Showing posts with label romance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label romance. Show all posts

Sunday, November 15, 2009

White Wedding

So I just came across this new South African movie, which has also been submitted for oscar consideration. There is no guarantee that it will be one of the top five movies considered for the foreign language Oscar. However, if it makes it, there may be hope for an American release, like there were for Tsotsi and Yesterday. After having searched high and low for for South African movies in the US, I think somebody has to create an outlet to start selling those films outside of SA. There is a burgeoning market for African film, and it they don't meet it, they may start to get the Nigerian treatment. Anyways, on to the hype before I get sidetracked:



White wedding is a dramatic comedy that explores South Africa's favorite issue - racial relations, while also dealing with love, infidelity, romance among other themes.

Here's a trailer for your viewing pleasure:



The blurb on the website reads:

The loyal, committed and very decent Elvis (Kenneth Nkosi) leaves Johannesburg on Tuesday en route to pick up his best friend and best man Tumi (Rapulana Seiphemo) in Durban. The two will then journey on to Cape Town to begin rehearsals for Elvis’s wedding to the beautiful Ayanda (Zandile Msutwana) at an upmarket hotel in glamorous palm-fringed Camps Bay under the cloak of Table Mountain.

But things don’t go according to plan. Tumi, a serial flirt, has a spat with his girlfriend that leads to his car being rendered unusable; eventually the duo get on their way but Tumi’s short-cuts don’t end up making up for lost time.

As Tumi and Elvis struggle to find their way through the Eastern Cape they are picked up by Rose (Jodie Whittaker), a young English doctor who fled the altar after discovering her fiancĂ©e was serially unfaithful to her. Now there’s an unlikely trio on the road, with romantic sparks igniting between the flirtatious Tumi and their spirited British companion. Who knows if they’ll make it on time, whether the wedding will be delayed or cancelled or come perilously close to not even happening if Ayanda ditches dependable Elvis for dashing Tony, the township boy turned flashy entrepreneur.

“White Wedding” is an appealing, feel-good movie about love, commitment, intimacy and friendship and the host of maddening obstacles that can get in the way of a happy ending. Uplifting and at times uproarious this is a movie that affirms the dream that romance can overcome any obstacle.

If you have watched Tsotsi, you will notice that the two male lead actors also played high profile roles in Tsotsi - and did it pretty well I think. So I am looking forward to this one, even if race is a subtext here.

You can see just a little bit of the race issue in this video:


For those who don't understand the issue with the song De La Ray, here is the song and the controversy is explained here. You can read all about the original De La Ray dude as well.


This movie has already been released in SA: in theaters and on dvd, so I guess I have to get someone to get it for me from there. On the other hand, if anyone knows where to get SA movies in the Western hemisphere, please let me know.

I will also be cheering for them as the Oscar nominations come in. If Nollywood is not ready, we might as well show some love to an industry that is doing well.

Enjoy, and let me know if you find a copy anywhere.

Sunday, October 25, 2009

The Hype: The Figurine ( Araromire)


Kunle Afolayan, son of the late Yoruba movie legend Adeyemi Afolayan(aka Ade-love) is apparently living up to his legacy with his new movie The Figurine.

Kunle used to work in a bank before quitting in 2005 to attend NEW YORK FILM ACADEMY in London to study Digital Filmmaking (source) (I suspect that website of his is really old, so I will update it if something more current shows up).

Anyways, his latest movie is making waves, as it is said to be in a different league compared to our usual Nollywood movies. The movie is currently in theaters in Nigeria (yay, exciting), and word on the street is that its really good.

The synopsis

Two buddies and A girl………all down on their luck have their lives changed after one of them discovers “ARAROMIRE” a mysterious figurine in an abandoned shrine which according to ancient legend bestows seven years of good luck . But, no one told them about the next seven years…..


The movie stars Ramsey Nouah, Funlola Aofiyebi-Raimi, Omoni Oboli and Kunle Afolayan himself.

The trailer:


A teaser:


There is a lot of stuff out there about the movie already. I have not seen it, so I cannot review it yet, but I just can't wait! In the meantime though, you can check out the following:

The website of the movie, some cool behind the scene pics here and here, a review here and some gorgeous Lagos premiere pics here.

In addition, if you are outside Naija, there are a whole bunch of premieres still planned:

London Premiere:

Start Time: Saturday, October 31, 2009 at 9:00pm
End Time: Sunday, November 1, 2009 at 12:30am
Location: ODEON Cinema, Greenwich
Street: Bugsby Way, SE10 0QJ
City/Town: London, United Kingdom

More info about London Premiere


US premiere:
NJ Premiere Event & After Party
Friday, November 13th
6pm- 10pm
The Spot
45 Commerce Street
Newark, NJ 07102
- Ticket $30 // $50 couples


NYC Showtime
Saturday Novemember 14th 2009
6pm-8pm : 8pm - 10pm
Abingdon Theater
312 W. 36th Street
New York, NY 10018-7570
-Tickets $10

NYC "meet the Cast" party (After Party)
11pm - 3am
Le Cirque
151 East 58th street
btw Lexington and 3rd Ave
New York, NY
- gate fee $20

Buy your US tickets


Pretty cool huh?

Some exciting stuff to look forward to on dvd. Hope it comes out soon.


The Hype: Through the glass


Stephanie Okereke, Nigerian actress extraordinaire has apparently decided to take it to the next level with her movie "Through the Glass". The movie, currently in Nigerian theaters, was directed and produced by Stephanie herself. Yes o, the cinema culture is coming back and people are now going to the theater to watch our own movies. And even better is the fact that homegirl is making a fistful of money.

Yayy for Steph. Congrats lady, you are an inspiration. I am so proud of you.

Here is a trailer to whet your appetite for those of us outside Naija who cannot watch it on the big screen yet.




The movie has been premiered both in the US and in Nigeria.

Read all about the California premiere here

The Nigerian premiere was more recent. Check it out here and here

And you can get the scoop on Stephanie talking about making the movie here and here.

Can't wait to see it on dvd.

Ciao.
 

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This website is devoted to fans of African movies who want to know which ones are worth watching. We only review above average movies on this site. The purpose is to give props to the actors, producers and directors who have squeezed water out of rocks and created decent entertainment against all odds. If you want to review a movie for us, please email moviemadam@gmail.com. We would be happy to feature all good african film, regardless of age, or origin. Thanks for stopping by

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