movie that both singles and the married would learn from. Jide refuses to open up to his wife despite the fact that something is literally eating him up inside. He mirrors what a lot of husbands and indeed, people in relationships do – they don’t open up to their spouses or loved ones if they’ve been offended by them; they’d rather confide in someone else. This then leads to a large gap in communication which causes them to unwittingly leave themselves or their partners open to misbehaviour and emotional affairs that later on become extra-marital affairs.

*A woman who really* *loves her husband, Sharon is.*

Sharon, played by Seyi Pedro-Adetola, is a virtuous woman who does all she can to save her marriage, even though her husband continues to be unresponsive. In this age of ours, many would advise such a woman to leave the marriage or just focus on her kids. Sharon though continues to love her husband deeply. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of the man.

*Moses Korede Are (right) as Pastor Matthew*

Jide, played by Adeoye Omoniyi, fails when his supposed love for his wife is tested. In fact, for a reason he only knows at first, he wants to opt for a divorce and this is quite shocking to say the least. He acts like a child whose toy is broken and so, he loses all interest in it. His ‘immaturity’ leaves him open to the devil’s attacks and like his friend points out, unforgiveness keeps our lives, our health and our eternal life at risk. Something that caught my attention about Jide is that even though he has a pastoral covering over himself, he rebels and in the long run, I realized that we do whatever we want to do. It’s not just enough to say that you have a pastor; you have to be humble enough to listen to them and trust God in their lives to give you the right counsel and instructions.

Eventually, the bone of contention is revealed and it’s really heart-wrenching. The background humming sound used in that scene does a lot to add to its tension. From there, the progress of the story is ramped up and previously unknown events begin are brought to light. The pastor’s wife, played by Toyin Festus-Hunvenu, hadn’t done much in the film other than to comfort Sharon but she spoke up when her husband quoted Romans 8:28 to assure himself that God was in control, and that led to an utterance that holds a lot of revelation for families: Each time a storm rages in a family, the purpose of the storm is to break the home down, so no home should stand on their wisdom in the midst of a storm; God’s grace must be given its place. That blessed me so much. We mightn’t understand how God’s working it out but we will always have reasons to thank God.

“Beyond I Do” also makes us see that prayers reveal the true situation of things. The things we don’t know are probably more than what we know; so, we cannot afford to rest on our understanding. The turn of events in this film could only have been revealed by God’s power; the secrets of darkness are eventually exposed. We see that no weapon fashioned against us prospers. In the scene when we see the evil that her boss meant for her, thank God Sharon was sensitive. That scene makes me wonder what a Christian should do when, against all logic, God tells you not to do something, and the situation is becoming embarrassing. When she eventually sits, we wonder what the consequences would be. I kind of like that the film leaves us to guess whether the charm works or not, because in either case, the child of God comes out victorious.

*I really like the fact that this scene was shot in an elevator.*

The movie also shows us how deliberate people can be in their relationships with us. If for good, they’ll go all out to give us pleasant surprises. If for evil, they’ll hide under the cover of darkness to destroy our lives. So, there’s a serious need for us to be sensitive in our relationships.
There seems to be a pattern of creating gaps in the movie, and it works to an extent for me. The first few scenes for example, don’t appear sequential. Later, we notice that the movie jumps around its timeline a bit, shifting from the past to the present with no obviousness. That the sequence was still understandable after all this gives credence to the arrangement of the plot. Even at the conclusion of the movie, there is a loose end, and it is fine left that way, for me.

I feel though that some of those loose ends might have been better addressed. For example, was there any consequence of the papers that were stolen? Also, I think the theme song was inserted one time too many between scenes especially because it contained the title of the film and probably a bit of its message as well.

Jide eventually decides to love his wife, no matter what. The marriage was probably just a thing of emotions for him at first but he later sees that love is a choice, and it requires commitment, and this is something I think everyone needs to know and remember in their relationships. Sharon has been deeply hurt by her husband’s words and actions and at the end, she also has a choice to make because God can heal her wounds, but only if she lets Him do that.

To watch the movie, click the link below:

To watch the video of this review, click below:

“THE TRAIN” – FANTALK

1. CAST

Mike Bamiloye is played by Oluwaseun Adejumobi, the founder of Fruit Bearers’ Films. You must have seen him in movies such as Boomerang and A Tenant in Hell. Gloria Bamiloye is played by Mike Bamiloye’s second daughter-in-law, Tolulope Mike-Bamiloye who has featured in Not an Orphan and Shackles 2.

We can see Omolara Ayoola featuring prominently in the production pictures, most likely playing the role of Mike Bamiloye’s mother-figure. Adeola Adetoye is also seen here; my guess is that she’s a younger version of Mummy Gloria, or probably a younger version of Mike Bamiloye’s mother, or maybe an elder sister to him.

Tobi Olumuyiwa is probably playing the role of Evangelist Yemi Adepoju whom Daddy Mike must have met when the ministry started. We also see Olumide Oki and though he doesn’t appear in the trailer, we can assume he plays the role of one of those that worked with Mike Bamiloye in the ministry. There is a host of other cast such as Moses Korede Are, Adedeji Adekusibe and John Oguntuase.

2. CREW

There is an abundance of cast and crew in this movie. I read from an instagram post of Mike Bamiloye that the cast that worked on this movie totaled up to 300. I think that’s the largest ever in the history of Mount Zion Film Productions.

The film is directed by Yemi Adepoju and Isaac Femi-Akintunde, while Damilola Mike-Bamiloye is the DOP and I think he also wrote the screenplay for this. Joba Adepoju is the soundman here while we also see Tomisin Fasola and Tobi Olumuyiwa assisting the DOP. Kolo Peter is also among the crew and definitely, Tunde Owah is the production manager.

3. PLOT

Initially, I thought that this story was mainly going to be about Daddy Mike’s childhood but the trailer gives a more expansive picture. We see a shot of him as a toddler and probably as a twelve-year old. I guess that a lot of action takes place at this stage of his life. A teaser of The Train was released online in late March where we get a hint of his interesting childhood. Apart from scolding him, the trailer shows John Oguntuase’s character running into him while another scene shows him falling down with a tray of yams on his head.

It seems he’s either a troublesome child or just misunderstood because in one scene, a fetish priest has a confrontation with him, and in another scene, Remi Bangboje seems to be a prophetess praying for him.

The trailer also suggests that Evangelist Mike Bamiloye has always had a bit of drama in him. He appears to enjoy watching TV, probably in a neighbour’s house and probably practises what he’s seen later.

Then, we see him with his afro looking a bit like a teenager, probably an eighteen year-old. Much later, he is seen to have become a teacher who still had that calling of the drama ministry on him.

Later on, we suppose that he’s yielded to the call and begins to act drama. We see him doing some make-up for himself in a place that looks like a backstage or dress room as they prepare for a ministration. More interesting is the fact that it seems like his first son looks up to him as he is seen applying some make-up too. We also see a bit of the mannerism associated with Baba Abejoye in a scene where father and son make some gestures in prayer.

There are also pictures of the character of Mike and Gloria getting married and we can see how the movie has tried to replicate the real life clothes won by the couple on their actual wedding day.

Let me say here that I’m awed by the sheer amount of detail and effort that must have gone into this production. The movie is set across three or four decades from the 1960’s. We see only two children with the couple in the pictures, so we maybe can assume that Darasimi the third child had not been born then. So, we can deduce that the temporal setting of the movie probably ended in the early 1990s.

So, the costumes of all the actors, the buildings…everything is as you’d find at that time. I mean look at these trousers on Olumide Oki and Tobi Olumuyiwa. The whole set design is wonderful and this was most likely done by Johnson Babatola.

The make-up also looked accurate. The afro on Abayomi looks realistic, and then, Lara Ayoola’s outlook is very convincing for maybe a 50 year old woman.

From these pictures, it’s possible that not many people were expecting Daddy Mike to turn out well, given his seemingly troublesome childhood, but it’s clear that he is celebrated when he comes back to his home town with his family.

A quick word on the trailer itself: amazing. Look at the reference to Mike Bamiloye’s performance in Agbara Nla Part 1; the improvisation of the Agbara Nla soundtrack, the alignment of the bass with action points of the video was awesome.

To watch the video of this Fantalk, click below:

“THE TRAIN” REVIEW

First of all, I think we should appreciate Damilola Mike-Bamiloye for the way he wrote the screenplay of this movie. Despite the fact that the story in itself is powerful, a poor screenplay might have made it less glorious; so, it should not be taken for granted that this story was brilliantly written and shot. One part I love so much is the the transition into the wedding scene, accompanied by nice music; that place was just really cool.

A lot of time, energy, resources, money and materials must have gone into this project to make it a success. I’m sure that the costume, make-up and set designers must have had a lot of work on their hands to do. All the attires, hairstyles, houses, the props – I’m talking about the shoes, plates, telephone, lanterns, radios, TVs, even the currency – all were from that latter part of the late 20^th century.

All the actors put in very good performances, even the children actors. A few people definitely had to learn the Ijesa dialect of the Yoruba language. I can’t begin to mention how each person played their roles wonderfully: 8-year old Abayomi was a character to watch; Lara Ayoola played Mike Bamiloye’s elder sister so well and we understand why he regards her as his mother. Sister Sola’s Mama did well; Bro Rotimi had such delivery of humorous lines and expressed raw emotion when the sacrifice required of him felt too much to pay. Wole Olaleye’s performance was short but memorable; Tolulope Mike-Bamiloye really, really portrayed Mummy Gloria so well, and then Seun Adejumobi as Mike Bamiloye…I can’t commend them all enough. It was very good acting by everyone involved.

The choice of using chapters in this movie was perfect. This made the story easier to follow. For me, the story got more interesting with each chapter; so, among Chapter 5,6 and 7, it’s a bit difficult for me to point to one as my favourite. There’s a good deal of humour in the story as a whole and a lot of genuine laugh-out-loud moments. One scene that always gets me laughing when I think about it is when a sacrifice was required for his destiny and Abayomi said it was a balloon he wanted. The balloon meant to salvage his destiny burst eventually. Thank God Jesus eventually saved his soul. Also, there are a lot of catch-phrases that will bless you in this movie.

For your interest to be sustained in a film that is almost three hours long, there would have to be a lot of elements that would make it happen. In that regard, the music played its part. There was a variety of tunes which kept the mood going for the entire runtime of the movie. There were easter egg references to songs already known with early Mount Zion movies. For example, the Agbara nla tune was used in the trailer, while there was also an acoustic version of a soundtrack used in Ultimate Power Part 4, which had already been resung by Jay-Mikee. The music coordination was really well done.

The movie showed Mike Bamiloye having a lot of guardians. His guardians loved him and took him as their own. However, I think it would have been better if we had been made to know what those people’s relationships were with the Bamiloye family. Nonetheless, he faced a lot of challenges and oppositions but God saw him through and here he is today.

Going through each chapter, we’d notice that God always placed people around him who would instruct him in the right way. Even as a child, seeds of righteousness were being sown in him, even though they didn’t manifest until he was a teenager. We also see that he committed himself to the work of God and there were tough decisions he had to make along the way. But the testimony is there for all to see today: that family and everyone in that ministry are blessed. I strongly believe that this movie has really great potential for encouraging many people; also, the focus of many will be redirected to God, many will receive instructions for their lives, many will begin to understand how important it is to get married to the right person, and many will see how important vision is and not material things. This movie, in Evangelist Mike Bamiloye’s words on his instagram post the morning of the movie’s release, is a gift from God to everyone who watches it. And indeed it is.

To watch the movie, click below:

To watch the video of this review, click below:

“KNOTTED” REVIEW

“Knotted” was written and directed by Victor Olukoju PVO. It is a suspense-filled jigsaw puzzle of a movie that will keep you glued to your seat from the beginning to the end. It throws in a lot of ingredients to make it the movie it is. The 76-minute film skillfully makes the audience see what it wants us to see while saving the huge reveal towards the end after we might have made all the guesses we possibly could. I’m sure with the way this movie was shot, the director of photography, as well as the editor, was given the screenplay for them to see how they could bring their creativity to bear on the final product. Different kinds of shots and angles were used in this movie, and with all the brilliance displayed in the camera movements, I just knew it had to be Kunle Adepoju, and so it was. The editing literally leads our guesses throughout the movie by the use of cuts to new scenes, as well as oscillations between scenes. In this movie, each scene had its own tune and so, when one scene sharply cut to another, the tune changed too. You would think that such abruptness would feel awkward but it actually worked. So, this was brilliant editing by Abiola Babatola (Nattytunes).

The costuming was on point in “Knotted”. The acting was also very good. Dr (Mrs) Adekunbi Obaisi plays the role of Sewa with this aura of peace and delicacy. The performance of the clinical psychologist was beautiful. Richard, played by Philip Oyeleye, really nailed his role. He showed some level of common sense as a doctor and maybe he was right to call off the wedding for posterity sake? But, it was clear that there was something missing from his life. I observed that in his decisions, there was no deference to spiritual authority. I felt that was odd, and at the end, he reveals his true colours. When we see Richard’s friend played by Olumide Oki, we get a good idea of who Richard really is. When your friend calls you ‘omo buruku’ to praise you, that’s probably what you are. What bothers me though is that Tara, a child of God, with parents who are children of God, was about to get married to Richard, who was a phony; how does one spot unfaithfulness in such a man? It’s definitely only the Holy Spirit that can reveal who anybody really is, to us.

I learnt a lot of things from this movie. The major thing is that trials come to reveal our character, and when they come, the Bible tells us to count it all joy, and that we should present ourselves to God so that we will come out perfect and complete, lacking nothing. At the end, it turns out Sewa had been telling the truth all along, though she hadn’t come out plainly about the nature of her parents’ death because it brought her so much pain. Tara’s dad looked like a perfect father, yet he didn’t waste time in threatening to kill Sewa if she didn’t confess. He said he’d kill Sewa and then kill himself; I guess he never knew that he had suicidal tendencies. When faced with the shame of having raised a child that wasn’t his for 27 years, he wanted to kill himself. One thing I learnt in that scene is that prayer changes the narrative of depression. He’d spent a lot of time thinking of shame and that’s why he felt the best thing was to kill himself, but when he stopped worrying and started talking, conversing with God, he knew that the only thing he needed wasn’t to kill himself but God’s help.

The saying that assumption is the lowest form of knowledge is exemplified in this movie. Unfortunately, we see it from the least expected place. Pastor Adams is surrounded by those that have lost the essence of Christianity. The Bible says that the way everyone will know that we are Jesus’ followers is if we have love and unselfish concern for each other. Adams is sucked into this vortex of self-righteousness and completely misjudges and mismanages the situation. His mentor makes him see he’s wrong and he ends up a better pastor than he was at the beginning.

There was a rehearsal scene I felt was almost totally unnecessary though; perhaps it was there just to show how important the wedding was to Tara’s church.

“Knotted” achieves a balance to its narrative that I think is astonishing. The film starts with a focus on Tara and Richard, moves to Daddy Tara and Sewa, narrows in on Pastor Adams, and then flows into the story of Sewa’s son; these stories run concurrently and there’s just this evenhandedness about them. That way, the plot is well-rounded. The effect of this is a rich experience in which we see that everyone has their fair share of tears; everyone has their secrets and shortcomings; many have mobile prisons in their hearts where they’ve locked up those who have hurt them in one way or another. The beautiful thing though is that they all surrender to God and the result is what we have at the end – a happy family, restoration and solidification of old relationships, and building new ones. We see people with different kinds of challenges who come out as victors and are willing to look forward to a future filled with hope because of what Jesus has done, for His plans for us are of good and not evil, to give us an expected end.

To watch the video of this review, click below:

Till the next review, stay blessed!

REVIEW OF “MY MOTHER-IN-LAW”

“My Mother-in-law” was produced from the stables of the Mount Zion Film Productions. It was released on YouTube on Sunday, April 5, 2020, on Damilola Mike-Bamiloye’s channel. The 76-minute movie was written by Evangelist Gloria Bamiloye and directed by Damilola Mike-Bamiloye.

“My Mother-in-law” tells the story of Lola, who is about to get married to Tife, but has issues with her mother-in-law-to-be, and this sparks conflict when she eventually gets married to him. The focus is clear from the beginning; it’s a story addressing families and we usually get one or two of those every year from Gloria Bamiloye.

Lola is the main character here, played by Oguma Matha. I think this is her first feature in a Mount Zion movie and she excelled in it. She delivered her lines well and her mannerisms made her character believable. In the movie, Lola’s actions and inactions are driven the popular belief that African mothers-in-law are evil.

Lola is an archetype of many African single ladies. One thing that struck me about her character is that even though her friend, Sumbo, gives her the sound counsel that would make her home peaceful, Lola cannot really receive it because she views everything through her fear-tainted glasses. This is so much that she begins to regard the truth that can change her life, God’s Word, as philosophies. That’s how bad that wrong mindset had eaten deep into her being. The great thing about this movie is that though it seems targeted at wives and wives-to-be at first, it also portrays the truth that mothers-in-law, husbands and fathers-in-law need to know and live by.

The movie addresses this and uses every weapon in its arsenal to do it. In the first scene, we hear ‘Hello Sister’ by Jay-Mikee playing in the background. That’s a song that shows the nexus between one’s relationship with God and the choice of a good spouse. Then, the dialogue; there is a lot of exposition in this movie and so, it’s heavily dependent on dialogue. For me, the deep things shared in this movie are like five individual sermons. The movie testifies to this itself as Lola, at one time, tells Sumbo: “thanks for the sermon”. In this regard, I must commend the smooth delivery of lines by Evangelist Yemi Adepoju, especially at the end where he discusses the blessings of God’s covenant for the family.

“My Mother-in-law” also exposes the fear that some mothers have of ‘fake sisters’, but is quick to let us see that we should not let that fear drive us into sin. There’s no need to sexually ‘check out’ a lady before you get married to her.

Tife, played by Olumide Oki, delivers a line that I think is profound: “This is not a matter of prayer, but obedience.” This is not to say that prayers are not important, but after the place of prayer has been satisfied, the requirements of obedience must also be met. Take Sumbo for example; when her mother-in-law to-be rejects her, she goes to God in prayers and God inspires an idea for a solution in her. She obeys and the matter is resolved. Sumbo, played by Okitikpi Moyowa, delivers an excellent performance in a dining room scene to portray just how much she’d won over her mother-in-law. She is symbol of hope to single ladies out there for what a happy home and in-law relationship can be.

Some areas of the plot structure though, raised several questions in my mind. There were a few gaps that might have been better filled by the movie itself for a smoother watching experience, rather than we the audience doing it. For example, Sumbo asks Gbade, her fiancé, about Lola’s whereabouts; why? Couldn’t she have called Sumbo herself? Also, though the movie had the chance to tell us how close Tife’s and Lola’s wedding is on two occasions, they still only say ‘few months’. Knowing how many months the wedding was would have helped us in understanding the timeline of the movie’s events better. Lola had wanted Sumbo to be her best lady, yet, she only started considering it ‘few months’ to the wedding because Sumbo was now around. Where had Sumbo been? Why did she have to be around before Lola would consider her to be her best lady in this age when a call would give you all the information you need? What kind of friendship did they have that Sumbo had wedding in mind, in fact, just a month’s gap, and Lola would not know? Sumbo’s excuse was that Lola had not been around when her relationship with Gbade started; how soon did it start for the wedding to have been fixed? Was there no ‘introduction’? I know these questions have answers; I just think it would have better if those answers had been reflected in the movie itself.

Also, the subtitles had a few issues. Apart from some spelling errors, the subtitles were sometimes delayed in coming up on the screen. What’s more, some dialogue that the characters did not utter appeared as subtitles. I think problems like this can be avoided by proper and careful proofreading.

Ultimately, “My Mother-in-law” is a heart-warming, charming movie. I love the way this film ends; it gives you that good feeling that everything will be alright. The montage comprises cuts in action, with some slow motion, some dialogue, and was accompanied with a beautiful soundtrack by Jay-Mikee. The song itself is a message on its own; a message of love, not just in the family, but in the whole world.

So, what do you think about “My Mother-in-law”? What’s your most memorable scene in the movie? Put your thoughts in the comments section below.

To watch the review of the movie on my YouTube channel, click below:

To watch the movie itself, click below:

REVIEW OF “SHACKLES 2: FETTERS OF IRON”

Shackles 2: Fetters of Iron is a sequel to the original Shackles movie produced in 2019. It was a more satisfying experience than the first part. It built on the solid foundation that the first movie had created and ticked all the right boxes in what a sequel should be.

The tune that introduced the opening credits was on point and the graphics used were also appropriate. The visual effects here are more impressive than for Shackles. The pacing was well done; no scene feels too long or too short. Likewise, the balance between the plot and subplots is remarkable.

The story of Shackles 2 displayed really solid screenwriting by Evangelist Mike Bamiloye. The way he combined the familiar with the new in Shackles 2 typified great technicality. We see the regular – a couple (Albert and Kathy) in search of the fruit of the womb meeting with a prophetess whom we the audience already know to be fake. To a large extent, Kathy’s story pans out the way Evelyn’s did, but the novel elements inserted into the story make it more interesting to watch. It turns out Kathy already has a spirit husband, Memuthar, played by Gbenga Ayoola, and four children. So, the conflict is set up nicely among the agents of darkness themselves, and between them, and Albert and Kathy.

The message of this movie is very powerful, and I doubt anyone would watch this movie and not be blessed, saved, delivered or challenged spiritually. It’s worthy of note that while some might think this only fiction, it doesn’t cancel the fact that these things happen, more often than we think they do or we know of. The reality of the weapons of our warfare, particularly the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God, struck me in the first part and it touched me here again.

The characterization of this movie is so good. Nike Owah’s Kathy played the victim when, all the while, she knew the cause of her barrenness and kept that detail away from her husband. Her husband, Albert, played by Wole Adeyi is a self-deceived man. I say so because when he received godly warning, he turned a deaf ear and cajoled his wife into seeing the prophetess. We see quite a bit of Prophetess Nbanise in Shackles 2, wonderfully played once again by Gloria Bamiloye. I observed that she’s ‘gentle’ all through the movie. She’s afraid of what Gashiky and Memuthar would do to her and at the end, she’s sorry for deviating from God. So, it made me wonder where she had got it wrong; I believe that this is something that would be addressed in…another part, maybe?

One interesting thing about this story is the way the writer paints how God deals with His enemies. Though there is a new agent of darkness in the person of Memuthar, no further credence is lent to the power of the devil here. Rather, right from the beginning, the enemy camp is already in disarray. Gashiky wants to kill Nbanise who has served him for years, for just one error of giving him a couple that had the protection of their God. To atone for her error, she gets him married to a woman who already has a spirit husband. Also, since there’s no truth in the devil, Memuthar, his agent, could not also tell Gashiky the truth when he comes to meet Kathy. So, we see that Gashiky is limited in knowledge and does not even know that the woman he’s being married off to in the spirit already has four children with his subordinate. God has pit the enemies against themselves and has made an open show of them in ridicule and mockery.

However, there were a number of errors in the subtitles. Also, the timeline was a bit unclear because Edward’s and Evelyn’s son must have been at least one and a half years. So, my question is whether or not Gashiky had been in recuperation for one and a half years before he came to Mellion to exert vengeance.

This movie taught me one thing – if you say you’re a child of God, you’d better know the God you serve, because there’s so much deception out there, and many situations that will test what stuff you’re made of will come.

All in all, Shackles 2 is a very powerful film and I loved it. May God bless Flaming Sword Ministries International and Mount Zion Film Productions for always feeding us with these wonderful movies. At the end of the day, I pray we’ll all live victorious lives in Christ here on earth and reign with the Father when we get to heaven. Amen.

So, what did you think about Shackles 2? How did it bless you? Do you think there’s going to be a third part? Is this going to be a trilogy? Put your thoughts in the comments section below.

To watch a video review of Shackles 2 on my YouTube channel, click the link below.

FANTALK – “SHACKLES 2: FETTERS OF IRON”

You’re welcome to the first Fantalk episode of 2020. Today, we’ll be narrowing in on the first movie of 2020 to be premiered from Mount Zion Film Productions. Remember that last year, Shackles, a production from the collaboration between Flaming Sword Ministries International and MZFM was released. Well, it so turns out (unexpectedly I must say) that there is sequel to it tagged “Fetters of Iron”. We’re going to take a look at some production pictures released online last month and its trailer released this month, as we make cast, crew and plot guesses. So, let’s dive into it!

CAST

The pictures online were probably from a particular day of shooting because the characters’ costumes were mostly the same. We see Idiagbonya Samuel and Margaret Anenih reprise their roles as Edward and Evelyn here. It seems they are mentors to two new characters – Wole Adeyi (Life of the Billows, Abejoye Series) and Nike Owah (Gbemi, Death in the Pot). I was so excited when I saw Nike Owah in the movie stills. I think she’s a very talented actress but most times, she only makes cameos. This is probably because she is a very important crew member as the make-up artist. Well, now we get to see her for an extended period of screen-time.

We also see Mike Bamiloye’s Melandra Gashiky in a new princely garment. He seems to be the father/master of a new character Memuthar Hakunna, played by Gbenga Ayoola. Judging by his costume, he’s a warrior. From the trailer, Gloria Bamiloye also returns as Prophetess Mellion Umbanisi.

CREW

Daddy Mike Bamiloye is the director while Damilola Mike-Bamiloye is the DOP on this set. Joshua Mike-Bamiloye is in charge of music, and sound and visual effects, while also supervising editing, judging from a tweet he made a few days to the premiere. Ruth Adepoju would most likely be the editor while Tunde Owah is the production manager extraordinaire.

I spotted Kolo Peter who is probably the light man, while the pictures don’t reveal who the soundman is. Tolu Mike-Bamiloye is here as the continuity/script supervisor.

PLOT

From the trailer, it seems after failing to enslave the Edward family, Prof Umbanisi has to look for another couple which happens to be that portrayed by Adeyi and Owah. The husband seems to be the one whose faith is shaking this time around. Evelyn warns Nike Owah’s character about Gashiky’s deception but it seems she still falls.

He and Hakunna begin to harass her in the way Gashiky harassed Evelyn. Edward and Evelyn stand in the gap this time around. For one reason or the other, we see that Umbanisi and Hakunna shed some tears and experience some pain. We can safely assume that this means joy for Nike Owah’s character at the end of the day.

CONCLUSION

Fetters of Iron was premiered at the March 2020 Drama Ministers’ Power Night, and was billed to begin worldwide premiere but I think that would be on hold now, due to large gatherings being discouraged to prevent the spread of corona virus. I hope that when premieres commence again, I’ll get to watch it and bring you its review.

Till then, stay blessed!

“THE PRIME SUSPECT” REVIEW

The Prime Suspect is a mini-movie series from the stables of Horeb Digital that comprises nine episodes. The movie was written, produced and directed by Sola Adeaga, who played the role of Steve in the series. It is a 2020 production and there are a lot of things to say about this film.

The story is very good; it’s societal, political and spiritual in the same breath. It had compelling characters, suspense, intrigue and conflict – all you’d want from a series. The first episode was impressive and set the tone for what was to come; you would always look forward eagerly to the next episode. The Prime Suspect is about the president of a fictional country – the United Africa Republic – President Adebowale, played by Late David Komolafe. His journey is closely linked with that of his daughter – Cherish – played by Ayobami Olakunle, and Kola Brown, played by Victor Olafimihan.

This movie spares nothing in bringing in the cream of the crop in cast and crew. I feel that this is the level Nigerian gospel movies are getting to: a level where several professionals are brought in to work on a single movie project. I counted close to 200 cast and several others as crew. Definitely, a lot of money, time and manpower were invested in this production. The branded airplane was a remarkable sight. The underwater shot? I was wowed and I think it is novel as far as Nigerian gospel movies go. I like the fact that the movie had a very broad scope, a national scope that called for the use of other languages and dialects. The costuming was good and quite creative. The acting here was first class, especially Ayobami Olakunle’s. I hope she gets nominated for an award at Gospel Film Festival for 2020. Wole Olaleye also excelled in his part as Atiba who was the comic relief in a series that treats very serious issues of governance.

I made a lot of observations about this series. First is the fact that one of its main characters, David Komolafe, had passed away in 2017. This suggests that The Prime Suspect movie had been shot 3 years ago at the latest. We don’t know why it hadn’t been released before now (and there must definitely have been several challenges) but the testimony is that to the glory of God, it eventually came to fruition. This is highly commendable because this film is a wonderful production. I think this is a great lesson for gospel movie producers out there to never let their dream of producing great movies from the Lord die, for we will reap a harvest IF we do not give up.

It saddened my heart to find out that the renowned gospel actor is no more but there’s joy because he knew the Lord. Perhaps, this was his last participation in a gospel movie; it was nonetheless an exit in grand style.

I see the whole concept of The Prime Suspect as a lofty idea and I would say that it was a successful experiment. I use the word ‘experiment’ because from this mini-movie series, we see things that work and those that could be done differently for a greater production.

The removal of certain items would have made the movie feel more original. I’d have appreciated it better if the drone and establishing shots of The Prime Suspect had been shot by Horeb Digital herself, rather than what looked like stock footage. Also, the simulated driving by Wole Olaleye didn’t work for me. The scene in the House of Assembly where it seemed Automated Dialogue Replacement (ADR) was used for Elvon Jarrett should have been removed; it wouldn’t have been missed.

The major drawback of this movie must be the omissions – deliberate or circumstantial – in the plot. For example, we don’t know when Kola and Steve graduated from school and got jobs, we don’t know when Steve got married, we don’t know how the relationship with Cherish and Kola became amicable, considering the fact that it would naturally have been a vengeful relationship; neither do we know what information Kola supplied to have made the assassins want to kill him.

More time could definitely have been given to character development. Cherish’s mother and brother(s) were virtually non-existent until the sixth episode. Generally, if more time had been used in building the characters, it wouldn’t have felt out of place, neither would the pacing have been affected. This series therefore might have easily been referred to as an actual series, rather than a mini-movie series. It might have had 20-odd episodes for the audience to watch, enjoy and look forward to.

Most definitely, Sola Adeaga’s next series will be a full one and not a mini-movie series, because this one surely had the potential to be one. The Prime Suspect is done and dusted now and we look forward to the next. The producer has told us to be on the lookout for “a new, powerful Yoruba movie starring Tope Alabi”. Fingers crossed!

Click below to watch the full movie and subscribe to the producer’s YouTube channel to access more of his movies:

5 THINGS NIGERIAN GOSPEL MOVIES NEED IN 2020

Nigerian gospel movies have come a very long way since the 1980’s down to this new decade in the 21^st century. We have witnessed the production of many mind-blowing and deeply-impactful movies and the whole world has been blessed by them.

Nonetheless, like it is said, the largest room in the world is the room for improvement. For Nigerian gospel movies to get to the next level this year, here are five things I feel are needed:

1. ACCURATE SUBTITLES

The issue of inaccurate subtitles has long existed and has been long noticed by the audience. This problem is not peculiar to gospel films, as Nollywood and other Nigerian indigenous films with subtitles are not free from this problem.

In recent years though, more effort has been put into this and there has been great improvement. I feel we’ve gotten to a point where, being the start of a new decade, the ‘Evangetainment’ industry should capitalize on the times and deliver Christian films that have, not just better subtitles, but accurate, if not perfect ones.

I’ll use this opportunity to advertise my efforts in ensuring this task. I am a screenplay/script and subtitle editor, and I aim to deliver on 99.9% accuracy in subtitles. So, tell every gospel film producer out there that we can now have flawless subtitles at an affordable price. Let’s work together and make this year the beginning of impeccable subtitling in Nigerian gospel movies.

2. NOTIFICATION OF RELEASE DATES

There’s a way knowing the actual date of release of your favourite movie excites you. Movie lovers would look forward eagerly to the month of release and countdown to the actual date of its premiere. This structure hardly exists among gospel movies presently. I feel that with better planning, gospel movie lovers could be notified, perhaps three months ahead of the date of release of anticipated movies. This would only serve to increase the number of potential viewers as the build-up to such dates typically increases awareness of the movie.

3. TRAILERS

Closely linked to release dates is the matter of trailers. Trailers whet the appetite of potential viewers for a movie and give a fair idea of what they are to expect from it. I believe that over a period of three months, one or two trailers could be released online such that by the time the movie begins premiering, the viewer is already highly expectant.

4. NEW GENRES

There have been certain innovations with regards to genre in recent years. Seyi Obembe’s The Final Contest (2017) is a musical worth watching while we have also had a thriller like Damilola’s Mike-Bamiloye’s Land of Fury (2018) create a lasting impression on the minds of viewers. This year, or this decade, I’d like to see gospel movies go into uncharted territories of genres and produce films in Science Fiction, Action, Adventure and so on.

5. MOVIE AWARDS

In a bid to recognize excellence in movie productions in the previous year, movie awards are usually done. I know of only one film festival/movie awards ceremony in Nigeria – Gofestival organized by Olaitan Faranpojo. I hope that this year, this programme will be given greater publicity and coverage that would show the world that there are many gospel movies on show for quality entertainment and godliness.

In what ways do you think that Gospel movies can improve in 2020? You can comment below. Till the next article, stay blessed!