Film review: Clarion Chukwura, Kanayo O. Kanayo breathe life into the biopic, ‘Apaye: A Mother’s Love’

by Wilfred Okiche

APAYE POSTER

Inspired by true events, Apaye is the story of one woman’s sojourn on earth and her many struggles first as a married woman, then as a single mother to lift her family out of poverty. Elder Irene Yepayeye Uriah-Dieah from Bayelsa state and a relative of President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan passed on in 2013, and her family apparently approached producer Emem Isong’s Royal Arts Academy to record their mother’s inspiring life story on film. The result is a beautiful, moving adaptation that draws fresh attention to the remarkable life of its heroine.

In the creeks of what is now Bayelsa state, an up-to-no-good middle-aged man (Kanayo O Kanayo) spies an impressionable young girl (Belinda Effah) and applies all the tricks in his book to seduce her. She falls for him and goes on to become his second wife despite mild reservation from her family. After a few moments of marital bliss, punctuated by the civil war, Apaye realises that her husband is a chronic, unforgiving, hard hearted womaniser and makes a pivotal decision to leave him.

She moves out with her 6 children and for a woman with little formal education, life is brutal but Apaye is no wilting flower. She gives as good as she gets and pushes hard, depriving herself and bettering herself to ensure that all 6 mouths are fed and each one has access to a better life than she did. She does her best with the hand she is dealt but as in real life, some kids will turn out okay, others will not.

The movie is presented in flashbacks, with Clarion Chukwura who plays the elder Apaye, narrating her life’s story to a benefactor. The scenes where she is narrating are some of the weakest links as she appears overwrought by emotions and puts in an over the top performance. However these scenes are few and sprinkled in between the film.

Belinda Efah, Mbong Amata and Kanayo O Kanayo are all in solid form but the film really belongs to madam Chukwura as she grabs the reins from her very first scene and gives a commanding performance for the ages. It is a meaty role but she makes it even juicier with her jovial screen presence. A big role, there are laughs, tears, hysteria, fainting spells, prayer sessions, more tears  and she plumbs the depths of each emotion, bringing to glorious life, the titular character. She affectionately refers to her eldest daughter Suam (played by Mbong Amata) as Jacky for her strong work ethic but it is Ms Chukwura who is the jacky of this film, working harder than everyone else and engraving her presence, playing Apaye as Apaye and not as Clarion Chukwura playing Apaye. Of recent, this commitment to method has not been seen so often. She should be grateful to whoever offered her the role and they should thank their stars they called her.

Midway into the film, there is a particular scene where Chukwura and Kanayo O Kanayo are arguing and he attempts persuading her to come back home. The vitality and vibrancy of both actors going back and forth is a joy to behold and younger thespians can take a quick lesson from 2 of the masters. It beggars wonder why the guys at Royal Arts Academy would punish us with another silly film starring Uche Jombo or Ini Edo when they have access to Chukwura in all her dazzling glory. ‘Apaye’ is the kind of lead role that was popular in the nineties and early oughties but disappeared altogether with the changing of the guard.

The screenplay attempts to pack the entire events of a person’s life into 2 hours and subsequently suffers sometimes from this urgency with some of the scenes feeling rushed and even disjointed but the dialogue and small life details are rendered beautifully onscreen. There are little gimmicks (like when the actors are scooping water out of their flooded home and when Apaye works as a cook in a secondary school) that add a sense of credibility to the film and a careful attention to detail that has all but fled recent Nollywood offering. The music is engaging and the production design is top notch, although the war scene could have used a bit more help in coming vividly alive.The screenplay is one directional and takes the easy sentimental route, alternating between going for your tears and succumbing to the blanket cover of religion everytime but this film is the best work from the Royal Academy in ages and so we’ll take our victories where we can find them.

Directed  almost by the book by Desmond Elliot, ‘Apaye’ has its flaws. It is a straight laced narrative and Eliott doesn’t attempt any inspiring camera angles or cinema tricks. But he tells the story faithfully and judiciously proving that one does not need to wow audiences to impress. Sometimes competence is enough. ‘Apaye’ unintentionally makes a strong case for the biopics. If careful attention to detail is paid, they could be Nollywood’s next frontier.

And yes, Clarion Chukwura will win the AMAA.

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