A few minutes into The Screen Test, David, the actor, meets a director at his house. It’s quickly obvious that the film has laid the foundation for a story that could veer into offensive territory if not carefully crafted. It follows David, who gets a life-changing call for a huge film role and has been invited to the director’s house for a screen test.
From the moment David (Tope Tedela) arrives at the house, the vibes are off: the director (Philip Asaya) tells him to stop calling him sir and he tells him he directs the human being and not the actor—the only line in the film that sparks some depth. Films about filmmaking are almost always expected to make some meta commentary about the process and the industry, but The Screen Test falls into the pit of ignorance at best and calculated homophobia at worst. It features a weird and eccentric director, Victor, whose only eccentricity is the fact that he’s gay, thus playing into dated stereotypes that lump predatory behaviour and queerness together.
The film spends its run time trying to create a trippy visual style as David drifts in and out of reality while somehow forcefully bringing his mother into the narrative as character motivation through flashbacks and drug-induced visions. The directing style, helmed by Edith Nwekenta, doesn’t particularly inspire; no shot holds your attention and no framing interests you. This is matched by equally uninspiring acting performances. Tope Tedela’s David is flat while Philip Asaya’s only attempt at weirdness as Victor is the flowing yellow kimono he wears. There’s a lack of energy when both of them share scenes, which is most of the film, and this fails the film’s main plot—along with the lazy queer shock value.
The Screen Test stood at a crossroad with its story and chose the worst path. It positions queerness as the villain instead of predatory practices within the industry as a whole. It creates a director whose singular dimension is his sexuality and places it as the pivotal shock value of the whole film. There’s no denying the reality of the narrative, but there was a chance at a more careful and more interesting portrayal of an industry we only hear whispers and rumours about, but we end up with offensive tropes and, even worse, a boring film.
The Screen Test premiered at the 12th edition of the NollywoodWeek Film Festival in Paris.
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Side Musings
- During the closing credits, we get to see David’s audition tape, and it’s somehow worse than his acting in the film.
- This film reminds me of the emotional core of Baby Reindeer, but obviously, this is not as good as that.
