Friday, 30 October 2015

Movie Review: FIFTY




Movie Review
Title: FIFTY
Genre : Comedy
Cast : Ireti Doyle,  Omoni Oboli, Nse Ikpe-Etim, Dakore Egbuson-Akande and Wale Ojo
Producer: Mo Abudu
Director : Biyi Bandele
Reviewer: Ada Dike



 The theme of this feature film, FIFTY, centres on love, hatred, motherhood, lust, infidelity and so on.
At the peak of four beautiful, middle class women’s career, just like it happens in reality, each of them is battling with one issue or the other. The movie opens with a bold and beautiful medical expert, Lizzy (Ireti Doyle) alighting from her vehicle and being followed by photographers who flocked around her.
Lizziy tries to overcome her past by making herself happy but, this leads her to sleeping with her daughter’s boyfriend, which creates a deep gully between them as her daughter finds it difficult to forgive her. But, she is doing all she can to win back her daughter’s love. She corrects and advises her friends and also carries on with her life and ensure she unwinds as at when due when she is not at work. Along the line, she starts dating a younger loose, guy who not only makes advances to Lizzy’s friend, Maria, but also sleeps with another lady on Lizzy’s bed.
 In another scene, a TV show presenter, Tola (Dakore Egbuson-Akande) from a rich background has everything going on for her but a secret, an abuse she suffered from her father while growing up poses as an impediment for her to enjoy her marriage with her husband, Kunle (Wale Ojo). This prompts her husband to seek love and romance elsewhere. Worried by the incessant quarrel between his daughter and his son in-law, Tola’s father (Taiwo Obileye) gets the insult of his life when he tries to make peace between his daughter and her husband. “That man is nothing but a beast. I want to get someone to slit his throat,” Tola screamed.
Meanwhile, a beautiful, brainy and hard working lady in her early fifty, Maria (Omoni Oboli), has everything going on well for her but, cares less about having children. Along the line, she finds herself enjoying the company of Kunle. To her surprise, she is pregnant for Mr. Love-seeker and says, “That is impossible Lizzy, I am 50!” Please watch the movie if you want to know whether she aborted the pregnancy or not.
Kate (Nse Ikpe-Etim), an event planner and a wife becomes a prayer warrior, always sleeping in the church and laying her petition to God to heal her of a life threatening disease, cancer. “Why is God unhappy with me? Why did He curse me?” Her husband, Chike (Mr. Nnochiri), a gambler is shocked when she informs him of her illness and he quickly follows her to a hospital to see a doctor.
The movie ends when the heart of matter is blown open between mother and son during Tola’s 50th birthday celebration.
In my entire life, I haven’t felt the way I did after watching FIFTY. What a film, so enlightening! It is one of Nollywood’s finest movies ever created that keeps the audience in great suspense.
The able director, Biyi Bandele, sure proved his onions in the film. Also, the executive producer, Mo Abudu, has given us another work for people to appreciate her more not only in Nigeria but all over the world. Beautifully produced, directed and edited, the actors delivered their roles well and there was no noticeable error. The soundtrack, audio and picture qualities were superb. In terms of their make-up, it was light and suitable for women in their early fifties. The location of the movie was okay as this movie presented the middle and upper class area of Lagos. It presented Lagos in a beautiful dimension, especially, the aerial view of Ikoyi, Lagos Lagoon, Third Mainland Bridge and Lekki-Ikoyi Bridge.
Honestly, I implore whoever wants to learn how to handle issues of life as they surface to watch FIFTY. It was quite entertaining hearing Tola spoke English Language like a typical Lagos Nigerian women without adding foreign phonetics to it.
Lizzy was an all-rounder. She stole my heart with the way she handled every issue ranging from her daughter’s hatred for her for betraying her trust and love to issues that concerned her friends and her lover-boy. She called a spade a spade and blamed Maria for sleeping with Kunle. Kate almost cracked my ribs when she broke the news to Tola that Maria was the one sleeping with her husband. On other hand, her condition will make everyone sober.
I would have loved to see a flashback of where Tola’s father was committing the atrocity. But, I was surprised to hear Tola’s mother blaming her daughter for dressing indecently and flaunting her curves in their home which aroused her father to sleep with her. As an African mother, she supposed to advise her daughter how to dress decently. My emotion failed me towards the end of the movie during Tola’s 50th birthday when she held her supposedly brother close having drank herself to stupor while guests were waiting for her to be in the hall. There, the mystery was unraveled and they revealed the truth to each other. Please book ahead and watch this movie if you want to know what happened between them.
I did want the movie to end because it touched many aspects of life and arts. The movie was also spiced up with scenes that showed where some of Nigeria’s great artistes such as King Sunny Ade, Femi Kuti, Tiwa Savage and Waje were thrilling some audiences.
It will interest you to know that FIFTY will premiere in Nigeria with a special Grand World Premiere on December 13, 2015 at The Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos. FIFTY will be released in cinemas nationwide on December 18, 2015. Some of the cinemas include: Filmhouse, Genesis Deluxe Cinemas, Silverbird, Viva Cinemas, Kada Cinemas, Ozone Cinemas and so on.


No comments: