N. F. Kenure
In the first review, I wondered about setting a grading system for my reviews, like the “Rotten Tomatoes”. Maybe from a scale of freshly cooked egusi to a frothing with maggots pot, and then like a sane person, I discarded the idea.
I swear I really want to watch a Nigerian movie one day and think, "Wow! They could not have done this any better".
Well, “Merry men: The real Yoruba demons”, ain’t it.
The first thing that was wrong with it, was also one of the few things right it with; casting.
Falz the bahd guy was Remi Martins - Tech guy typing away comically.
Ramsey Nouah played Ayo Alesinloye- the brains behind the Merry men.
Jim Iyke - Naz Okigbo. I have no idea what his strength was.. Maybe professional lookout.
A.Y Mayokun - Amaju Abioritsegbemi. What do you call someone who gets contracts by sleeping with whoever’s in charge? That’s what he was.
Unfortunately, Falz the bahd guy remained Falz the bahd guy, lensless spectacles and all. Jim Iyke was the sexy bad boy. Ramsey Nouah was the light skin fine boy. A.Y was whatever A.Y always is. These men all played the same part that they either assigned to themselves or Nollywood told them is all they can do. The good thing about this, is that these personas come easily to them. So Ramsey licked his pink lips with fine boy charm, Jim Iyke slapped the arse of one of the women on his bed with aplomb, A.Y stuttered one of his many disparaging jokes, and Falz falzed. Nobody wanted to be challenged, no one took on new characteristics. Even if the characters were written this way, couldn't they have switched roles?
These four friends; the Merry men, steal from the rich and distribute to the poor (We are not presented with any proof of this.) Ayo Alesinloye, the leader, decides to stop the destruction of a ghetto he thinks of as his second home by subverting the plans to build a shopping complex. Damilola Adegbite, his love interest and a Law enforcement officer had the same expression through out. To be fair, her character didn’t offer much to work with. But damn, she fine.
Ireti Doyle’s sex moans were down right pathetic and even she has to agree I'm being generous.
The fight scenes were not terrible, but could have been choreographed better.
The lighting especially in the first few scenes were abysmal and the makeup for Falz was sub par. Have I already said abysmal? Because that’s what the transitions were.
The story was a mash of Ocean’s seven with a pinch of Scarface, so originality = 0. With a name like Merry Men, the whole movie was a tad too derivative.
It was clear Jim Iyke would mess with his friend’s sister as soon as a sister was presented to us, and their storyline was all the way predictable until...
The surprise twist at the end left me wondering if the writers understand how actions have consequences. The writers ignored a natural denouement to give us all a "nice happy ending".
A.Y and Falz are the funny guys and I laughed out more than once.
Some of the dialogue was quite good, there were even flashes of brilliance in the conversations, but a lot of Ramsey Nouah’s was glib. At the same time, some of it was banal. It felt like two people in separate rooms came up with different parts of a whole, and no one bothered to see if they fit.
I figured out how to grade the next movies I review after I rolled my eyes for the umpteenth time. When scenes, dialogues or actions are implausible or feel insincere, my eyes will begin a ferris wheel journey all on their own, so this is an organic way to let me know how I feel about what's on the screen.
I definitely rolled my eyes more than ten times while watching these men.
Credits gave up the story as A.Y’s, and it was written by Anthony Kehinde Joseph . I can finally see the disconnect in the dialogues.
Movie was directed by Toka Mcbaror.
P.S
Culturally, aren’t Yoruba demons supposed to be men who primarily seek out the company of women to have fun, and then toss them aside after they’ve had their fill? That was the premise I felt the movie would lurch off.
Again, this ain't it.
Oct 16, 2018
