The Wedding Party swiftly accomplish its mission of making us laugh but it does it with a story that is deep and triggers reflection on our relationships with our families, neighbours, friends, lovers or even enemies. These are issues that are bigger problems than we acknowledge and since any conversation on marriage gets the most attention, the smart decision was to make a comedy about love and a wedding and through that pass a bigger message. The divide and the rejection we continuously uphold to due to our different ethnicity or status are issues the writer brings to life. It was a fantastic addition to the whole story. There was so much that symbolised the beauty of diversity in the Wedding Party, from the Wedding dance, the food and their dressing, even the music and mode of behaviour. It is not a problem that is verbally explored in the film but symbolically the film tackles this problem and it is the best decision made by the script writer Tosin Otudeko. The idea of inter-ethnic marriage is unacceptable in some parts of Nigeria. The Wedding Party tackles most of the problems we see in our society using the dominating theme a wedding.
It is a bigger story about inter-tribal weddings, love, about peace, about money and some of the problems we deal with as humans. The Wedding Party has a well-constructed script that works perfectly it’s not a comedy about trust or the struggle towards marriage.
The best part is that all these small situations are used for a bigger story and it does not get confusing. The strange man of God that shows up to announce to everyone their sins through prayers, ‘the side chic’ and the old flames trying to strike their mark at the wedding and so much more. There are also the uninvited guests showing up and stirring drama at the wedding venue, the entrance dance by the families. It starts with a couple in love and then we are introduced to the wedding planner that is desperate to make her mark and gain a big pay check, to the zealous bridesmaids. The Wedding Party is truly a party of many events it cajoles a couple of separate but intertwined scenes and makes a whole film. Obinauju, Dozie’s mother and potential mother in –law to Dunni is not ready to accept totally, Dunni’s family because she thinks they are beneath them. Dunni and Dozie’s parents are not the best of friends. The date is set and the bride’s parents, who have recently enjoyed a surge in their fortunes, are going all out to make this the wedding of the century. It is difficult because of Dozie’s history as a rich, philandering young man but Dunni is able to trust him despite all the odds. Because of Dunni, the couple take a vow of chastity. Dunni Coker, a 24-year-old art gallery owner and only daughter of her parents is about to marry the love of her life, IT entrepreneur Dozie. The Wedding Party is set in Lagos, Nigeria.
#THE WEDDING PARTY NIGERIAN MOVIE FULL PROFESSIONAL#
The thing is, a director can walk into a wedding venue in Nigeria and have a truly entertaining film without a script, or professional actors or any plan to shoot a blockbuster because Nigerian weddings define drama already. The Wedding Party takes the same wedding theme but it makes a splash from a different angle. There is also ‘Two Brides and A Baby’ it also thrives on the theatrics of Nigerian weddings. As far back as the classic, ‘Wedding Fever’ featuring the iconic Saint Obi and Rita Dominic, we saw all the tension that comes with preparing for a wedding. Other films have taken advantage of the glam and drama of Nigerian weddings to entertain us.
Weddings!! Weddings!!! Earlier this year, Bovi delved into the world of Nigerian wedding with his debut movie ‘It’s Her Day’ a comedy tackling the rush and hustle of Nigerian weddings. CAST: ADESUA ETOMI, BANKY W, SOLA SOBOWALE, IRETI DOYLE, RICHARD MOFE DAMIJO, ALI BABA, SOMKELE IYAMAH-IDHALAMA, ZAINAB BALOGUN, DANIELLE BROWN, AND BEVERLY NAYA