There’s this rush that comes with watching contemporary Nollywood movies. No offence to veteran actors like Fausat Balogun, Saint Obi, Bob-Manuel Udokwu, Olu Jacobs and Bukky Wright, and their pivotal roles in Nigeria’s movie industry but the difference between their time and the current Nollywood industry shows an interval bridled with innovation, creativity and exposition. This is clear and has put Nollywood in the spotlight for our stories to be heard our way. However, this has posed difficulties. Take, for example, the scene in Niyi Akinmolayan’s Lisabi: The Uprising where the main character, Lisabi, is some sort of demigod or super-warrior. Why was this only revealed 23 mins towards the end of the first movie? Or in Adebayo Tijani’s Alakada: Bad And Boujee where Rebecca decided to part ways with Yetunde because the charade with Mr Laha failed. How can this be the only reason throughout a movie that ran for 120 minutes? In fact, she seemed to enjoy scheming and conniving with Yetunde somewhat. These faults were too obvious in each movie and they raise a lot of questions. The most important, in my opinion, is what is the future of modern Nollywood?
Nollywood, a blend-word of “Nigeria” and “Hollywood”, drew reference from the manner and style with which key Yoruba theatre practitioners, like Hubert Ogunde and Kola Ogunmola, used to tell stories. Though redundant, these stories, told via celluloid, would advance the Nigerian movie industry to begin producing movies on VHS (Video Home Systems) as far back as 1992. As revolutionary as this period may have seemed, Nollywood constantly battled low-budget movie production, little autonomy and widespread copyright infringement. This caused filmmakers to make very little profit, despite churning out more movies than Hollywood. This sparked another evolution to the current state of Nigeria’s movie industry. Christened “New Nollywood”, the year 2010 (and thereafter) saw Nigerian filmmakers, directors and producers opt to improve the quality of the Nigerian movies. Notable achievements include national laws for copyright infringement, better equipment to enhance visual quality, adequate funding and better plots with dialogue.
Niyi Akinmolayan’s Lisabi: The Uprising is one of many movies produced in New Nollywood. Starring Lateef Adedimeji, Ibrahim Chatta and other prominent thespians, the movie tells the story of Lisabi (Lateef Adedimeji), a simple farmer from Egbaland who, upon losing his friend and community members to the hardship brought upon by leadership of the Old Oyo Empire, unites his people to stamp out oppression in their land. The movie displays the collective power of the people against their divine, autocratic and capitalist leaders and anchors itself on overarching themes like brotherhood, community and good versus evil. Upon its release, Lisabi: The Uprising garnered a lot of positive reviews and was given its due praise. With the outstanding performances of the cast and crew, the movie can only be described as thoroughly conceived, expertly produced and professionally delivered, a win for Nigeria’s movie making industry and culture. Equally worthy of praise is the Adebayo Tijani-directed, Alakada: Bad And Boujee. The fifth part of the infamous Alakada series, it stars Yetunde (Toyin Abraham) as the lead character who portrays herself as a famous and wealthy individual bent on seeking internet validation, legitimately or illegitimately. On this mission, she is aided by Abebi (Adebimpe Oyebade) and Rebecca (Bimbo Ademoye), both of whom employ any device in their arsenal, be it wit or allure, to bring Yetunde’s vision to reality. This movie itself is picturesque in that it is a rendering of the life of individuals who seek internet fame and popularity by any means necessary in modern society. At the end of the day, Yetunde admits to her clout-chasing behaviour and acknowledges the importance of being honest and humble about who she is and where she comes from. This message is well received by viewers, evidenced by the movie’s commercial records and success.Â
Given the rate at which Nollywood develops in all aspects, these movies exemplify the grit and determination with which the current generation of Nigerian filmmakers have used to build the current state of Nollywood. Yet, they expose the readiness of Nollywood film-making and cause an inquiry of Nigeria's movie industry when it comes to producing movies of certain genres. Lisabi: The Uprising, being historical in context, employs a lot of mysticism and metaphysical warfare to live up to its mandate. However, this delivery was poor because of the special effects used, which could be likened to a Yoruba adaptation of the 2004 video game, Underworld: The Eternal War. Like the latter, the special effects were abysmal and not given much consideration as regards execution. At some point in the movie, it seemed as though the special effects were “borrowed” scenes from other movies which fit the bill for a particular scene in the movie. Also, the scene where Lisabi was revealed to be a demigod, why did his friends (turned army generals) take in that information too calmly, as though they had forehand knowledge of their friend’s secret identity. Stretching further, why were hints not given as to Lisabi’s status as a demigod throughout the whole movie? In addition to this, Kunle Afolayan's “what farm are you taking us to” part was not worth the chuckle it was intended to induce for comic relief. The use of the incantation/proverb - a bulldozer never misses his way - is enough to doubt history’s assertions of the Old Oyo empire as it posits that modern technology was available in the Old Oyo empire. The icing on the cake would have to be the part where Sangodeyi (Ibrahim Chatta) was beheaded. From the sickle flying in the air as though thrown by the Prince of Persia to the part where Lisabi picked up Sangodeyi’s head, the testament to Nollywood’s fitness to produce or direct movies of this kind can be likened to the cordiality between the police and the people.
What Alakada: Bad And Boujee lacked in mysticism, it made up for with its integration of a salient characteristic of most New Nollywood movies - start out nice and slow, get to the middle and use the last thirty minutes to rush the plot and dialogue. An instance is the scene where Yetunde caught Madam Sharon (Ini Edo) and Cash (Kola Ajeyemi). There was nothing that was said to give up the whole idea behind why Madam Sharon threw the party. She never made mention of the purpose behind that so there was no need for Yetunde to jump to any conclusion but she went ahead anyway so that the movie could come to an end. With focus on Madam Sharon, she was easily carted away by law enforcement as though they were expecting her to slip up. The movie gave no backstory before or after the arrest had taken place. Lastly, as the movie’s lead character and the reason why the attack at Madam Sharon’s home took place, why did Yetunde fade into the background after telling Shola Shine Shine (Ronke Odusanya) what truly happened at Madam Sharon’s party? Did Yetunde get justice? More importantly, what is going to happen to her?Â
Both of these movies indicate a trend in storytelling in the modern Nigerian film industry. While Lisabi: The Uprising bordered mainly on historical storytelling imbued with the supernatural, Alakada: Bad And Boujee depicted a series of events that ultimately ended in Yetunde admitting to the error of her ways. On closer look, both of these movies revealed a huge gap when it comes to making films in the historical and comedy genres. Lisabi: The Uprising had a well-written script that could easily topple other movies in the same genre as the movie’s 107 minutes revealed that the dialogue and screenplay were thoroughly planned out and lacked the usual haste in Nollywood films. Though a sequel is expected, for a movie such as this, its storyline can only be applauded if its visual effects were on par with its script, which it sorely lacked. On the other hand, though the performance of the cast and crew were superb, Alakada: Bad And Boujee had too many gaps in dialogue, script and detail. Aside from commercial success, these movies showed the level of uncertainness and inability of Nollywood filmmakers to accurately produce movies in these genres. As a majority of the audience to these movies may lack in-depth knowledge of the movie industry, it goes without saying that a certain standard is expected. At present, our movie industry has a strong aptitude for romance movies. Though not perfect, this genre stands above all others and seems to be the only one worthy of a 7.5 IMDb rating. The level of technological advancement of Nollywood is also telling. Our filmmaking industry has done enough to improve the sound and visual qualities of movies but not how to properly produce and direct them. This pales in comparison to what is achievable when compared to our Hollywood counterparts. The fact that a little bit of nudity is now allowed in movies does little to sway from this important fact. The use of sufficient technology cannot be overstated.Â
The attention given to content from Africa, especially Nigeria, has grown in recent years. After fighting for our own independence, the world is eager to hear and see what we have to say since we are now in control. In the form of literary works, culture, arts and craft and, especially, movies, content churned out goes a long way in changing our international perception. Denying the fact that the creative catalogue of Nigerian filmmakers is far from exhausted would be a lie in and of itself. This article unequivocally opines that more can and should be done to broaden the genres of movies produced by Nigerian filmmakers. More importantly, more should be done to improve on the minute details in these movies. From the dialogue to make-up and setting, all of it matters, none more than the other, and each should not be overlooked because the manner and production of Lisabi: The Uprising and Alakada: Bad And Boujee show a level of uncertainty vis-à -vis the industry’s capability to properly produce comedy or historical movies and cast a very dark shadow as to the trajectory of filmmaking in Nigeria when it comes to movies outside the romance genre. The only light at the end of the tunnel is the level of consistency in improvement which Nigerian filmmakers possess. This propelled the evolution from VHS to streaming platforms like Prime Video and Amazon and is the determinant factor for Nollywood’s future dexterity. One can only guess what lies in store when it comes to filmmaking in Nigeria.
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