Today, I bring to you the 1% of the 1%—the Bling Lagosians, a Bolanle Austen-peter’s film. I got to give it to Anthony Kehinde Joseph for writing this masterpiece.
The movie explores the lives of the 1% of the 1% citizens of Lagos. It explores greed, covetousness, lust, envy, betrayal, vengeance, the struggles to keep up with society, the fall and rise of the 1% of the 1%.
Betrayal and revenge are very common storylines, but I love how they were able to use the characters, the performance, and the resolution to make it unique and stand out.
The movie is a must-watch; I am in love with the characters, the plots, everything!
PLOT
The story follows the powerful Holloway family. Mopelola, the wife of Akin Holloway, prepares for her 51st birthday, which is to be a one-of-a-kind and biggest society event of the year. While her husband fights to keep his place in the family's company. The eldest daughter, who is quite successful, faces problems in her marriage and is about to lose her husband.
While the second daughter, who is going into the movie industry, seems to be the only stable one.
As the birthday draws closer, so does Asset Management Corporation on akin.
Akin battles with the Asset Management Corporation and with his wife to keep her birthday quiet to maintain a low profile and stay under the radar.
MY TAKE
I won't lie; the story is a mashup of different stories I have seen before, but what made it unique was the dialogue, the performance of the cast, and the cinematography. It has a rich cast that was able to represent different aspects of the Lagosian society.
The character that stood out the most for me is Mopelola. Elvina Ibru was a perfect pick to play the role. She was able to embody the character of an elegant, classy, and savage woman, but within all that classiness was a cunning scorpion ready to sting if poked. I don't know exactly how her dialogue was engineered, but if it was she who added that spice to her dialogue herself, then she contributed a lot to the film. I can never forget all the savage lines she delivered in the movie.
I always loved the scenes when she gave her friends fire back to back. Especially that last scene after that, her one friend tried to sabotage her reputation; that part got me excited and laughing at the same time.
Don't think because I didn't mention all the cast, there aren't amazing performers there. There is many great supporting cast.
Even Broda Shagi and Co were able to sprinkle some laughter on the story. Not to mention Bisola Aiyeola, Alex Ekubo, Toyin Ibrahim, and many more.
The movie was great: a great start, a great run, and a great end. The end felt real and very satisfying.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Overall the movie was good. It is an engaging film that portrays human nature and the expectations of society with a strong narrative. It was worth the time and had a plot twist, but I feel there wasn't enough depth and tighter execution in some places. I will give it a rating of 8/10.
