This film follows the story of six people fleeing an oil-polluted community. They end up as stowaways on a ship not realizing the danger ahead and now they must fight for their lives.
We asked and Play Network listened.
Let me start by saying, after Living in Bondage– Breaking Free, this is Play Network’s finest production. In past reviews of their films, I know I asked for movies with better stories, less fluff, more depth and coherent storytelling and I must admit that they really tried to do that with this movie.
What worked?
The movie started well with a solid storyline, decent cinematography and well-crafted set pieces. Let’s not forget that they used an actual ship!! It was really good to see the cast of this movie weave their way through the ship.
In recent years, the people of Niger Delta in Nigeria have witnessed increasing environmental concerns that continue to threaten the health and livelihood of the people in that area, it is important that we talk about these issues and I liked the fact that this movie made an attempt to create awareness about this.
Plot progression was coherent. Casting was okay. Acting was not bad. Even the white guys were not so bad.
Character development was thin but still they gave us something and I am thankful for that.
Suspense? Yes there was a bit of it. The moment the 6 of them got on the ship, I was invested, I wanted to know what would happen next. I wanted to know how and when they would be discovered. I must also mention that the fights, the shootings and killings were quite believable and nicely executed.
What were the issues?
I was bored. Despite the movie’s attempt at a chilling thriller with all the required elements—killings, blood, and tears—it was surprisingly unexciting. I couldn’t wait for it to come to an end and unfortunately, the boredom is palpable even in this review.
Where did they really lose me? I think it was the moment the stowaways were discovered and accused of being spies and I was wondering spies for who? This was a major plot point but it did not make sense to me because there was no context as to why he would think them to be spies. The way Degbe was suddenly killed, the skinning of Boma, the fight between the brothers, all these should have helped the movie but everything was just underwhelming…it was devoid of chills, thrills and excitement.
Even though I mentioned earlier that acting was not bad and casting was okay, all through the 119 minutes of this film, I couldn’t help but feel this movie would have been so much more if they had more outstanding performances and a more compelling central character or hero. This might be an unpopular opinion but Abbey as the lead in this film was a NO for me. I want to categorically state that I don’t think David Ezekiel (Abbey) is a bad actor, he just did not work as the lead for this movie, the performance was forgettable and unremarkable.
I did not like the fact that they did not convincingly deliver on the themes they chose to explore
When they were hiding at the bottom of the ship, I was looking forward to stirring moments, the beautiful realization of how interconnected their lives were, bonding over shared struggles and future dreams but everything was really bland. They could not even convincingly complain about the bucket of poop they had to sleep with. Even though it is safe to assume that the smell would have gotten worse over time, it was only mentioned once and forgotten (tiny details matter).
The romance between Oyin and Abbey was another big NO. No chemistry, no connection, even when they looked into each other’s eyes, there was nothing there. The moments they shared should have been shining and moving moments in the midst of all the chaos but it was just there. It was not sad enough to be poignant and it was not sweet enough to be endearing.
Also, even though I liked the fact that this movie is premised on the environmental crisis in the Niger Delta region, it felt like it was more of a prop than an intentional attempt to explore that theme because they actually did not say anything insightful about this topic they explored….what should have been an eye-opening perspective on the experiences of these people was used as a mere plot point to move the story forward, at the end of this movie, nothing about this issue stays with you…..
While watching this film, I had questions;
Why was Pere in this film? Even though it wasn’t clear when exactly he was locked up (weird that we did not see him witness any of the killings), If Pere was the captain of the ship, who was steering the ship after he was tied up? Also, where were the other members of the ship’s crew? They all suddenly disappeared and the only people we saw on that whole ship apart from the 6 stowaways were the 4 white people.
What eventually happened to all the stolen crude oil? Tekena was thrown into the Ocean in the middle of nowhere with a gunshot wound to his knee, how did he get home before Abbey? Did he swim all the way from Cape Verde to Nigeria hanging on to a log of wood?? What was even more ridiculous was the fact that after the ordeal, he was not even sick or anything, his leg had been amputated and had already healed before Abbey that was traveling on a ship got home.
Overall, Blood Vessel might have its shortcomings but it cannot be called a bad movie, it is a major improvement for Play Network and I am hoping to see more of this from them in the future.
My Rating: 5/10
Have you seen the movie, please share your thoughts with us in the comments below
Read the review of Funmilayo Ransome Kuti here.
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