Who hasn’t watched Dr. Nkeng Stephens short film “Caesar“? Well if you haven’t watched it, I am sorry because in this write up there will be a lot of spoilers. The movie which is written by Duala Duala and directed by the Doctor himself comprises top notch video quality, as clean as rock water. First we are introduced to a typical ghetto plot, with street kids forced to fend for themselves because there is actually no other way, the choice of plot here is quite brilliant given that it depicts a reality of our society. The movie focuses on the struggles of the street kids who see the precious stone they picked from the garbage as a chance to get a better life. Off course, its a jungle out there, the topic of cheating and intimidation is well brought out and to accompany it, the determination of the cheated parties to get what is rightfully theirs, after all, they have nothing to lose. ”
CAESAR” is a mix of melancholy, domination, hope and hot-headedness which builds in the viewer emotions of sympathy and a wish to intervene in the story in a bid to give justice to the cheated kids, thank God the movie made provision for such a person.
Despite the difficulty and sadness of the streets we see a ray of hope when the kids realize the stone could actually be their ticket to a better life, hopes that are soon shattered and later on reignited when a helper personalizes the case as his own. The strict use of Cameroonian music, mainly Jovi’s “New Star“ gives an immediate identity to the movie and permits the viewer to guess the next scene with a reasonable degree of precision, hence suspense is very absent in the hotter parts of the movie. The cast, I think is well chosen as they all fit perfectly into their characters.
All in all, the message of difficulty, cheating and jungle justice which prevails in the streets and ghettos is clearly brought out making the movie quite explicit and and intriguing, especially the battle scenes which will leave you wondering when people in the ghetto had time to learn martial arts or who taught them such cutting-edge fighting skills.
Watch the fourteen minute movie on YouTube and share your thoughts, is “Caesar” a step ahead in the Cameroonian Movie industry or a drawback or just another regular movie with nothing to write home about?
Written by;
Emmanuel Asafor
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