The movie was premiered on Friday 2nd May 2014 at the Odeon Cinema Greenwich.
18 Carat Mama showcases some of Nollywood’s best actors and actresses including Helen "Gold" Osabutey, Theodora Ibekwe-Oyebade, Toyin Moore, Fred Aseroma, Lanre Balogun, Mac Edobor, Marie Gomez, Tolu Yesufu, Ade Bello and Mabel Ayeko Osabutey amongst others.
The movie was written and produced by Helen "Gold" Osabutey and directed by Titi Jacobs-Aseroma.
The premiere was hosted by the very fabulous DJ Abass and present on the red carpet were Ruke Amata, Fred Aseroma, Theodora Ibekwe Oyebade, Toyin Moore, Helen Gold Osabutey, Ayo Oyebade, Marie Gomez, Danny Erskin, Titi Jacobs-Aseroma, Mabel Osabutey, Godwin Osabutey, Pauline Long, Collins Archie-Pearce, Nelson Spyk, Tolu Yesufu, Lanre Balogun, captains of the UK Nollywood industry and members of the public.
Storyline: The movie is about giving women an awareness about the need to have a smear test with the view to an early detection and/or prevention of cervical cancer and treating cancer early if detected before it spreads.. It is written mainly around the three main female characters who live their lives without a care in the world, until one day tragedy struck. It is both a comedy and drama. While it is aimed primarily at the African woman who take issues of their health with levity more so the dislike of the intrusion of their privacy, it is a story for the family and the general public.
The story is mind-blowing, thought-provoking, educating, entertaining and full of laughter. It is a story of total friendship, loyalty, endurance, trust and reality of everyday life situations.
From the beginning of the movie, there was humour, a mix of new entrant Toyin Moore (Lynne), Theodora Ibekwe-Oyebade (Crystal) and Helen Gold Osabutey (Yetty) herself. Although there was a major theme in the movie, as a reviewer and critic, I was impressed that there were other what I can call sub themes such as the theme of a family woman who was always trying to present herself to the society above her means. This was well demonstrated in the movie by Yetty. There could also have been the theme of miserable husbands and boyfriends. Again this theme was well demonstrated by the “3 musketeers” and their husbands as well as Kate and her boyfriend (Mike).
This is one movie that I would give FULL credit to the story writer and those that edited the script. Without hesitation, for the storyline, I have no choice than to give a resounding 10
Picture Quality: Generally, the picture quality was brilliant. However, there were scenes where there was no headroom. Having thought of it long and hard, the balance was in favour of brilliant picture quality as opposed to a few scenes where there was no headroom. As a result of this for picture quality, I would award another mark of 10. However, in future productions, I would like to see the issue of headroom addressed.
Sound: Again generally, the sound in the movie was great. However, in my view, it is important that when music is playing and a new scene is to be introduced, the music needs to be lowered. Also, Sound there were slight buzzy sounds in one or two scenes. As a reviewer, the question I need to consider before issuing a score is whether the afore-mentioned points are enough to deprive the movie of maximum points in this category. In reaching my decision, I have asked whether the average viewer who watched this movie noticed these points. A post-movie survey I carried out showed that the viewers did not notice these points. In the light of the above, I would be issuing another 10 for the sound quality. However, I would like to put a caveat that the sound can be improved even better.
Cast: The movie showcased lots of talented actors and actresses including Nollywood veterans Lanre Balogun & Fred Aseroma, Theodora Ibekwe- Oyebade, Toyin Moore, Helen Gold Osabutey, Ayo Oyebade, Marie Gomez, Danny Erskin, Titi Jacobs-Aseroma, Ade Bello, Tolu Yesufu, Sarah Bello, Hilda Williams, Victoria Nicholas, Tyna Sonuga, Tiya Odebode, Mac Edobor, Mabel Osabutey, Godwin Osabutey, O'Tega Oyovbaire, Olakitan Adebayo and Jediah David.
What can I say about the cast? The audition was perfect as the cast played their roles professionally. I always like encouraging new acts and worthy of mention was Toyin Moore (Lynne). Although Tolu Yesufu (Kate) is not a new act and has produced a movie, she played her role naturally. Helen Gold Osabutey (Yetty) was first class. I am not sure if she has featured in other movies.
Experience also added to the glamour of the movie. The likes of Lanre Balogun and Fred Aseroma added the much needed balance to the cast. I love Ayo Oyebade in any movie he acts. He may not get major roles but does justice to any role he is given. Again, he did this in this movie. I cannot do justice to this category without mentioning I would like to Sarah Bello (Sharon’s daughter). Although she played a minor role, she did it with all excellence and I see her as an upcoming Nollywood talent.
While thinking about this review, I thought hard as to whether to mention names of people I did not think were up to par with their acting. As a reviewer and critic, I would not be doing justice to my review if I do not mention this. This is not a witch hunt, but while I am commending those that I think made the movie stand up, I should also make mention of those I think let the movie down.
In my view, I don’t think Danny Erskin (Tom) is quite ready for roles in the Nollywood industry. A good actor acts and does not speak so as to convince those that are watching him. In this movie, all I saw was Tom forcing himself into character and more or less cramming his lines to fit that role. In all honesty and I say this in good faith and without regrets, I think if Danny wants to get good roles and stay in this competitive industry, he should enrol and go for some acting classes so that when he comes back into the industry, he has all it takes to be a success. Diction is an integral part in the role that one plays.
In this case, on a balance of probabilities and having looked at the cast as a whole, I would be giving a 9 for the cast.
Overall performance: As a reviewer and critic, I do not always say this, but this movie was well researched in spite of little errors here and there. I am impressed with the major message of the movie which has to do with cervical cancer.
In reality, there is a lot of ignorance in this area and women tend to overlook what are possible symptoms of cervical cancer. While I understand that it is not only cervical cancer that has these symptoms, that was the main thrust of this movie.
I also like how at the end of the movie, there were scripted text messages highlighting the symptoms and what to do if any of these symptoms are noticed. This was relevant as people may have missed the message of the movie in the midst of the comedy and humour. It brought the movie back to its principal message.
Overall, this movies did me proud and so far I have not said this for many movies. For overall performance, I cannot but give this movie a resounding 10.
Out of a possible 50, I have awarded a well-respected 49. This gives the movie a 9.8 on average. I would like to conclude by saying that this movie ranks pari-pasu or in the same stead with movies that I have given the full marks of 10. Everything about this movie smells of excellence, well though out and well directed.
I would like to commend the Director, producer, cast and crew for a job well done.
Not only would I recommend it people to watch this movie, I would recommend that the Producer considers showing this movie in cinemas around the country.
Watch the trailer
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