By Yvonne Williams
I love you!’ A phrase often said, but rarely meant. How easily those words spill out of our mouths, but when it all comes to getting right down and dirty, the question remains – ‘How far are we willing to go?’
There she was Mojisola (Kehinde Bankole) – humming to blazing jams in her ride as she cruised along, eager to rush into the waiting arms of her fiancé Benji (Okey Uzoeshi) she was in sweet beautiful love and so loving the feeling. Suddenly, within a flash, fate deals her one staggering bitter blow and her whole world comes crashing down!
One minute, her world was perfect; she had it all –Beautiful on the inside and out with a selfless heart dedicated to the service of others, wealthy parents, who loved her silly, a degree in Law from one of the world’s most prestigious universities – Havard, and to wrap up this fairytale, it was just moments away before she would be walking down the aisle with her childhood sweetheart turned “love struck” fiancé Benji (Okey Uzoeshi). Life obviously couldn’t get any better – not quite, it could get a whole lot messier and it most certainly did.
Love, hope, anxiety, betrayal, suspense, romance, effortless humour, easy dialogue, undeniable chemistry, ‘Beyond Blood’ aims to address a variety of societal issues (prostitution, human trafficking, homosexuality, HIV, sexism, morals, family values, culture) and applaudably, with its edutaining plot it succeeds.
‘Produced from the stables of Royal Roots entertainment in conjunction with HF Media, shot in Nigeria and London, the romantic thriller boasts of a star studded cast who deliver their roles brilliantly utilizing a fine blend of the English, Yoruba, Pidgin and French languages to appeal to different classes of audience.
Although,’ Beyond Blood ‘commendably excels in pulling off an entertaining, inspiring and aibeit long movie effortlessly without any signs of forced dialogue unlike most typical movies, one cannot overlook the oversight that was made in the script; Earlier in the movie, the audience is made to understand that Mojisola is a proud graduate of Harvard, but somehow along the line, this was replaced with Oxford. Details details.
Produced by Greg Odutayo and directed by Debbie odutayo. Beyond Blood stars : Kehinde Bankole (‘Moji’), Joseph Benjamin ( Akin Pedro), Bimbo Manuel (Moji’s father), Shan George (Nkechi), Okey Uzoeshi (Bengy), Deyemi Okanawon (Tunji), Carol King (Bola), Wole Ojo ( Ladi Dosunmu), Ijeoma Grace Agu( Susan) and Marion Bott (Daniella).
Verdict – ‘Beyond Blood’ has a lot working for it, star power, brilliant interpretation of roles, interesting plot, impressive picture quality and all, one question we ask is – Does this Romantic Thriller blend in with its stereotype predecessors or does it raise the bar? My take – The former.
Nollywood Observer 