Two strangers meet under fateful circumstances in A Tale of Two First Dates. One of them, Isabel (played by Sharon Rotimi), is a Ph.D student and soon-to-be divorcee, who interviews James (Sukanmi Olowu), a convicted felon. It is an encounter that permanently marks both their lives.
A Tale of Two First Dates draws strength from its controlled setting. Its compact, narrative plot is the type that leaves room for the actors to push boundaries as performers. There is good intent behind this production, and the effort shows, both in the writing and the execution. But there is also the feeling that it could be more.
Isabel and James’ encounter—which premises as an interview between a prisoner and a ph.D student—is set up to have a viewer discover certain things about the subjects, as with Ishan Parikh’s A Dialogue Between Two Ex-Lovers, or to explore a confounding situation (David Lynch’s What Did Jack Do?). Eventually, one of the viewers or character(s) leaves the film with a new truth. There is a perceived truth to take away from A Tale of Two First Dates—that reflection on who we are can come from the strangest places.
Films like this, with minimal locations and shots, are closer to stage plays, where the actor is solely responsible for holding the viewer. Here, both performers work functionally in their roles. Sunkanmi’s resigned performance mirrors Sharon’s emotionally disturbed state. But one feels Sunkanmi’s performance becomes monotonous after a while. The same complaint applies to the film. Despite its ending, it feels like the length could have been significantly cut back as well as the emotions that occasionally spilled over into melodrama.
The lasting truth is that there is more good to Ayomide Napson’s film than otherwise. The colouring holds, and Feranmi Abiola’s framings and cinematography please the eye. When the film reaches its end, one feels like they’ve experienced a well-organized project with more narrative potential than it delivered.
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