Stranger on my Bed

Originally uploaded by NollywoodForever

Stranger On My Bed ~ 2010
Story – Austin Obah
Screenplay – Obah Augustine
Director – Chico Ejiro
Producers – Anugo Obah, Hilda Ndidi
Booben Movie Productions

Starring:
Mercy Johnson – Felicia
Tony Umez – Samuel
Arinze Okonkwo – Dede
Ashley Nwosu – Noko
Ebube Nwagbo – Mary
Bahangura Miria (Uganda) – Madam Badmus
Babatunde Braihmoh – Johnson
Valentina Anugo Obah – Diana
Emeka Rollas – Reverend Father

Themes Explored:
Marriage
Religion
Financial Independence

My Rating – 60%

Felicia has been married to Samuel for 5 years. She is lonely and bored within the marriage and feels trapped as a resulted of her limited freedom. Once called “Sexy Feli” in school in her husband’s house she feels like a boring housewife, largely ignored. She has no one to turn to, having recently moved to a new neighbourhood where she does not know anybody.

She craves her husband’s love and attention but instead he throws money at her, as if that alone can make her happy. One day she inquires in a supermarket about a job as a saleslady and is hired. In this job she finds an escape from the humdrum of her everyday life. Her husband is vehemently opposed to her accepting the job initially but soon enough comes round to the idea. Soon enough it is not only the job that she is paying attention to but a handsome stranger from her past.

************SPOILERS************

The beginning of the movie came like a Nigerian horror film. I was holding my head aghast, not because it was scary but because I was cursing myself for having bought the movie and didn’t think I could sit through horror. We see Felicia about to be stabbed and she is screaming and writhing. LUCKILY she wakes up and we see her in bed with her husband Samuel. The whole scene turns out to be a nightmare that she was having, probably indicative of the way she is feeling within her marriage.

The flashback scenes were well interwoven into the main body of the movie. We are slowly given information on Dede and how he came to be in Felicia’s life. Initially the awkwardness was not explained but after we learn the couple’s history the awkwardness between the two on first meeting makes perfect sense. The differences between Felicia’s relationship with her husband and with Dede are a million miles apart. With Dede her whole body language is free. She lights up in his presence, can laugh, have fun and be sill with him. With her husband it is nothing but frowns, shouting and very uncomfortable body language.
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Mercy Johnson
Mercy is a great actress. I am rarely disappointed when she is in a movie. She interprets both sides of her character perfectly. We see her as Sexy Feli the flirtatious, loud campus babe, as well as her role as a submissive downtrodden married woman. In showing her old self we see just how marriage has changed and subdued her character. There was great chemistry between Mercy Johnson and Arinze Okonkwo. It started off a gentle simmering chemistry and graduated to something deeper and stronger. I would love to see Mercy with Majid again. It could be fire and Shakira wasn’t a good enough vehicle to ignite the flames.

The scene where we find out the circumstances surrounding Felicia’s marriage to Samuel was a very emotional one. A revelation is made and if you judged Felicia harshly for cheating on her husband in this scene you will feel sympathy for her and perhaps even shed a tear too. You feel Felicia’s pain and Mercy acts out this scene, piercing sobs while her whole body trembles.

Tony Umez
Tony Umez has lost a lot of weight. This is the first time I have seen him in a movie without his shirt off and I am sure he did that purposely to show of his new physique.
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RUBBISH???
What kind of nonsense was that when Felicia used Dede’s phone to call her husband? The man beats you up and rapes you and treats you like dirt. You know that he is capable of ANYTHING and then you use you ex man’s phone to call him without even blocking the number? WHAT???

There is a scene where Felicia and Dede are working out in the gym. Well… Felicia is working out and Dede is simply assisting. She is wearing ballet pumps. WHAT??? Who on earth wears ballet pumps to go and work out in a gym? Please note, she is not dancing or doing ballet she is attempting a hardcore workout. NONSENSE!
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Role Reversal
Felicia’s relationship with Dede gives her the confidence to treat her husband in the way that he has always treated her in marriage – without regard. It is only after she has given her heart to Dede that her husband sits up and takes notice of her, but is it too late? They say you never miss a good thing until it’s gone and this is true in Samuel’s case. All of a sudden we see him pleading with his wife to go on outings with him. Before she met Dede it was always him missing appointments and her begging him to make some engagement or another.

Marriage
We are told that marriage is for better of for worst. Felicia keeps being told this. It is all very well to pass out advice like that when you are not living in an abusive nightmareish situation. I felt like when Felicia confided in Mary instead of listening to her she would simply keep telling her that she is a Christian so she must stick to her husband. So if you are a Christian you must put up with any and everything in order to stick to your vow?

Religion
Always in Nollywood is the belief expressed that the unbeliever is inherently immoral, and that my friends is BUUUUULLLLSHHHAT! It’s a total myth based in ignorance and untruth but perhaps appropriate considering the religiosity of Nigerians at large. In once scene we see a man stand up in church and say that he is living with an unbeliever that is trying to recruit him into the 419 business. Oooh what a dilemma? NOT. Why not have the guy stand up and say that he is living with unbelievers that live the most moral and worthy lives that he knows of. Now wouldn’t that present more of a dilemma?

This whole issue of church presence being linking to morality kinda irks me big time. It is a huge LIE, and they reiterate this lie in the movie by showing how Samuel changes when he stops going to church. When his church visits cease he becomes a rapist and wife batterer. Religion is used as the excuse as to why he committed these acts. The devil indeed? He chose to commit these acts. Everybody has free will as far as I am concerned.
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The End
I didn’t like the ending of this movie. I am thinking that there will be a continuation. Towards the end of the movie things took a nosedive for the worst in a big way with the disappearance of Dede. Why wasn’t Felicia surprised that he had gone missing? The way the police burst in her house to question her was just stupid. They asked a few questions and then just left, but not before threatening her. It all seemed a bit over the top. The movie does not finish and the scene being shot does not even end. I’m fed up of these movies not finishing and not being released all together. It is becoming very annoying.
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I would recommend this movie. Mercy was great in it, overall it is a good watch and we learn that men shouldn’t treat their women like asswipes because there will be another man out there that will treasure her and when she gets the queen treatment she will not be coming back to your azz. Be warned! LOL