Norbert Ajaegbu’s MAMA AFRICA has in many ways redefined the use of satire in African cinema. Bringing together a rare blend of professionals, established and budding to make one movie that reflects the reality that plagues the African continent.
The renowned filmmaker of international repute revealed that every plot and characterization in the drama depicts particular sections of the African society, in Lagos at the weekend premiere of movie at the Filmhouse Cinemas, Surulere.
The glamorous event attended by the crème de la crème of the societyincluding Mrs Patricia Bala Director General of the Nigerian film video census board (NFVCB), business leaders in the corporate world, the press and Nollywood practitioners, the producer and writer of the movie who is also the Lagos chairperson and national spokesman of the Film and video, producers and marketers association of Nigeria (FVPMAN) confessed that the movie MAMA AFRICA is so far his biggest contribution to the intellectual commonwealth of the African cinema.
The destitute represent the deprived populace of the African society, while Martha’s role ably played by Actress Tonto Dikeh, represent certain civilians in the society who though emerged from humble backgrounds, mortgaged their conscience to the overwhelming influence of the government.
The military keepers being the shape shifting archetypes, depicts the dictatorial tendency of a typical military junta. It’s leadership and control, an aberration. Absurd policies mixed with cheap propaganda ever adopting the divide and rule tactics can only be defeated whenever the civilian populace manage to unite and dislodge the usurper. The overzealous role of sergeant peters played out by Chigozie Atunanya is a prototype of the average soldier in power who understands power as oppression and will do anything to please his superiors even if it goes against common sense.
The movie also weaves in the story of the ruling cartel of the typical political elite who take decisions and exert acts that are adverse to the people as long as it serves their purpose. The protagonist character Nathan played by Zack Orji depicts how the ungodly acts of politicians fall back on them in no distant future.
The event, heavily attended by movie lovers saw the theater filled and overflowing yet the tears flowed as people felt the pain of MAMA AFRICA, after seeing the movie no one left without an overt admiration for the master of satire or the masterpiece woven in satire. The only one question on all lips is “when is the release date?”
The distributor of the movie, Metro classic pictures represented by Mr Uwem Jacobs announced that the box office movie MAMA AFRICA from the stables of ocean movies will be released in cinemas on the 9th of May 2014. He said this was in response to the throng of calls he had previously be bombarded with when the trailers first hit the internet and the buzz the movie has generated. He said “ with the crowd that we saw today and how the theater was overflowing it will be a major relief to all movie lovers to relive the experience and finally see a movie that is worth both their time and money plus see the reality of African told in simple riddles too clear to miss the message“