PHONE SWAP- The Review PT 2

In typical Nollywood fashion, welcome back to the Part Two of Phone Swap - The Review. Hopefully this will be the last part. Alright,I'm going to continue from where I left off. The first part was basically the downside or what some people call the epic fail in movies. Good news is, the Upside definitely outweighs the Downside. I'll try as much as possible to arrange my thoughts in a manner that will grant you easy understanding because they seem to be all over the place. #Excited.

This is the part where honor will be given where it is due. I must say I am mighty proud of Golden Effects Production. They executed top notch professionalism in all film making departments ranging from good acting, awesome directing, fantastic script writing, sound, lighting, set design, camera movements and shots, Costume, Make up, you name it. I'll point out some of the things that stood out.

All the sets used in this movie are totally realistic. believe it or not, the interior of that airplane Akin and Mary were in, was shot on stage. YES STAGE! Isn't that amazing? Nigerian film makers should borrow a leaf from this production. It doesn't have to always be about cutting cost and saving time. You need to SACRIFICE for something you are passionate about.

Another Set I really loved was Mary's Home. Both the exterior and interior depicted the kind of live in space most tailors who are trying to keep body and soul together lodge in.

 The Sets used in Rural Owerri and Urban Abuja plus the office Scene were incredibly realistic. Both worlds were depicted perfectly through the way and manner the scenes were set.

Aexis' fashion outfit was another realistic Set, among others.

I'd briefly touch on Make - up as well. You know how female cops paint their faces and look hedious under the sun while trying to maintain law and order? That was the kind of make-up used on Cynthia (Ada Ameh) who was an officer of the law in the Movie. Alexis' make-up also depicts the kind that all these wanna be society ladies wear just to ''stand out''. Hideous!! Make up was excellently done. Costumes were also very appropriate for the characters being portrayed.

Madam Alexis

Cynthia

Ghanaian Girlfriend (Lydia Forson)

Hussana

Alpha and Omega 

I'm going to say acting in this movie is first class. My personal favorite is Chika Chukwu (Hussana). She balanced humor and seriousness without making it unreal. It seemed like a very natural part of her and I loved it. Acting is supposed to be natural and not forced. If it's not in you, then it means you need to work harder. We need to see more of her in our TV Sets. Another Duo I liked were Alpha and Omega (The Twins). Their names alone will send you laughing straight to the floor. All Characters were portrayed excellently well. Who won't love some Ada Ameh, Joke Sylva and Chika Okpala?


Some camera angles and shots left me breathless. I'd leave a few pictures below to speak for themselves.

A lot of products were advertised in this film and I believe its a way of showing your sponsors and those working hand in hand with you that you appreciate them as a film maker for going on this not-so-easy journey with you. I spotted Globacom, Pepsi, 7up, IRS Airline, among others.

There were lots and lots of hilarious scenes in the movie. I'd recommend it anytime and any day to people whose spirits are down and need some form of activity to help liven them up. Below are some of my favorite scenes from the movie.

The fight between Akin and his girlfriend

The applause given to Akin for eating with his hands

The frank talk between Akin and Cynthia

When Akin had a ''Bonding'' moment with Alpha and Omega

Did Cynthia's husband sit on her lap?! LoL

Genuine laughter #Happiness

When Hussana broke the news about Mary's new boyfriend to Tony.

The moment Akin fell in Love with Mary

When Akin arrived Owerri proper. LOL that look on his face!

The tatafo neighbour. (They're everywhere)

''Did you just roll your eyes at me'' moment between mother and son. 

When Tony used diplomacy to turn down his birthday gift

I also appreciate the fact that Phone Swap was dedicated to Nigeria's very own Sam Loco Efe who passed away shortly before the movie was made. He was supposed to play the role of Mary's dad and Chika Okpala humbly accepted to play that character after Sam's demise. May the Gentle soul of our veteran actor and all other actors in the industry who have passed away rest in the bosom of the Lord. Amen.

Do I recommend this movie to all those who haven't seen it? Of course YES! It is a must watch for everyone as it is family friendly and cuts across all ages. Laughter they say keeps you young and healthy and is food for the soul. Too much laughter isn't bad for anyone. I'd say go out there and purchase ORIGINAL DVDs from retail outlets and let's fight piracy together.

God Bless Kunle Afolayan, more grease to his elbow. God bless Nollywood (We shall get there), and God bless our darling Country Nigeria.

Don't forget to share this review with friends and family.

TOGETHER WE CAN KICK PIRACY OUT OF NIGERIA.

PHONE SWAP- The Review PT 1

The movie Phone Swap can easily pass as one the most effective comic films produced in the history of Nollywood movies.I know I'm a bit stale and all, seeing that the movie was released in the year 2012, but reviewing Phone Swap I believe will be a good way to revive my blog which has been fallowing for over a year ;)

Lets Get down to the Review proper. Phone Swap was officially released in the year 2012 as mentioned above, but those who didn't have the opportunity to watch it that year (C'est moi), have been able to purchase ORIGINAL DVDs which were released sometime in December last year (2014).

The Cast of the movie Phone Swap is extremely rich because it's filled with Veterans, A-List Actors and Upcoming actors and actresses alike. These Actors include Joke Sylva, Chika Okpala (Zebrudaya), Wale Ojo, Nse Ikpe Etim, Lydia Forson, Ada Ameh, Chika Chukwu, Hafiz Oyetoro (Saka) among others. It was directed by our very own Kunle Afolayan. The Story was written by the very talented Kemi Adesoye.

Phone Swap is a Romantic Comedy about two adults who bumped into each other at the airport and mistakenly swapped phones. This event leads them into a weekend in each other’s lives. Akin finds himself in Owerri (Mary's Hometown), while Mary finds herself in Abuja (Akin's family home). Both worlds are poles apart as Mary Lands in Paradise while Akin lands in what seems like Hell. Both parties have to seize the opportunity to help each other achieve what was actually taking them to their various destinations. Akin had to Solve some Family issues while Mary had to help Akin deliver a message to the chairman of the organization where he works. There are however so many scenes in-between that excellently portray life in Rural and Urban Nigeria respectively.

Now i'm about to get down and dirty. there's no such thing as a perfect movie. Movies can be near perfection at most but often times than not, there are usually errors that are either glaring or subliminal in what some of us might call the BEST MOVIE OF ALL TIME. i'll try as much as possible to support my claims with pictorial evidence *wink*

Now, look at that dress Madam Alexis (Mary's Boss) is holding. According to the movie, that dress is worth 100,000 Naira. Infact let me write it in words: One Hundred Thousand Naira !!! The dress is pretty BUT even in high end boutiques down here in Abuja and probably in Dubai, you can't purchase a dress like this for more than Thirty Thousand Naira (30,000), which is still very expensive. They should've made the price of the dress realistic.

Let me start this part by saying i am a huge Hafiz Oyetoro (Saka) fan, but his talent was underused in this movie. His character was supposed to be this funny office snoop who gathers underground info for his boss, and also supplies info to other people about his boss. He was obviously trying so hard to be funny but eventually nailed 20% of the comic relief he was supposed to deliver. Love you Saka but the truth according to my books has got to be said.

I wish I had an audio clip to back up my next point (Will work on that) but I hope this photo helps. Look out for this phone call scene at the beginning. Mary according to this movie is an Igbo girl from Imo State, Nigeria. In reality though, Nse Ikpe Etim is from Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria. There was a serious mother tongue interference in the Igbo she spoke all through the movie. It was an excellent attempt but MTI just had to mess things up for her delivery.

This next point is what I call 'The Tyler Perry Syndrome'. I'll explain. The Tyler Perry Syndrome can be defined as the situation where the director of a movie acts in most or all of his or her movies. I believe the job of a director is tough enough as it is. Adding acting to directing can be very tasking. I really don't know how Tyler Perry does it but he is in most or all of his movies. Kunle Afolayan (The Recharge Card Person Above) is in almost if not all the movies he has directed. There are a million and one upcoming actors out there who can execute this role perfectly well. He should give such persons a shot so that when the person finally makes the A-List, he'd be proud to have helped in building his or her acting career.

The final oops moment in my books is the part where Madam Alexis decided to pay for a two way flight ticket to Owerri for Mary to go and sort out her FAMILY ISSUES. Now this point is based on making stories realistic. There are good people with kind hearts in Nigeria, but which small scale business owner will take out money in the region of 50,000 Naira to pay for her staff's flight ticket? The highest she would've done is to allow her travel. That is more realistic. If she had asked for a loan, then that's a different story entirely. Like I said earlier, if she had just permitted her to travel for a couple of days, it would've been more realistic.

At this particular juncture, we're going to take a break. Watch out for the other part of this review which has all the surplus A Class moments in this movie ranging from acting, to costumes, set designs, make up, soundtrack, you name it. All claims will be backed up with pictorial evidence.

God Bless You For reading Part 1!!! And don't forget to share *Wink*