Story by Adenike Adebayo-Esho, screenplay by Owumi Ugbeye, directed by Adenike Adebayo-Esho and produced by Bolaji Ogunmola (also starring as Murewa) alongside Adenike Adebayo-Esho herself, this romance drama titled ‘SUMMER RAIN’ which was earlier on released to cinemas on the 7th of February, 2025 with a runtime of 2hours is now available for streaming on the KavaTV app.

‼️MAY contain spoilers from here on ‼️

SYNOPSIS:

Ten years after the rather bizarre crash of their strange relationship, Omomurewa ‘Murewa’ Abe (played by Bolaji Ogunmola) and Adimchi ‘Dimchi’ Amadi (portrayed by Daniel Etim-Effiong) would accidentally bump into each other. What follows after that are a series of events that would lead to truths uncovered, healing to wounds and a revelation that threatens their relationship once more just when it is beginning to find its meaning.

MY TAKE:

Phew! 😮‍💨 First off, I’m glad I was finally able to watch this much anticipated movie. Initially felt I was missing out on a lot prior to watching this but at the end, it left me with that “is that it?” kinda question with plenty other questions which had already cropped up in my head whilst watching. The thing is, the approach to storytelling is a brilliant one but the issue is with the premise.

STORY/PLOT:

The story hinges on two young lovers whose relationship status wasn’t quite defined from the start. It touches on how much assumptions affect relationships too. In part, it shows how vascular dementia affects people. It equally portrayed anaemia and its related illnesses. While the story is an interesting one, the plot however, seemed to have been haphazard and lacking of adequate planning albeit there seems to have been some brainstorming. A simple and straightforward plot would probably have worked best. Sometimes, less is more!

CASTING/PERFORMANCE:

The casting was great. Performances were awesome. However, for a ten-year gap, I do not see the need to have casted different actors for younger and older versions of the characters. People hardly change that much in that time especially as already grown and fully developed adults. A little makeup should have done the trick. I mean Mr. Femi Branch (as Dimchi’s dad) remained the same from the flashback to the present. So why would the others change so significantly? This then made the story lacking of believability and it was distracting for a good viewing experience in my opinion.

The on-screen chemistry between Bolaji and Daniel, however, is undeniable! My world! Those kisses…listen, those KISSES…was that them acting? Naaaah! They looked too real to be just acting! I mean, there has to be some exchange of some fluids in those scenes, nobody can tell me naught!

DIRECTING/EXECUTION:

The back and forth with the flashbacks and the present day is a great tool for storytelling but the use of different actors for the younger and older versions of the characters for a ten-year gap ruined it for me.

Let’s face it, as an already grown adult, between 2015 and 2025 for instance, how much have you changed in your physical appearance to look completely different? Yeah! That’s what I’m talking about. A little makeup should have done the trick or a different approach to storytelling should have been adopted entirely and the story would have been executed beautifully.

The sequencing is not bad though and the pacing is manageable too. But overall, the story was predictable.

TECHNICAL ASPECTS:

The hairs and outfits worn by Murewa (Bolaji) in this film were a sight for sore eyes! My world! I simply loved them. The makeup was equally a complementary part of it too. Location was also great.

The lighting was a bit dodgy in some instances, this had an impact on the picture quality or cinematography. Nonetheless, not entirely bad. The background music was equally amazing. There was some editing glitch too somewhere along the line. This should have been handled post production but I guess it was an oversight and wasn’t noticed.

MORALS/LESSONS:

🚥 If you love someone, do not hesitate to tell them. Casual friendship is different from romantic love. Mixing them up has consequences.

🚥 Assumptions have always been a kïller of relationships. Dimchi had too many assumptions that affected how he saw Murewa. Same thing with Dimchi too.

OBSERVATION/QUESTIONS:

1. Why was Dimchi always jumping through the window to see Murewa in the flashback when we were made to believe or understand that he had a really good rapport or relationship with Murewa’s mom? It didn’t add up if you ask me.

2. In the flashbacks, we never saw Murewa’s mom until the present. Or did I miss it? I almost forgot she had a mother until the second act of the movie.

3. Who was the aunty Nnenna Dimchi called to cancel a dependent visa? Come to think of it, how was a dependent visa even in the picture to begin with when they weren’t even an item yet? Is that even possible?

4. How did Murewa and Gboyega (played by Kachi Nnochiri) become close when he was Dimchi’s worst nightmare?

5. For what we later know of Gboyega, it was confusing, his relationship with Murewa. All the hugs and coming to pick her up with her daughter Tiara (played by Darasimi Nadi) at the office as opposed to his own marital status, it didn’t quite connect.

6. Was there a scene where they initially told Tiara who her father was? Or did I miss it? The act at the dinning with all four of them was a little awkward.

7. How did Murewa not know who was responsible for her pregnancy? Well, this part is somewhat complicated to be honest but then couldn’t she have done her cycle-maths?

8. As per what we later know of the arrangement between Murewa’s mom (played by Tina Mba) and Dimchi, why then did she act surprised when she picked the call from him on her daughter’s phone at the hospital? That also didn’t make sense.

CONCLUSION:

This movie is educational, entertaining and interesting in a way. It sadly wasn’t well put together in my opinion. The back and forths and the unnecessary casting of younger adult versions of characters in their late 30s or early 40s wasn’t quite believable. It became a major source of distraction the whole time, regrettably so as I soooo wanted to enjoy this and rate it high!

VERDICT: 4.8/10

Have you seen this? What did you think?