Introduction:
The title of the film is the WEB. It was first released on 9th December, 2023. The producer of the film is Chijioke Nneji, apart from the WEB, Chijioke Nneji is known for Two Heart (2011), Eye of the Eagle (2013) and The Mad Man I Love (2015). The movie is all about man’s determined effort to achieve what he desire without consideration of the hand work of God.
The chief actor Chief Uju of the movie thought that despite his natural impediment, he can decide the kind of children he will bear. He failed to understand that God is the giver of children and has final say concerning the nature and the kind of children we bear. He believes that having a tall wife will automatically make him to have a tall child. He also sees the wife as the cause of his present predicament, according to him, the wife is so stingy that she refused to make her child to look like her rather she became more like her father which is not palatable to him.
He sees the wife as the cause because his main purpose of marrying a tall woman is for her to bear him tall children. In his desperation to achieve this he reached an agreement with the wife to comply with his demand before marriage. The wife who was engrossed with the massive wealth of Chief Uju agreed with the terms believing she will be able to give birth to a child that will be like her.
The film is very important because it amplifies the powerlessness of man in determining the kind of children he bears. The film is very important especially in Africa where there are erroneous believe by the general public that when a child is not good it is as a result of the weakness or the defects of the mother.
The public sees the mother of a spoilt child as the cause of the inherent default of the child. This film “the WEB” will go a long way to change the erroneous believe that are held by the general public. It will also help to teach the males that both partners have equal chance of having children that look like them.
Also very important to note is that God is the creator of human beings. And every human is unique and very useful in life, if only one discovers and appreciates God’s purpose for creation.
Title: The title of the movie is not suitable for the film. A more appropriate title that will capture the real essence of the film needs to be sought for in the movie.
A good title is very important in any movie because it is the window of attraction of the film to the viewer. It is the first point of contact to the viewer and if it is properly articulated it has the power to sell the movie to the larger public.
Creative elements: The child Charity in the film played the role of a child, but her conversation and actions in the film portrayed her as an adult. The producer would have used two characters to perform the role of the child.
The first would have been a real child and as the film progresses the second child who is Charity will replace the first one. This will help to make the film realistic. From the beginning of the film to the end the character remained the same in size and features which is not obtainable or realistic.
Also very important to note in the movie is that the child Charity did not have close affinity with her father Chief Uju.
This is indicated when Chief went with the driver to pick her from school, her reaction towards her father showed less to be her father.
Plot analysis: In the movie the WEB, the climax was when Charity started to make the life of her parents unbearable, by demanding who is responsible for her short stature. Both parents found it very difficult to give an answer to the young girl.
The parents especially Chief Uju who has the similar stature of his child sees such question very offensive and unpalatable. In the cause of the unfolding situation, they are unable to give an answer to Charity rather they kept on directing the child to each other. This incident shows how helpless man is to decide their fate in life.
Mrs. Comfort, Chief Uju’s wife in this movie did not play the role of a mother to Charity well. She was not close to the child, by implication makes such scenes unrealistic. A mother of a child should by all indication show close affinity with the child by ways of conversation and composition.
From the beginning of the movie Mrs. Comfort and her husband had not demonstrated the matrimonial relationship that exists between a husband and a wife. All through the scenes was disagreement between the two. This was exemplified in the first scene of the movie and it continued in the subsequent scenes. There was no provision for a harmonious relationship that exists between a husband and a wife. Agakus, the driver by nature and appearance does not look like a driver but like a wealthy young man. The choice of Agakus as a driver is not suitable to reflect or depict the intended reality of the movie. The director would have picked a character that will depict in appearance and actions as a driver.
Also very important to point out is the director’s inability to create school scenes where Charity attends. It would have shown Charity in the class with other pupils or students as the case may be. When the viewers see Charity with other students it would had made the movie real and credible.There are more scenes to be added to make the movie convincingly a complete whole.
Cinematography: The picture quality of the movie is poor. The colour of the images is red and it makes the film not to depict the real images in the movie. The visual images are so much induced and it affects the originality and nature of the persons and other images.
Costumes The costume used in the movie is suitable except Agakus, his dressing and the way he carries himself do not portray the life of a driver in reality. If this character must be used, a lot needs to be done to use costumes that will make him to look like the character he is representing.
The theme: The central message is the result of over pampered child. Charity was born into a wealthy family and they failed to train her well. This resulted in the way and manner she behaves. She doesn’t have respect for anybody even to her parent. The parent actually reaped the fruit of their labour.
The second theme is that God is the creator. This portrays man as a pencil in the hand of the creator. This movie showed the helplessness of man when it comes to procreation. In such a situation, it is God that has the final say.
Conclusion: The WEB movie has successfully achieved a remarkable fit in the Nollywood industry. This is because despite flaws that can be improved upon, it has a rich entertainment values that makes every viewer to watch it with rapt attention till the end of the movie. The character that was used properly to arrest attention of the viewers and sustain it is Charity.
The movie is recommended to every family to help correct some anomalies that some parents exhibit at home that is capable of destroying their children.The movie is successful because despite its flaws and weaknesses, it has successfully passed the message that God has a final say in the business of child bearing. No matter how wealthy or influential one is, one still depends on God for blessing of children.The film showed that man has no power over the nature and kind of children we bear.
Children are just like clay in the hands of the potter, the way parents handle them at the tender age has a great impact in their life. The film aligned with the biblical saying, “spare the rod and spoil the child.” And it has to be done early enough when parent can still control the child short coming and excesses.
* Chidube is a PhD Student of Nasarawa State University Keffi (NSUK).
