Alaye, a film by actress Ruth Kadiri which stars her and skitmaker Samuel Perry aka Broda Shaggi, is one movie I can never recommend to anyone. I even wondered how it got a space on a popular streaming platform. The kind of movies that made entry into that platform this month is beginning to make me lose interest in it. Such films can even be termed too low for YouTube. I’m glad Alaye didn’t pass through cinemas before the streaming platform.
Alaye tells the story of Catherine, portrayed by Ruth Kadiri, who finds herself in debt to Gabby, a sinister businessman who looks like a crossdresser. While trying to raise money to pay her debt, she unwillingly welcomes Funmilade, portrayed by Broda Shaggi, into her house, leading to a series of dramas. Directed by Okey Ifeanyi, the film also stars Eddie Watson, Aloma Isaac, and Atewe Raphael.
This movie prides itself in being a comedy-drama but it failed to amuse me or make me laugh. When I paused the movie to see how far it had gone, I realized I was 40 minutes into it without feeling its impact. Alaye felt like a concoction delivered because cameras ended up in the wrong hands.
Unimpressive acting
In this movie, Ruth Kadiri looked still stuck in the Nollywood of the early 2000s, a period when everything was tolerated. Her acting was poor, especially whenever she was trying to express anger. She should hire professionals if she has money to throw away on movies. That’s better than being the producer and lead actress and having her face plastered on all film scenes. Nollywood needs to understand that not every actor needs to transition to a movie producer or director. It is even worse when those who were poor in acting now transition to directorial roles.
When will Broda Shaggi play a movie role that disconnects him from his skit-maker persona? I’ve seen several films he starred in, and they all had him play roles 100 per cent similar to his Broda Shaggi nature. He has to realize that such roles are becoming boring already.
Cinematography
I really shouldn’t waste time talking about the cinematography of this movie. This is because it is a low-budget movie. The only good thing is how the characters’ skin tones appear, either through good lighting on set or through colour grading. The movie has a poor daytime outdoor look but a manageable indoor look. Had it been the story was good, the picture quality would have been overlooked by me.
Costume
There is nothing to write home about when it comes to costumes and set design. The characters just wore regular clothes, while most of the movie was shot inside a house that I can pass off as Ruth Kadiri’s. At this point, I wonder why theatre arts graduates are still allowing mediocrity from old Nollywood to call the shots, knowing fully well that such is ruining the industry.
In conclusion, Alaye is not a movie worth seeing, except if you intend to waste your precious time. It gets a 2/10 and is the poorest film I’ve seen this year.
