Connect with us

Ghanaian Movie

Movie Review: BAD LUCK JOE – when Apex beats ‘their’ venom.

Published

on

For some of us, we would continue to argue that the Ghana film industry is on the upsurge with renewed energies and mindsets that are steadily pushing mediocrity to the back. It gets more reassuring when we get served with another film that delivers on providing a truly satisfying cinema experience.

After a long wait we finally got to see Ramesh Jai’s BAD LUCK JOE last night and just like the initial promo artworks had projected, we left the cinema feeling all kinds of emotions all at the same time.

The film’s story is centered on Joe, Abena, Zuri, Elizabeth and other everyday people who get caught up in a power play between two widows, Madam Francesca and Aunty Beatrice who are fighting over their husband, Mr. Patapaa’s properties. A fight that takes the characters on an interesting ride as they try to find a missing body.

Chris Attoh in Bad Luck Joe (2018)

The story goes several layers deep with the characters it made use of. There is Joe, (played by Chris Attoh) a broke troubled man who is struggling to change his ways and better his fortunes after finding love in Abena (played by Adomaa). And there is Zuri (played by Sika Osei) a daring and energetic young lady who is haunted by an unfortunate event in her past, who is bent on making things right between her and her father. Whilst Elizabeth, (played by Kande Talata Awudu) on the other hand, is a caring wife committed to her marriage regardless of the tedious task of having to deal with a clingy and needy husband who is confined to a wheelchair even as she compelled to enforce the plans of her aunt, Madam Francesca who is seems too sophisticated to want to get her own hands dirty.

The characters in this film were beautifully developed with enough details to make them very relatable making their actions/decisions in the film very much understandable no matter how outrageous they seemed. You see almost any kind of person you can relate to, in the Ghanaian sense, in this film. Right down from troublesome landlords, shady men of God, through to nosey tourists you have your pick to choose from.

Sika Osei in Bad Luck Joe (2018)

The humor in BAD LUCK JOE is different and could be compared to a stand up performance act where the punchline to each joke is set up flawlessly and nailed effortlessly leaving the audience helpless with laughter. The acting in this film was equally beautiful besides some over exaggerations by a few of the cast. I doubt if we have ever seen  Chris Attoh looking this dispirited and scruffy yet still lovable or an energetic and positively chirpy Sika Osei as what we got to see in this film. Adomaa also did well to leave us spellbound with her beauty, charm and innocence in the character she plays in this film.

You can’t help but cringe or fume at some of the situations in this film. But the beauty lies in how it all ended up adding to the story being told. There isn’t a single random scene or dialogue in this film that didn’t add any weight to the original plot. Something we rarely see in most of our films.

The sequencing and editing in this film was amazing, using some very interesting fast cuts on emotionally driven sound scores that were able to successfully pack so much vital details about some of the characters and their back story into a small time frame without leaving the audience confused or lost at any point. And you have no choice than to be awed by the very detailed slow motioned running scenes that would certainly make anyone laugh.

GhMoviefreak.com rates this film a well deserving 8.3/10 score after passing in through our veracious rating scheme.

You don’t have to even know anything about the writer and director Ramesh Jai and his Apex Advertising & Post Production team or their past projects to appreciate the work and effort that was put into this film. They set out to make a film worthy of the audience time and money and judging from last night’s experience, they delivered on exactly that despite Silverbird’s venom. (sike)

Argue all you want, but it’s certainly better to have one quality project a year that satisfies your audience and elevates the prospects of the industry collectively than having several projects that just muddies the pool and further worsens the woes of our film industry either directly or indirectly.

Bottom line is….  a lot more of our filmmakers should endeavor to make a some more ‘good films’ with a unique story, commit to marketing not just the “stars” in the film, but an amazing cinema experience and proceed to make sure they deliver on exactly that…. all for the sustainability of our evolving film industry.

In case you missed out on the sold out premiere last night or you were scared away by the crowd, make sure you go see this movie as it is still showing throughout the week. BAD LUCK JOE is definitely worth the time and money, especially for any skeptics of the potentials of the Ghana film industry.

If you have already seen it do well to share with us your thoughts on it in the comments section below all #fortheloveoffilm

Watch Trailer Below

Second on my list of addictions is Movies.. the only thing I could possibly love more is my Dearest Waakye lol. Nothing else does a better job of reminding me that ANYTHING is possible with the right amount of effort. I have great eye for details and flaws in scripts. Shallow scripts bore me. I am an avid reader. Your everyday Mr Nice guy. Always the last to speak in a room full of smart people. Half Human, half Martian but full MOVIE FREAK.

Continue Reading
Advertisement
12 Comments

12 Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Advertisement

Pay only 35% upfront fee for film gear rental.

GhMovieFreak TV

#BloGhAwards18 Winner

GhMoviefreak is an official media partner for