The premiere of the movie Double Cross was held at Odeon Greenwich Cinema on Friday 31st October 2014. Prominent amongst those on the red carpet included John Dumelo, Ama K. Abebrese, DJ Abass, Eloise Nana Yaa Miss Ghana UK 2014, Adjetey Anang, Ayo Oyebade, Ikenna Obi, Yvonne Hayes, Danny Erskine, cast and crew of the Movie, to mention but a few.
The movie which was shot in Ghana showcased award winning actress Ama K. Abebrese, multi Award winning John Dumelo, multi award winning actor Adjetey Anang, alongside Jasmine Baroudi, Paulina Oduro and veteran actor Samuel Odoi-Mensah. The movie was directed by prolific director Pasacal Aka and produced by D R Kufuor and Ama K Abebrese.
Storyline: In the movie, Effie Howard’s (Ama K. Abebrese) life is dramatically turned upside down when her fiancé Ben Boateng (Adjetey Anang) is convicted and sentenced for a crime he did not commit. Determined to prove his innocence, she carried out her own investigation and finds the actual robber; Danny Frimpong (John Dumelo) a calm and collected sophisticated genius of a thief who has a personal vendetta against the bank he robbed Neptune Bank International. He robbed the bank using technological equipment’s and software’s which enabled him to enter, steal and exit the bank leaving everyone mystified as to how the theft was carried out, no witnesses, no evidence, yet the money is gone.
She meets Danny and threatens him but offers him a deal, and it’s to rob the bank again with similar methods as the first so the authorities know the actual robber is still out there then Danny does not lose what matters to him most and the reason for the bank robbery. She plans to relocate with the money when Ben is acquitted so as to get away from the stigma attached to ex-convicts and their families. After the bank robbery Effie sets her sights on a jewellery warehouse and she wants Danny to rob it.
With a lot of jewellery and money at stake, each one of them tries to outwit each other with medleys of smart thinking as they plan and execute the robberies, but no amount of careful planning or expertise can prepare them for the dangerous enemy, an enemy Effie least expected and never saw coming with surprising twist
With a lot of jewellery and loads of money at stake, each one of them tries to outwit each other with medleys of smart thinking as they plan and execute the robberies. They meticulously plan the robberies, but no amount of careful planning or expertise can prepare them for the dangerous enemy, an enemy Effie least expected and never saw coming. There was a surprise twist, but if you want to know what it is, go watch the movie.
I sat down at the Cinema and initially wandered where the story was going. I thought it was about revenge and an upset lady trying to get revenge on the man that had put her fiancé behind bars. I then saw the same man falling in love with his friend’s fiancée. It was wild drama till the last straw. I am tempted to say what happened, but that would be spoiling the intrigue for those who have not watched the movie. The credits at the end showing what happened to each individual was a welcome advantage and of course the climax of the movie surprised some people. I must say I was not surprised as I expected it!! All in all, the storyline was good and I give credit to the writer.
Cast: As stated above, there were some celebrated cast members. I think there was a balanced cast and the cast did justice in bringing out the intended storyline and for this I give kudos to the Director of the movie. However, I was not really impressed with the acting of one or two of the cast. Worthy of mention is the police inspector and negotiator. To me the acting was not convincing at all. Before the bomb exploded and after that, the countenance of the officer was unreal. At the press conference as well, I was not impressed, he did not make it look real. I think he should have demonstrated a bit more passion in the role. On a balance, I say well done to the cast.
Picture quality: For this sub-head, I had an argument with my Associate Reviewer. While she thought that some scenes were blurry and not well focussed, I did not agree with her. In my own opinion, I thought that the picture quality was good but not excellent. As a good reviewer and bearing in mind that in every movie, we have two reviewers seating at different places within the cinema, I think the Director along with the Director of Photography in future movies should take a second look at the final shot and the pictures that come out so that pictures are clear and not blurry. On this one, I leave it to the audience that watched the movie to lean on one side.
Sound: Right from the beginning of the movie and in most scenes, as is the case with most Nollywood and African movies that we have reviewed, there were buzzy sounds on the background interfering with the actual sound of the cast. Although we could hear what the cast was saying, I am really looking forward to reviewing a movie where I am not hearing background noise. I watch movies from around the world and if we are to compete with Hollywood, we have to ensure that the sound is clear and concise and that the only background noise that is heard are the sounds of any effects used in the movie. The sound was not too bad, but can be improved on.
Overall performance: When I watch an African Movie or a Nollywood movie, I want to see the effects, props and location looking as real as possible. In this movie, to me the prison even though it was the visiting hall that was shown did not look anything like a prison. What I saw was even much better than the visiting halls of category D, open prisons in the UK. I would be very surprised if that scene was shot on location in a prison. In future, the Director should actually approach the prison service and do the scene there or do what is done in programmes like East Enders, create the location.
Like I said earlier, I was impressed with the intrigue and suspense at the end. To me, the effects used for the bomb and the whole scene could have been better. A good cinematographer would have done a very good job in that scene and made it look real. It looked a bit artificial although the message was sent out.
Overall, I would say it was a good movie, better than most of the movies I have seen and had to review. There were definitely issues as I have addressed and this is hoping that in future projects, the Director and his team would look at these in a bid to make their next work better.
All I have to say is well done!!!
Watch the trailer:
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