I wish I had three hours with a shrink to get over the two hours I just spent watching “An Hour With The Shrink”. What the Shrink even has to do with the storyline I have no idea. It appears that the character is just being used as a sounding board to fill in the gaps not being explained in normal film time.
Coming from Heat Factory ICI, whose previous titles include Diana’s Verdict and Hourglass, this film is far from the “Nollywood Chart cracker” it was promised to be.
The lead character is a confused man who comes across more like a sufferer of Bipolar Disorder than of any previous emotional trauma. In fact, it could have been a groundbreaking storyline if the possibility of Bipolar Disorder actually was explored rather than whatever male-chauvinistic-jealous-guilt mysogyny was offered up in its place.
The skeleton was there for a good film but unfortunately the pantomime of Nollywood quickly kicked in. Half sentences and unnecessary cliffhangers, pointless cameos for the sake of a star-studded cast. With regards to the storyline high marks cannot be awarded. It didn’t feel original or compelling.
Just as in the films of the old days, we are gifted with the long drawing out of a script until the final minutes when absolutely everything happens and ties that were never alluded to suddenly bind random characters together.
That can be forgiven in earlier Nollywood, or with veteran actors, it cannot be accepted with the stock this director had to play with. I suggest given the cast that the production team was able to sign-up, they should have spent more time finding better writers to compete with “new” Nollywood. This script was just not made for fee-paying 2016 African cinema-goers.
The acting is difficult to assess given the quality (or lack of it) in the script. The entire sitting was filled with forced tears and emotionally unstable characters. Every scene is on the edge of a breakdown. What heavens for?! In addition, IrokoTV list just one actor, Ngozi Ezeonu, in the cast, but she is not there, do not be deceived.
This film stars lead actor Gbenro Ajibade as Emmanuel, the husband; lead actress Annie Macaulay Idibia as Ima, the wife; KC Ejelonu as the Shrink, two ladies unnamed in the titles or the credits who play very critical roles in the development of the story, Amber played by Monique Samuel and Rose, played by Cynthia Shallom.
Finally, Segun Arinze is that heavyweight inclusion which I guess validates the production of this film. It’s a small cast and a small crew, such is the beauty of Nigerian films. In fact, so few was the crew that they left just 15 seconds at the end of the film for credits, the cast was not even credited.
Kudos to the DOP Emmanuel Imeh Frank and Editor David Psalms (Jassy) for what looks like an attempt to control the cinematographic quality of the film. The titles and the credits were a disappointment however. The opening titles were frankly boring.
Each cast member’s name simply wiping across on a black screen with weird unsettling music in the background harkening back to old Nollywood. And to finish the film David Psalms the Editor, decided to post his phone number in size 72 font in the credits which was a faux pas on his front.
The sound seemed to slip in and out of an echo not just caused by our cemented walls and tiled floors--perhaps something funny occurred in post-production which they couldn’t fix.
It feels necessary to end with some positives so that I am not accused of being a hater. Firstly, the film is 120 mins long, which conforms to western conventions of a movie and is a drift away from the 'epicly' lengthened nature of Nollywood films.
I personally don’t mind those, so seeing this shorter film as a positive is purely subjective to who you are and the time you have. Secondly, the film begins at the shrinks office. In this sense, it was in good keeping with the title. The film is currently available on IrokoTV, if you get a subscription. Watching it, is not emphatically recommended.
Production: Heat Factory ICI
Director: Ideh Chukwuma Innocent (OneSoul)
Written by JP Wordsmiths
Produced by ONESOUL
DOP: Emmanuel Imeh Frank
Editor: DAVIDPSALMS (JASSY)
Starring Gbenro Ajibade, AnnieMacaulay Idibia,KC Ejelonu, Cynthia Shallom, Monique Samuel, Segun Arinze.
Written By : Charlene Bello
