Review - The Mirror Boy (2011 Film)

Tuesday, June 10, 2014


I was super-excited about this one. I’d read the reviews and seen the previews, it seemed like a new, interesting story. But was it?


A foreign take on an ‘African’ tale


The Rundown

Behind the name: Watch to find out
Country: Nigeria, 2011
Genre: Drama
Director:  Obi Emelonye
Cast: Genevieve Nnaji (as Tina), Edward Kagutiuzi (as Tijan), Osita Iheme (as Mirror Boy), Fatima Jabbe (as the Queeen), Felix Ceesay (as the Seargeant), Victor Carvalho (the Chief), John Charles Njie (as Samba)
                     Compare to: The Figurine 
Hate it or Love it?  Enjoy it

Synopsis in a Sentence: UK-born Gambian boy ventures into Gambia for the first time, where he gets missing and begins a voyage “back to his roots…”.
           
On Writing: The Plot
The story itself is not originally African. It is a foreign take on an African tale. It reflects how the foreigners see Africa, or perhaps, how the foreign African sees Africa. The tale’s intention was good—to re-connect foreign Africans with their mother land. But while that was done, the story also played into the trite tale of ‘primitive, mythical, diabolical’ Africa. Not in a condescending method, but relayed with childlike newness to the elements of African stories. The plot’s technique might be easily misinterpreted by the African and by the foreigner. It is not a bad story, but perhaps it could have performed better to reflect the originality and the authenticity and the beauty of a unique African tale, even from a foreign perspective.
(3.5/5)


On Acting: The Cast
Genevieve Nnaji
Miss Genevieve Nnaji, as expected, is the star of the movie. She plays Tina, mother of Tijan, the hero of the story. She is easily one of Africa’s most talented actresses. And deserves more praise for her proud carriage of African talent. This lady never seems to waver her comportment in the fact that she is a Nigerian, whatever that might mean today. That, in itself, is to be praised. We see far too many African celebrities feigning familiarity with foreignness, and Nigeria is proud to have a talented actress that does her job well, and waves her flag high; whether she does it deliberately or not.

Edward Kagutiuzi
Edward Kagutiuzi, who plays Tijan, does a fair job of playing his character. He’s interesting enough to watch, and to a certain degree, we feel quite connected to his character. It is sometimes clear that his lines come before him, and sometimes seem a bit too rehearsed, but not excessively. In all fairness he does a good job of it.

Osita Iheme plays the Mirror Boy. He’s a good actor, but for the fact that his lines also precede him in some cases. He even plays out a bit more rehearsed than Kagutiuzi, which is quite surprising. Perhaps this comes because many of his lines are proverbial anecdotes, and he may be more suited to comedy. Overall, not a bad job though.

 (3/5)


On Production: The Creativity
Production is very, very good. Great angles, good shots, nice symbolism. It’s great. But for one little note—the music, sometimes, is so deliberate, as though it screams to want to inspire its viewers. It’s not a totally bad thing, but a little bit to note. Overall, fabulous work on the production side.

(4/5)                                             


On Resolution: The Conclusion
It ends quite well. Perhaps the ending is the best part of it all. It’s overall a good story worth seeing. Just don’t think you’ve experienced a real African tale from it. Regardless, it's great to see the collaboration between Nollywood and other African film industries. Shoutout to the Gambia! 

(4/5)

The Verdict: A foreign-West African story not commonly told, with great production

Overall Score = 14/20




Watch The Mirror Boy [http://irokotv.com/video/5553/the-mirror-boy]

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