By Ajuluchukwu Brown, Abuja
30 January 2025 |
9:14 am
Henrik Johan Ibsen, the famend Norwegian playwright and theatre director, is commonly heralded as the daddy of realism in drama. He profoundly altered the trajectory of theatrical writing by specializing in the moral dilemmas and ethical conflicts confronted by lower-middle-class characters. Ibsen broke away from the standard narratives that romanticised the lives of the Aristocracy and…
Henrik Johan Ibsen, the famend Norwegian playwright and theatre director, is commonly heralded as the daddy of realism in drama. He profoundly altered the trajectory of theatrical writing by specializing in the moral dilemmas and ethical conflicts confronted by lower-middle-class characters.
Ibsen broke away from the standard narratives that romanticised the lives of the Aristocracy and elites, selecting as a substitute to painting the struggles, aspirations, and complexities of peculiar folks in a way that was each constant and plausible.
His emphasis on realism prolonged past the themes and characters; he additionally revolutionised stagecraft by advocating for using naturalistic settings.
Ibsen favoured mundane residing areas that precisely mirrored the day by day lives of his characters over the ornate and grandiose backdrops that have been frequent in earlier theatrical productions. The costumes worn by actors in his performs have been equally understated, prioritising authenticity and relatability over spectacle.
In stark distinction, the modern epic movies produced in Nigeria’s Nollywood trade usually diverge considerably from these foundational tenets of realism. Whereas Nollywood movies might be vibrant and culturally wealthy, they ceaselessly lean in direction of melodrama and fantasy, showcasing exaggerated plots and larger-than-life characters that stray from the grounded storytelling championed by Ibsen.
Latest blockbuster movies within the epic style, comparable to ‘Seven Doorways’, ‘Home of Gaa’, ‘Jagun Jagun’, ‘Orisa’, ‘Latakabu: The Monster’, ‘Anikulapo’, and ‘Lisabi: The Rebellion’, have made important strides on the field workplace, capturing the eye of audiences worldwide.
Nevertheless, the creative remedy of those films has raised questions on their adherence to realism. The narratives usually revolve round themes of the Aristocracy and grandeur, set towards backdrops which will really feel extra fantastical than genuine.
In these movies, characterisation can generally draw from historic or legendary figures, but their portrayals are ceaselessly embellished with extravagant and contradictory costumes that don’t precisely mirror the interval or cultural context.
This mixing of actuality with mythos creates a wealthy visible tapestry, nevertheless it dangers making a disconnect for viewers searching for a extra grounded storytelling expertise. The alternatives made in plot improvement, settings, and character design contribute to a extra stylized illustration of the epic story, difficult the viewers’ notion of what’s actual and what’s a cinematic portrayal embellished for dramatic impact.
Originally of 2025, ace humorist and producer Brilliant Okocha, popularly generally known as Basketmouth, disclosed that many epic productions within the Nigerian movie trade usually lack the realism and authenticity that audiences anticipate from customary epic films.
He additional famous that these films, although a great try, appear to be stage performs slightly than precise films.
Okocha emphasised that the costume, set design, and properties lack believability owing to the craze to hitch the bandwagon.
One other filmmaker and director, Biodun Stephen, disclosed that the bandwagon impact is a results of the full commercialisation of the artwork.
She additional famous that filmmaking is a big gamble and all filmmakers are beneath strain to make substantial returns on funding.
“Not each razzle-dazzle is travel-worthy; generally easy is travel-worthy. This commercialization has been a illness that has plagued us for years. It was the campus movie earlier than, and everyone jumped on the practice. Everyone jumped on the gang movie, everyone was making gang movies. Everyone jumped on comedy. Everyone is simply leaping on no matter everyone thinks is the money cow. Proper now, there’s a avenue factor that everyone is doing, and everyone is leaping on it,” she mentioned.
It’s encouraging to witness Nollywood productions attaining important box-office success and gaining international recognition. Nevertheless, it’s important for filmmakers to attempt for a harmonious steadiness between realism and fantasy of their storytelling. This considerate strategy can improve the authenticity of their narratives whereas nonetheless permitting for inventive expression.
