I have not been particularly drawn to films from Nollywood in the past. This is because, in my experience, the films produced in this industry have not been able to match the quality of films from other industries, such as Hollywood, both in terms of writing and acting.
Recently, however, I have noticed a significant improvement in Nollywood films. One film that has particularly stood out for me is "Far From Home."
Now, when a friend asked me, "Have you seen Far From Home?" I immediately responded that I had, and it was also not a new Spider-Man film, implying that I was curious as to why they'd be fascinated by an old film as though it were new. But I had been mistaken. From thereon, I started seeing all the hype about it on the internet, and, as if that were not enough, the majority of my friends were all about it and watching it. And since the trailer was enticing enough, I jumped right on the train.
What I did find, however, surpassed my expectations, which were more like it was going to be some overhyped film that we'd soon forget about and move on with our lives.
A young artist from a poor background, Ishaya Bello, dreams of becoming a world-renowned artist, but he lacks the means to make his dreams a reality. Therefore, he resort to menial jobs to make ends meet for himself and his family.
An opportunity arises for Ishaya one day, and he will be able to make his dream come true through the tutelage of his idol. However, that dream may very well be shattered if he is unable to gather enough to begin the journey to realizing his dreams.
To take advantage of this opportunity, Ishaya takes extreme measures that eventually put his life and the lives of those around him in danger.
The first thing that found interesting was how the film started was the subtle yet crucial attention to the sounds, followed by an interesting comic entrance to the story. Another thing that made me feel all the more drawn was the accurate representation of Lagos, Nigeria, where the film was set in.
The film centers around how the passion of a young boy drives him to a point where he neglects his morals, family, and potential repercussions, all for the goal of achieving his dreams. And although this is the main idea, we find the film diversifying into various concepts that make it more engaging.
We find the film juggling between the lives of pivotal characters, therefore giving more depth to the story as we see things from different perspectives. And as the story progressed, it made more and more sense, and it was not just all about this one character, and that would be all we'd see. It allowed for a fresh breath of air to see the story take certain turns and introduce more interesting perspectives.
Another thing I particularly liked about the film was that it did very well to capture the Nigerian culture in all its beauty. They make use of dialogues that are very typical in most Nigerian societies, and better yet, in places where you'd find a lot of youth, like the universities. You'd find regular use of Pidgin (broken English) and occasional use of Yoruba, while still sticking with the use of proper English in most cases.
My favorite thing, however, was how they were able to deliver the film with sufficient comic elements, which I'd say greatly assisted in making the film more engaging, and also mix it all with thrills and intrigues.
This aspect of filmography used to be one of the biggest concerns for Nollywood films over the years—basically, for me. Films over here used to have a not-so-impressive visual representation of their stories, making it a big turnoff for people in the first place. However, I personally am ecstatic to see how much improvement has happened in the industry now.
Other than the storyline being great, the film may not have had as much light as it did without as much effort that was poured into it to begin with. It was appealing to see how beautifully shot the film was. A lot of attention to detail, lighting, and depiction of the typical Nigerian environment were things that I really appreciated in the film.
Had it not been for the nuances in the detailing of the visuals, the film may not have been as engaging as I found it. And I loved how everything in sight was carefully thought about.
As I previously stated, the film relied heavily on characters other than the main one.This means that those characters (including the main character) that the story is centered on need to do their jobs right to sell the story. And they all did a really good job.
I had never seen the majority of the characters before. They seemed to me like they were entry-level actors, and this film may have been their debut. But all that didn't matter to me because they knew their jobs and they did them. It didn't appear as though they may be new, or maybe it's all because I just haven't been seeing Nollywood films lately.
This aspect is also part of why I am impressed with the turns Nollywood films have taken; they are clearly for the better.
Far From Home is a film that further reverts my notion about Nollywood films and encourages me to consider more films form my home country. It may not be perfect, but it does have a stand in the industry as one of the films that do check a lot of boxes.
It doesn't seem there will be a second season to this series, from the way it ended, and so I am not expecting any one any time soon. But it was nice to enjoy a couple of episodes that felt more like home, and was enjoyable.
I will rate the film at 8/10.
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Other images are from Netflix.
:)
sᴇʀɪᴇs ʀᴇᴠɪᴇᴡ: ᴛʜᴇ ᴍɪᴅɴɪɢʜᴛ ᴄʟᴜʙ || ᴛᴏ ᴜs ɴᴏᴡ, ᴀɴᴅ ᴛᴏ ᴛʜᴏsᴇ ʙᴇʏᴏɴᴅ
ᴍᴏᴠɪᴇ ʀᴇᴠɪᴇᴡ: ɢʟᴀss ᴏɴɪᴏɴ : ᴀ ᴋɴɪᴠᴇs ᴏᴜᴛ ᴍʏsᴛᴇʀʏ || ʙʀɪʟʟɪᴀɴᴄʏ ᴀɢᴀɪɴ!
ℍ𝕖𝕪, 𝕚𝕗 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕖𝕟𝕛𝕠𝕪𝕖𝕕 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕤 𝕡𝕠𝕤𝕥, 𝕜𝕚𝕟𝕕𝕝𝕪 𝕝𝕖𝕒𝕧𝕖 𝕒 𝕔𝕠𝕞𝕞𝕖𝕟𝕥, 𝕣𝕖𝕓𝕝𝕠𝕘, 𝕠𝕣 𝕦𝕡𝕧𝕠𝕥𝕖. 𝕀𝕥'𝕝𝕝 𝕤𝕦𝕣𝕖 𝕓𝕖 𝕒𝕡𝕡𝕣𝕖𝕔𝕚𝕒𝕥𝕖𝕕.