Nollywood: Euphemism for Crap.

Have you ever watched a Nigerian made movie? Yes? No? I advise you don’t. I can hear the screams already; ‘off with his head’!!! Support Nigeria!!!. I’d poke my tongue out at all of them. It seems to me-and I may be wrong-that the singular reason why youths watch Nigerian movies is for the sheer indecency (indecency can be appealing to some of us as we are well aware). I find it hard to believe they watch it because they find them interesting. I also don’t believe Nigerians are that dumb as to be excited by the terrible screenplay.

In 1960 the pioneers of the Nigerian movie industry (credit is rightly given to Herbert Ogunde, Ola Balogun and co.) were forced to curtail production due to high costs , absence of distribution channels and government’s lack of active partnership. The content however wasn’t lacking, production involved detailed execution, intelligent screenplay and rich cultural performances. Given that the government of those days was a whole lot more reactionary, the later establishment of government owned stations helped induce Nigeria’s first introduction to proper acting without the direct influence of the Pioneers. Nigerians were treated to the likes of Checkmate, Behind the Clouds,Cockcrow at Dawn, Mirror of the Sun, brilliant hilarious comedy such as Mind your Language, movies such as the adaptation of Chinua Achebe’s: Things Fall Apart.

The commercialization of the industry as is currently seen did not begin full blown until, Living in Bondage (1992) directed by Chris Obi Rapu. Figures as to just how many copies this particular movie sold is controversial. What is not contested however is the popularity of this particular effort. Perhaps due to the ingenious marketing strategy employed by the producers of the movie using the Onitsha, Aba markets, foreign movies began to suffer a decline in viewership. Nigerian made movies utilizing the commercial power of the eastern markets virtually started to dominate the video industry. (the writer supposedly made the film because of the large number of empty cassettes he had, easily replicated, he was able to control piracy at a time where technology for dubbing by pirates in Nigeria was minimal).

We only outlined this brief, history to understand the context of just how profitable and widely acceptable the Nigerian movie industry is today, from the exploits of a determined amateur effort to a multimillion Naira industry. But just how relevant the industry is other than a money spinning venture that provides employment is highly questionable.

Nigerians, it must be said are highly exploitative,-a defensive mechanism against the scourge of government induced poverty, the opportunity to make a quick buck, a chance to get further ahead in the unending rat race-this mentality, coupled with laziness, lack of vision, and crass mediocrity becomes the active ingredients for the rot in the sector.

Movies today mean little or nothing. It is a chance to get Ini Edo in revealing clothes, mixed with logic defying story line, poor acting, an even poorer script-and for what? The knowledge that, regardless of whatever trash you make, Nigerians, in a misguided sense of patriotism and, misplaced priorities are going to buy. It’s a formula that has never failed, seemingly never will. It is also a tragedy.

It would seem our fault to expect more really after-all, we all witnessed the adoption of the ‘’Nollywood’’ appendage and approved of it. It is a nomenclature that has sickened me not just for the fact that it mimics the American “Hollywood” but because it gives a proper noun to our abject lack of creativity. It gives a name to our sickness.

Proponents of the industry are quick to shoot growth figures at you as a response to any criticism; depending on who you talk to we are either behind Bollywood, (another sickening nomenclature) or directly behind Hollywood in yearly output. Local A-list actresses and actors earn 6-figures but unlike foreign movies we have not been able to create any societal change or introspection with our movies. The plight of the Nigerian woman is not helped by the portrayals she is given. More often than not she is pictured as morally loose, diabolical, cunning and outright mischievous. Societal ills are more or less glorified; a particular instance is when we find ritual killers (a realistic societal ill) as a matter of routine, finding salvation in Christ at the end of every movie as opposed to facing any form of justice for the crimes committed! It is almost as if producers are ignorant of the power they wield over society or are just too willing to abuse it.

As a rule, movies are windows that let you see into society first by mirroring society, hence the saying; ‘’it is just a movie, it is not real’’. However unreal it maybe, we are utterly convinced by the storyline and the portrayal of it to the point where it elicits an emotional response from us. By acting we are inspired, moved to tears, upset, happy, and tilted to reflect, that’s why we are going to remember a certain Brad Pitt and not Jim Iyke in 30 years from now.

And while we are talking about acting, are you ever convinced when you watch Nigerian actors?, hardly? Just why is that? An utter lack of professionalism runs deep in the business. I have seen Peter Edochie, Olu Jacobs, men who ordinarily have an enviable career, and are the few remaining professionals in the business, taint it with stereotyping themselves into ‘Igwe’ roles, movie after movie. I can’t be bothered counting but am sure between them, there are probably 600 or more such similar appearances. Why? Simply because it pays the bills! Actors with less impressive work catalog I assume simply play into the stereotypes they are given for this same reason. Hence, chances are you are going to play the same type of character for over a period of time or, for the rest of your life. While in Hollywood certain individuals have made the portrayal of an identity such as a villain’s, their exclusive preserve, we don’t get tired of seeing their faces because over there, there are such things as proper costumes, better acting, intelligent scripts, sets, and more importantly; no one plays a villain in 40 movies in a single year.

But it so typical of us isn’t it? A putrid lack of any maintenance culture in all aspect of our endeavors otherwise, just why are we not able to make better props? Stage better effects? A scene leading to an accident in a Nigerian movie is as uninspiring and as ridiculous as it was 15years ago. All that is done is have the camera go around in circles and have the next scene shows Tonto Dike mummified with bandages on some hospital bed somewhere! And this is an effort we supposedly export?, a digital recording of our idiocy?  It is unfortunate that for the entire money spinner the industry is, it is managed by louts who only care about undeserved celebrity status than actual content or their legacy. That’s why for all its growth, there is an unequal ratio in reinvestment, no sets are constructed for films, no special effects are done in movies, no worthy scripts are written, talented people are rather into art academia than on our screens,  and  knock-outs (local cheap fireworks)  are used to fake bullets…..

 Like most of the many things where we Nigerians prefer a foreign version to its local equivalent, we find that the Nigerian movie industry isn’t exactly any different. Sounds absurd right? after-all we only just argued that Nigerian watch a lot of home videos to foreign ones but think again, just what is Nigerian about what we watch? The only time a woman wears Ankara most often is in a scene that shows her as a villager, uncivilized and mealy-mouthed, spewing brimstone upon her drunk alcoholic husband. Is that Nigerian? it maybe a believable scenario, one that exists in contemporary Nigeria but when for a single year over hundreds of such films are made then it betrays a lack of talent in our producers or mirrors the generality of society we live in. and if it must be said as mirroring the society we live in then isn’t there something grossly wrong with that picture? the misrepresentation of an absurd singularity for the whole.

What is Nigerian about the portrayal of a society that is all too often trapped between whole scale copying of western values and the mismanagement of it’s downsides?

And then there is this issue of nudity and sex in our movies, especially those in collaboration with that equally redundant Ghanian movie industry. (At least they have the decency to avoid ‘ghannywood’.) Insiders say it’s a measure of our ‘advancement’-sophistication, if you will. I wonder what is sophisticated about a sex scene? What exactly does a sex scene tell us? That two people are play acting sex? It’s a technique that has been used by Hollywood as a marketing ploy, its not art and all that talk is for the birds. These days however its mired up in ‘art’ and any critic of it is seen as a criticism of their freedom of expression but oh well…

I hope I get some venom spewed at me for writing this so I can cough up more reasons why there is so much rot in that system and hopefully someone somewhere will wake up to correct it. Or I can just poke my tongue out at them!