The definition of a romcom is a well-documented and defined concept, parameters are often rigid and the story must follow a formula: hot boy plus beautiful girl plus almost fantastical meeting equals forever after. Dammy Twitch’s Call Of My Life takes each romcom trope, attempts to give them local cultural context, to deliver an hour-and-fifty-minute colourful, funny, sometimes awkward entry into the Nigerian romcom canon. It follows Soluchi, a heartbroken call centre agent who receives a routine call that opens up the possibility of a love she’s always wanted.
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We meet Soluchi in a shopping trolley, being carted around by her best friend as she shops for her boyfriend’s birthday. It’s quickly established that she’s a woman whose heart dwells on her sleeves. She’s a colourful ball of excitement—a reflection of the film’s vibrant palette, a whirlwind of whimsy who wants to celebrate every moment with her more rigid boyfriend, Kalu, the quintessential Igbo businessman. They form an interesting match up carried by the best performances of the film.
Uzoamaka Power (Mami Wata) as Soluchi uses her eyes for every emotion, they light up and water when moments call for it and the peppiness of the character radiates through her body meeting an often confused Zubby Michael (Onyegwu) as Kalu. He is a man holding a slight contempt for Soluchi’s attitude to love. At the same time, he is also trying to understand it, to keep the peace. And he navigates it with the funniest performance, swinging between Igbo and English with a familiar charisma.
Enter Eli. A handsome, calm TV presenter whose first known encounter with Soluchi is over the phone. Before and after that though, the film plays their romance into the invisible string theory that puts their story in this mythical realm. They cross paths often without knowing each other, till he makes the first real move at a restaurant where she’s mourning a heartbreak with her best friend, Zim. It’s an electric moment with a fair attempt at banter, but it betrays the weakest parts of Eli and Soluchi’s relationship. Their attraction to each other oozes from the screen, but attempts at giving the relationship depth sometimes lean into awkward territory, with lines feeling forced, banter resting on sentimental poetics and every moment elevated to inspire heady excitement. The film leans into every trope to a point of almost fracture, but it is saved by a palpable chemistry carried mostly by Uzoamaka and an adequate Andrew Yaw Bunting (Water and Garri) as Eli, reminiscent of their roles in Zikoko Life’s My Body God’s Temple.
Call of My Life seems aware of the pressure to be the new template for a Nollywood romcom and does not shy away from the cultural grounding of a good romcom. Its Igbo identity keeps it familiar and real. Soluchi does a funny but not mocking Igbo tongue twister before the start of her shifts and her parents, played by the magnificent duo of Nkem Owoh (Obara’M) and Patience Ozokwo (Onobiren), speak the language with the pride of age while we learn of their own love story. It’s a role worthy of their status as Nollywood legends and a window into Soluchi’s belief in a loud, encompassing love. Along with them is a competent supporting friendship from Beverly Osu (Oloture) as the reliable Zim and Justin Ugonna ( in his first major role) as Ezekiel who have an enemies-to-lovers story brewing in the background.
On the other hand, this pressure brittles the writing (penned by Uzoamaka Power), especially on Soluchi and Eli’s side. It’s often a staccato of verse that wants to be quoted. Meanwhile, on Kalu’s side we get a more grounded feeling even when he’s trying to appeal to Soluchi’s vision of love in the wrong ways. It roughens up their friction while the inevitable conflict with Eli seems too smooth.
The world these relationships live in is a colourful one, giving life to the film’s tone and characters. There is no fear of bright colours and it never leans into garish. The locations are primed for romance, with production design (helmed by Anita Ashiru) pushing a texture that paints the genre. The characters are dressed with a sort of winking whimsical style: Soluchi’s colourful tights and Eli’s soft pastels. This contributes to a visual sense that circles the edges of saccharine. The soundtrack adds to this by providing music that sets scenes and tugs at the heart’s strings. All coming together under the helm of Dammy Twitch in his first feature. With an inoffensive and sometimes decent approach, he guides the story forward with locations framed to maximize aesthetic appeal and faces captured in moments of falling in love.
There is no contest about the genre of Call Of My Life, the film is sure to remind you. It goes through a checklist of tropes with varying levels of success and an awareness that makes and mars it; it works in an assured identity but never grounds the writing on one side. It makes one wonder if a subversion of these tropes is better than relying on them. Despite that, its moments paint the genre’s Nigerian context with charismatic leads, full supporting performances and a classic love story where the heart must choose despite fear.
Call of My Life is a Bluhouse Studios production, distributed by FilmOne, in cinemas from May 15.
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Side Musings
- I hope this starts the push for our audience to recognize a good film and demand more.
- I just know Soluchi’s local supermarket hates to see her coming cause she’s always celebrating something.
- Justin UG and Beverly should lead another romcom, a sequel even. I’m interested.
- I thought Eli would read the news to Soluchi at some point in time to be honest.
- From Freedom Way to Zikoko Life (a social impact anthology on YouTube) to Call of My Life, the range that Uzzi’s Bluhouse is expressing. A horror project next?
