Story written & produced by Bolaji Ogunmola, this family drama titled “BLOODLINE” is directed by Great Val-Edochie. With screenplay by Fatimah Binta Gimsay and a runtime of 1hour 30minutes, the film is currently streaming on the producer’s YouTube channel with same name.

SYNOPSIS: (MAY include spoilers)

Ego (Chioma Nwosu) & Olabode ‘Bode’ Williams (William Benson) are a happy couple. When their son Ademide ‘Ade’ (Adeoluwa Akintoba) gets involved in an accident and is in desperate need of a blood transfusion following some internal bleeding due to a spleen laceration, the past would come calling. But this caller isn’t particularly bearing good news.

MY TAKE:

Straight up, this had a HUGE PROSPECT to be an outstanding movie given that the story is unique & refreshing but the approach to storytelling and its overall packaging needed a complete overhaul. By this, I mean from the script, to the casting, to the title, to location…you name it!

Story/Plot:

The story which hinges on paternity fraud takes a dive at how couples navigate their feelings of betrayal, anger, frustration, sadness and guilt during those times. The movie takes off from a flashback down memory lane 21years ago when younger Ego (played by Bianca Ugowanne) found herself running into the arms of her ex at the time (younger Bode played by Myde Glover) as a result of being mistreated by her then boyfriend Ejike. Next scene, we are taken to the present where Ego is living happily with her family.

With talks about rain in the flashback and twice in the present, one would think that this movie would be somewhat about the fear of rain (ombrophobia); at least so I thought. But this takes a different turn (which is fine). We then see a dutiful father/husband in the person of Bode (William Benson). You begin to wonder “what could possibly go wrong here?” An element for intrigue…!

Soon after the ambience is set for something interesting and suspenseful, unfortunately, the second act came right in and watered down the good foundation that had been laid. The script is not all that smashing with lines that make you scratch your head and question your IQ. The third act didn’t help matters much either. A viewer like myself was plunged into a state of delulu, confusion so much so that I had to watch this film a second time cos I absolutely wanted to enjoy it given the cast. However, even the cast couldn’t salvage the situation.

Casting/Performance:

Trust William Benson to always put his best foot forward. He delivered his craft, no cap as one could tell he’s a genius at this thing called acting. Chioma Nwosu too brought on her charm & lovable presence. Nevertheless, together as a couple, I make bold to say, this was a miscasting. Please stick with me, we’ll come to this later on in this review.

Direction/Execution:

The sequencing isn’t bad but there just appears to be either some missing pieces or misplaced bits in this movie that keeps a viewer confused with unending questions that lead no where and never gets answered.

Crew:

Location wise, I don’t understand that space used for the hospital. It was too residential and impracticable. I’ve seen small spaces used as healthcare facilities but this didn’t exactly tick the box in my opinion. I’ll blame this on the cinematography. You can actually cover a small space without the viewers knowing its actual size. I’ve seen movies where this is done. Costuming and makeup were nonetheless good and natural.

Observation/Question:

1. Why did Ego break up with Bode in the first place when they were much younger? I mean, she kept repeating and even defending him for how much of a good man he is/was. Probably one of those ladies who just wanted to explore or felt that he was too nice for her. This reason for their breakup was however not stated clearly or implied in the story or was it? I’d like to know, please!

2. I know I always advocate that producers must not always feature in their movies. In fact, I commend the producer for stepping back from this project. However, on this occasion, (no disrespect to anyone…I love Chioma Nwosu, the lead actress), but I think there was some miscasting going on here. Please don’t take this the wrong way. Without mincing words, Bolaji Ogunmola herself would have been a better fit for that role. Of course this would then have a ripple or domino effect on about 80% of the story where somethings would have to be adjusted. For instance, a kid-actor (around 6-8years old) would then have to play their son as opposed to the grown graduate with a girlfriend (who wasn’t significant to the story to begin with). Hence I mentioned “a complete overhaul” initially. The cast combo here didn’t make the story a very believable one.

3. There were at least three persons mentioned in this film that WE NEVER GOT TO SEE. Ejike (Ego’s ex), Nkem (the couple’s daughter) and Ego’s mum. While I can accept the absence of Ego’s mum (not very necessary in this instance), the other two however were too pivotal & vital to the story to have been relegated to just talks of them. I mean they were mentioned severally throughout the movie. Was this for lack of funds? Then why not adjust the script for budget sake? We don’t need to be hearing about people in movies that we won’t see.

4. Bode mentioned that he found out 4 days after their daughter Nkem was born. Now, this same Nkem we would understand is in school (meaning she’s not a child). Which means he’s always known for a very long time “21 years of our lives he says”. Since he knew all that time, the switch or jump from a loving, caring and sweet father and husband they showed us initially to an embittered, resentful one out of the blue after Ade’s accident wasn’t particularly a smooth one. They tried hard to justify this in the plot but it didn’t exactly fly. I didn’t buy it!

5. The gaslighting arising from Ego’s outburst towards Ade was just so cringey.

6. Habiba, Ade’s girlfriend (played by Darasimi Ogbetah) had no business talking to Ade’s mum about the paternity issue. It was absolutely not in her place. I cringed at that scene. I screamed at my screen like “girl…can you not just talk about it! It’s a family matter…you’re not family yet!”

7. That kiss between Ade and Habiba was not necessary. In my opinion, it appeared more like the producer just wanted to satisfy a certain audience in the film since Bode and Ego didn’t share a kiss. I stand to be corrected!

8. Which Man in this day and age would find out about the true paternity of a child and keep quiet for all that time? I know people pretend but THIS? Arrrgh!

9. Should we talk about the title and the note at the end of the film? Naaaah! It was giving contradiction…miles apart from the story! A different title would have been better. Possibly “FARCE” “BETRAYED” or “MINE, NOT MINE” Just anything but BLOODLINE!

Conclusion:

As mentioned earlier, this had the potential of being an incredibly powerful story. It however wasn’t as engaging, compelling, interesting nor entertaining as I had hoped. Suspenseful and intriguing at first but into the second act of the film, this turned confusing and ultimately left a bland taste for a viewer like myself. Perhaps if more thoughts and planning had gone into the pre production stage, this would have turned out better.

Verdict: 3/10

Have you seen this? What did you think?