To ‘hammer’ is a Nigerian slang that means to hit it big. When they say you’ve ‘hammered’, it means you have achieved great success in whatever field you are in and have come into a state of affluence, like artiste Olu Maintain says in his hit 2007 single Yahooze, “I don hammer, too much money, the problem is how to spend it”. Showing a waitress’s (Bimbo Ademoye) journey and struggles to reach this kind of breakthrough must have been the intention in Hammer. Our protagonist, a first class graduate, struggles to make ends meet, be successful and take care of…
Author: Ayodele Olawumi
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–Minor Spoilers– In this follow-up to Get Out and Us, Jordan Peele treats us to a remarkable cinema experience as we follow the story of horse-wrangling siblings as they contend with a predatory otherworldly being. Otis ‘OJ’ Haywood (Daniel Kaluuya) and Emerald (Keke Palmer) are part of a horse-wrangling family who has trained and supplied horses for movies and TV shows in Hollywood (the only black-owned ranch to do so) for as long as they can tell. They pride themselves on being direct descendants of the unnamed horse rider in one of the first productions of modern cinema. Their father…
Sisters in arms Chike (Adesua Etomi-Wellington) and Grace (Kehinde Bankole) grace our screens as Inkblot releases the sequel to the 2019 installment of the franchise. The stakes are higher in The Set Up 2 as it has become a high-end espionage venture with Chike and Grace facing off a new villain in Usi (Nancy Isime), one of the madam’s former hench ladies. Chike now works for the American government as a security agent, as part of her sentence for drug trafficking, Grace is married with a kid while Madam (Tina Mba) is in prison. ‘Hey You’ Review: What is Really…
The power of friendship and a fire extinguisher is enough to overcome man-eating aliens who have come to earth to retrieve a life-saving metal and destroy the earth. Friends Sam (Rea Rangaka), Prince (Kiroshan Naidoo) and Junior (Sechaba Ramphele) all work together at AMI, a mining company that mines the only known zulcanoid deposit, a mercury-like metal that is high in demand. At the company, they work as a geologist, accountant and security guard respectively. An already stable company starts to face economic problems when new CEO Melusi (Kabomo Vilakuzi) takes charge. He decides to reduce employee benefits to increase…
Anthill Studios gives Nollywood lovers something different in this supposed sultry and sexy drama. Young tech bro Abel (Timini Egbuson) is addicted to porn and frequently visits Fans Alone, a website where he meets online sex workers for satisfaction. Things take an interesting turn when he finds out his next-door neighbour Bianca (Efe Irele) whom he has fallen for, is his favourite sex worker on the erotic website. This spurs a sequence of events that might make or mar their relationship. ‘Vanity’ Review: Stale Small Screen Marriage Drama Hey You is yet another western-themed plot adapted without consideration for cultural…
—⚠ Spoiler Alert!— A murder trial, international terrorists, men with dark pasts, an embattled cop and naive teenagers are at the heart of Justice Served, a South African action thriller streaming on Netflix. Allan Harvey (Morné Visser), a white Policeman man, is on trial for killing a black man, an act of which a substantial part of the general public is convinced that he is guilty. While it seems that he is going to be exonerated of this crime, the trial is hijacked by international terrorists who call themselves the Numoor, led by Azania Maqoma (Hlomla Dandala), who opens the…
Money Miss Road is a delightful action-fused comedy flick written and directed by Obi Emelonye starring Jide Kene Achufusi (Dwindle) and Josh ‘Josh2Funny’ Alfred in lead roles. Amateur wrestler Joseph (Jide Kene Achufusi) mistakenly enters the wrong room in a hotel and chances upon a huge stash of money hidden by notorious criminal T.P (Charly boy) and his gang. Joseph takes the money to his friend and manager Josiah (Josh2funny) with whom he shares it. They do not handle their sudden newly found wealth well as they do not count on T.P coming after them to retrieve his money. The…
Nigerian social media went agog with the news that Dark Horse comics/YouNeek Studios’ graphic novel series, “Iyanu: Child of Wonder”, a Nigerian superhero tale set in mythological Yoruba land will be adapted into an animated series by HBO Max and Cartoon Network. Iyanu: Child of Wonder is the story of Iyanu, a teenage orphan who awakens divine powers and sets out on a journey of destiny to save the world. The story draws heavily from Yoruba culture- mythology and music. The Wonder of Animations The lead writer and CEO of YouNeek studios Roye Okupe and Jay Agbaje of NaijaNerds had…
A white woman looking for penance for her father’s sin, an unlikely love story and a love triangle are the main features of this racially charged film by Nigerian-born South African filmmaker, Adze Ugah. Tyra (Michelle Botes) is struck by a local lady, Siya (Nqobile Nunu), when visiting the Sharpsville tragedy memorial. Tyra falls in love with Siya and a romantic saga is initiated between Tyra, Siya and Tshepo (Senzo Radebe), Siya’s boyfriend that devolves into violence as ugly memories are revived. Jewel, South Africa’s latest on Netflix, is fuelled by love, tragedy and revenge. ‘Silverton Siege’ Review: An Average…
Glamour Girls is a remake of the 1994 Nollywood classic of the same title albeit with a different plot and set in contemporary times. There are too many parallel plots in this movie to be able to really grasp what the story is about. A hustling Lagos girl, Emmanuella (Sharon Ooja), loses her job as a stripper and is desperate to find a new way to keep making money and make her big break. “I don sleep everywhere for this Lagos…, I don fuck pass my age,” she says as she pleads with Donna (Nse Ikpe-Etim), a pimp who runs…