Sharon Ooja as the leading lady in ‘Who’s the Boss’ takes a chunk of the film’s misses. Another is its screenwriter, Naz Onuzo and how he lets his uncertainty regarding the story’s characterization seep through the film’s final cut.
It is almost impossible to point out Naz Onuzo’s directing style owing to the fact that ‘Who’s the Boss’ is the accomplished screenwriter and producer’s directorial debut.
The very first teaser for ‘Who’s the Boss’ was promising for a number of reasons. For one, the choice of its lead star held promise. However, those lofty dreams are short lived upon seeing the movie. Sharon Ooja is once again forced to embrace a typecast that’s lived just as long as her career.
She elicits the help of Lekan ( Blossom Chukwujekwu), a certified playboy who she eventually falls in love with. Then there’s Jumoke (Ini Dima-Okojie), a sometimes selfish and sometimes selfless heiress who struggles to find a place in the Lekan and Liah love story.
Onuzo as the film’s screenwriter, leaves a lot undone on the characterization of Liah or of any other character asides Lekan. With Liah, it’s not clear if she is independent or constantly requiring external validation? Is she spineless and unfashionable or conditionally so?
Beyond characterization, Ooja’s character disappointingly wears typecast shoes. Ooja might have featured in over a handful of released movies since Ndani TV web series 'Skinny Girl In Transit', but, she has been unable to display the dexterity required to convince the audience that she can be more than a pretty face.
Make no mistake, fans love Ooja. She is one straight out of a magazine beauty. Lamentably, beneath her flawless features lies an untapped talent held hostage by a beauty that might as well be her curse. It is sad that Filmmakers have let themselves be hypnotized by this curse.
In ‘Who’s the Boss’, the Sharon Ooja curse makes yet another frustrating appearance. Her character appears largely needy and unable to make uninfluenced decisions.
In spite of its unnatural voice-over and echoing room sound flops, ‘Who’s the Boss’ isn’t exactly a hot mess. It can serve entertainment on some level. The chemistry between Chukwujekwu and Ooja for instance make it easily relatable .
If given a little more depth, the story had the potential of being totally worth the while.
No comments:
Post a Comment