With story and screenplay written by Mfon-Abasi Micheal Inyang, directed by Great-Val Edochie, produced by Susan Ogutuga and Executively produced by Tomi Adeoye & Omoni Oboli, this movie titled “A Night With Mr. Daniels” is now streaming on the latter’s YouTube channel with same name.

Synopsis: (MAY contain spoilers) 

Ibiere Johnson (Detola Jones) lives with her mum Omah (Eyiyemi Olivia Rogbinyin). Ibiere is in desperate need of a job so she can take care of her sick mum who has had to fend for her for over two decades, working with Madam Adaku (Harriet Akinola).

Mr. Adetayo Daniels Adetunloye (Daniel Etim-Effiong) is a Prince, CEO/MD of Foxray Group and a self-made multimillionaire. He’s in search of a wife. But there’s a ‘BUT’ as there are clauses and strings attached for any prospective wife.

To find out what these are, why not grab your popcorn and/or favourite drink, munch, sip along as you follow events unfold in this drama with a runtime of 1hour 30minutes.MY TAKE:
I must confess they really got me with the doppelgänger thing in the first scene of this movie. Perpetual Ukadike who played Nneka, ah, she sure has similar physique as Detola. Kudos to the casting director, I didn’t see that coming.

The acting here was natural from all the actors. The picture quality, props and location was equally great. Script delivery was amazing especially from ma’am Eyiyemi who kept reminding me of the very legendary Joke Sylva as per looks, diction, speech mannerisms, facial expressions and even body carriage and disposition.

While the duration was impressive and befitting of the storyline and plot, this was however highly predictable. The only source of intrigue was at the beginning of the movie which was shortlived and became clearer way sooner..

Everything else after that is pretty much a “damsel in distress with a knight in shiny armour to her rescue” trope. Only that this time, it’s a Prince who readily hands a black credit card with a 100million naira spend limit to just anyone.

This was interesting to watch as it made me smile in some instances but there were many times I rolled my eyes too due to head scratching moments! The costumes and makeup here were also not particularly appealing.

Let’s have a look at these:

OBSERVATION/QUESTIONS:
1. How’s Ibiere’s mum shocked that her daughter is still a virgin especially that they’re portrayed to be really close as mother and daughter. Is that how much moral decadence we now have in the society? Given the kind of woman Omah (Ibiere’s mum) appeared to be, one would have thought the opposite would hold true.

2. I was hoping at some point, I would see Mr. Daniels in his royal element; surrounded by royalty, talking royal talks, eating like royalty, sleeping and waking up as one. I mean, we saw what they did with Eddie Murphy in the classic romance “Coming To America” movie of decades ago, right? But in this movie, save for the little beads he wore on his right wrist or maybe the black ‘Top Cat’ hat he kept wearing, I didn’t feel his ‘Princeliness’ or Princehood.

3. Somethings didn’t add up in my opinion. The woman you’d end up with must be a virgin and must be your first. And to ascertain she’s truly what she and the doctors ‘confirm’ she is, you must have canal knowledge of her. Now, what if after sleeping with her, you realise she’s not truly a virgin, would you then re-virgin yourself? 

 Mr. Daniels kept on referring to traditions & customs to back up his points but it didn’t exactly hit the home front.

4. Is Nneka a Royal Princess or just Princess as a pet name cos her mum referred to her as one.

5. Prince Daniels said the marriage was an arranged one. If it was and that Nneka is a Princess, how come he could humiliate them to that extent, strip them of everything leaving them with only a property in the village (one which he still threatened)?

6. What rationale did Ejiro (Charles Born) have to talk to madam Adaku like that in a corporate environment? She was condescending but c’omon that did not exactly fit in.

7. Yet again, a female love interest had to be given a bad character so that ‘Cinderella’ can shine.

8. Who ends their mum’s job that was barely able to feed them simply because you got a job that you haven’t resumed duties talk more of first pay? What if hers got cancelled the next day?

9. How do two ladies get changed in front of a man, supposedly sleeping? Viewers are not dumb Okay! 

 We didn’t even get to see what Ibiere’s mum was accused of stealing…we only heard! 

10. And they just had to find a way to infuse the ‘Achalugo’ thingy from “Love in Every Word” here even when it didn’t really fit in. Okay! That’s enough now! Ozugüo! 

 The Prince, from his name is Yoruba & Ibiere is apparently from the South-South. Now, where does Achalugo come into play here? Do the Yorubas or Ijaws not have their unique names for one’s lover? 

Conclusively, this wasn’t a bäd watch! It just doesn’t hold the wow factor, neither does it have a replay value for a viewer like myself. As for our Daniel, hmmmm…someone should please check on Toyosi cos the kïssing is getting too much bayi 

 “Did she complain to you” someone would quip! Naaaah! I’m complaining on her behalf biko!

I want to see him feature in an action movie or a psychological thriller next, please! I’m now tired with all the lovey lovey kissy kissy roles. He’s got more potentials than this! Haba mana! 

 It’s almost like he’s now being stereotyped into a lover boy role. Not nice! 

Lest I forget, all those monies & millions they were mentioning in this film, which way nau! 

Was prepared to rate this higher…alas I just had to do what I had to do!