Through The Glass

Nigerian Movie Review
Through The Glass – 2010
Story/Screenplay & Director Stephanie Okereke
Producer – Stephanie Okereke

Starring:
Stephanie Okereke – Ada
Garrett Mckechnie – Geoffrey
Rainier Kenny – Martha
Brion Rose – Matt
Geno Giordan – Donald
Christy Williams – Nicole

Themes:
Adoption
Parenthood

NollywoodForever.Com Rating – 41%

Synopsis:

Tom Cruise lookalike Geoffrey played by Garrett Mckechnie is Ada’s neighbour and a womanising playboy. Day in and day out different women leave his house after nighttime rendez vous. One day a new born baby is left at his front door. One of his former lays leaves it there unable to cope and disgruntled with the fact that he has been ignoring her phone calls and texts. Geoffrey turns to his neighbour Ada played by Stephanie Okereke for help. She is reluctant at first to even talk to Geoffrey considering his reputation but soon warms up when she falls in love with the baby.
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Stephanie Okereke
Stephanie is a decent actress, and sometimes she is even great but all her slip ups and mispronunciations were way too many in this movie. I hear people talk about her Americanisms and mispronunciations and I never thought that it was thaaaat bad until NOW. Oh lawd it was never ending,

Example 1:

“When you stop budging me with your problems…”
Hold up woman were u really trying to say BOTHERING? Oh HELL NAW!

Example 2:

“I thought you said it was only the baby thaaaaaart maaaarthuuurrs”
Oh lawdhammercy please Stephanie spare us!

The Storyline/ Setting
Stephanie was not thinking about where the movie is set when writing this movie. She has set the movie in the USA but then having things happen as if it were Nigeria. We had Geoff’s dad talking about how having a baby without being married would bring scandal to his advertising company. Erm? HUH? Not in America love. America is not Nigeria. How would people be all up in your private business like that?

In the hearing to get the baby back it was brought up that Geoff has not been in a committed relationship before. How would they know that and how would that be brought up? Not in America Stephanie. I don’t buy that at all. I feel like she had her Nigerian thinking cap on too much. If she wasn’t sure about cultural differences she should have stayed away from things she was not sure about or asked Americans for their advice. There ain’t know shame in knowing your limitations.

Character Development
The character development generally was very poor. All of the characters felt one dimensional. I didn’t feel like I got to know them at all. She tried to create some sympathy angle with Geoff and his whole daddy relationship issues but it just did not work for me. The druggy who was the baby’s mother provided some comic relief in the movie but even her small role was problematic. We see that she only wants her child for welfare however when she comes to hand the baby back she is acting like she is a caring mother when she never showed an iota of that before. It doesn’t make sense and is out of character. What has caused this turn around? Is she off drugs? Did she have an epiphany? What? We are never told or shown.

Screenplay
The script was rather basic. There was one line where Geoff goes to talk to Stephanie but he has lipstick around his mouth and Stephanie is trying to show some sass but it just really didn’t work. The wording was awkward and this wasn’t the only time. She says to him,

“By the time you wipe off the lipstick from your mouth you can check me out”
Hum er ok Steph.

Nollywood Forever Says What
Geoff and Ada’s front doors are always left open. SAY WHAT? Where is this where people can go in and out of people’s houses just any how?

The scene where Geoff calls “the authorities” and the guy is having sex with someone on the phone does not feel realistic at all. SAY WHAT? At first I thought Geoff was calling his friend. Not well thought about at all. Who are the authorities? Social services? The police? She needed to be more specific.

It was not realistic to me that no one would take the baby when Geoff told “the authorities” someone left it on the doorstep. SAY WHAT? How can “the authorities” be telling you, “Are you sure you don’t know the person whose baby it is?” Nonsense

What was it at the hearing to get the baby back that not once were DNA or drugs tests mentioned. SAY WHAT? Come on!!! How would the authorities have accusations of drug abuse and not carry out a simple drug test before giving the baby back. How would they not do a DNA test to see if Geoff was the father? Why wouldn’t Geoff insist on one?

Conclusion:

I would not recommend the movie. The general premise of the story was good and could have worked. With a bit of crafting and character development it could have been a fine movie, however it was not. Character development was poor, too many things that happened did not seem realistic and the actors veered between mediocre and beneath that. It was just about watchable and Stephanie dey try but there were just too many gaping holes, however it was a completely solo effort so she must be commended for at least pulling the whole thing together.

Off subject:
Loved the black guy’s “token” shirt. Hilarious. He was hot too.

Tags: Brion Rose, Christy Williams, Garrett Mckechnie, Geno Giordan, Rainier Kenny, Stephanie Okereke

Category: Nollywood Film Reviews, Watch? Only if bored