Shanty Town

I really have nothing to actually say about this series in all honesty. But for the purpose of actually reviewing I will say a few things. First of the camera was good, the actors are beautiful, I get to see some fine women's body and they have actions. This is all the positive I have for the series.now to what is actually vexing me about the series is firstly what's to concept asin the story line is weak, all of a suddenly I see I know faces in the movies coming out to fight the action part for real.

I think this cannot be classified as nollywood going in the right direction but a wake up call for the director and producer that the new to get the right and experienced people involved when making a movie by so doing they too will learn.

I didn't expect this series to be so good. In terms of production, visuals, plot, script, acting has improved massively from the old days of BEN channels. Nollywood is like Bollywood to be a force to be reckoned to Hollywood. However, I was thoroughly entertained with unexpected plots and suspense. The harsh reality on how power can corrupt absolutely from the political arena, which can correlate to real life situation. The A-class cast from The King of Boys such as Sola Sobowale really smashed it. The series does provide a unique twist, with the underground black market, and forced prostitution which correlates on how there are more slaves in the world than transatlantic slavery with political involvement in the continent of Africa. However, it shows the other dark side of prostitution, which is different to sex workers who really enjoy their trade with individual choice to make a living.

This is one of those adequately budgeted, for-show Nigerian production that's supposed to represent the country in the international market. Unfortunately, this show is below par, maybe by nigerian movie standards it's a masterpiece but still, it is mediocre. The biggest culprit here is the writing, the writing is so poor and unable to produce a coherent storyline and good dialogue. The pacing both moves slow and fast. Characters are cliches almost to the point of caricatures. Most of them lack any depth. But one could say the saving grace here is the performances? But not all tho, Chidi Mokeme as Scar was sublime, inhabiting his character wholly and embracing his eccentricities. He was actually enjoyable to watched but was a bit one dimensional. His character wasn't given much to work with. Ini Edo is up for the task but more often than not she overacts and her character is also quite predictable. Nse Ikpe-Etim as Ene was one of the better performers, she was understated with her performance and played quite a bit complex character. An awful performance, however, comes from Peter Okoye who played Femi. Peter can't act to save his life, good singer but terrible actor! As for the technical aspects, I thought the cinematography was good; the lighting was well done but the editing could be better, at some point I thought I was a watching a music video; scenes jumped from one scene to other with no explanation. People sometimes magically appear in places they shouldn't be. There was an attempt for fight choreography which was partially enjoyable but also somewhat embarassing to watch given how poorly done it was. The practical effects in the opening sequence was however excellent and praiseworthy. The story was predictable and formulaic, there's also the incorporation of supernatural elements which was random and out-of-place for the realistic tone the show is going for. Some of the nudity and violence were gratuitous and serve no purpose to the story. The ending could be better, it tidied up quickly but also make sure to tease the audience of a second season. My advice? For the second season; hire good writers, a director that can be able to put everything together well, and a coherent storyline.

Shanty town helps to offer an insight into the lives of the corrupt, with a plot that gives it a strong base. Filled with impeccable acting and nerve wracking moments. Shanty Town is a must see. It starts off fiery but is perfectly paced, as the show goes on you see that.

Each character has a reason for doing what they do and their personal goals and vendetta all collide. Episode one gives us a teaser of what is to come and the further episodes help to build on that in as much as the gore or nude scenes may not be too everyone's liking it is certainly a key component of the show as it helps us understand the world of Shanty Town.

Seeing that Shanty Town is a six-part series, one would have expected better character development and an ending that was worth it.

These and more were not gotten from the six-part series recently released to Netflix.

The series opens well, and I believed that I was in for a treat, but not really.

A combination of good makeup, mediocre sex scenes and ok vfx were this series selling points, because the story was riddled with plot holes.

Female extra characters are degraded and objectified, and the excuse of it being true to the story of the life of the average sex worker.

Chidi Mokeme was the stand out actor in this series, He brought his A-game and basically carried the series on his shoulders. The remainder of the main cast were giving what was expected. Peter Okoye's Yoruba accent... wow. He could have done with a trainer.

The plot of shanty town is shabby cacophony of stories that just lengthens the run time.

The ending was abrupt and totally unsatisfactory. For a six-part series.

The story could have used with a better ending but the producers had probably either run out of ideas or funding because the ending did nothing but add to already lingering bitter taste in our mouths.

In conclusion, the movie shanty town is a perfect example of having your heart in the right place but executing with the finesse of a toddler playing a piano.