This review will take the tone of an appraisal and as well as a bit of critical analysis as is deserving of any literally work.

I will also highlight a few scene i would love us to have a dialogue over. Please I kindly advise that you read through patiently, word for word, read with an open mind

I will begin with the;

1. CINEMATIC APPRAISAL:

I loved the cinematic quality of the movie. The first thing that caught my attention was the beautiful color grading and sounds. The WINLOS indeed went out of their way to give that quality this time.

Watching the movie you just can’t help but notice the quality and ambience of the choices of location. Like they literally had very perfect locations for each scene.

2. SUSPENSE:

If I were to choose the high point of this movie literally speaking for me, it will be the opening. Mehn! The opening came with that cinematic feel and feeling of “What’s going on here” that’s suspense mehn! I loved it. Such a Great way to open a movie. I give it to THE WINLOS. Another place that’d most likely put anyone on their toes was when JAMES and MIOKUKUSHESHE was about to ‘DO THE DO’ The girlfriend of James came in and caught Him. Chai!

3. CHARACTER APPRAISAL:

My favorite characters in this movie will be MIOKUKUSHESHE and the manager to JAMES. Mehn! This people are naturals. They were so much into the roles.

It didn’t look like they were trying to act or force themselves into the character.

For MIOKUKUSHESHE I loved how she employs poetic approach to her lines. Using figures of speech, proverbial adage and other literary device to pass her message. Depicting her as some kind of ancient goddess and ruthless. It gave her that scary nature deserving of a merciless devil.

4. COMIC RELIFE: I loved the use of comic relief to ease off tension in the movie. Because what was all that seriousness from the beginning of the movie? to the middle for? Lol! I am talking about the part of the audition. It was so thoughtful to have introduced that laughter pill there. It gave me really a good laugh.

5. THEME & PLOT: The theme and plot of the movie is largely centred around ministry and the other side of it–Money, fame, immorality, and pride, as is of the issues bedevilling many in the music ministry.

MORAL LESSONS:

1. Anyone who is close to me especially those of DMA can tell how loud I am about the dangers of immorality, death to money and fame. I believe no person can truly do ministry as is pleasing to the Lord without first dying to this things. The movie pointed out the dangers of playing with them. James was comfortable drinking immorality like water, pursuing money in the guise of ministry and thus His fatal end.

2. No matter how far a man may go on the wrong side, there is always hope for him if he can still listen. And no matter how far a man may be on the right side there is no hope for him if he can’t listen. Quiet paradoxical. But the end of this message is that accountability is like a shield.

Bulk of the mistakes accountability will preserve you from you may not even know that you are making them. It takes only a second eye to see what you are not seeing. You must make sure you have people you report to and are accountable as well.

3. Seasons are very delicate and must be stewarded with care. While God can restore seasons. Labouring to enter into a season is quiet simpler compared to labouring for its restoration. You don’t want to take chances. James missed His season because of lack of attention to His obsessions.

4. The Kenya Bishop reminded me of what happened to me last year. It was by 31st of December. I got many calls requesting for me to minister at the cross over, one was a call from a local government agency and they were offering 5M. Mehn! And I needed that for our upcoming project Bethel.

I knew I needed to be around for the cross over experience in my church and to also offer my services where necessary. Truth is if I call my Pastor, He may reluctantly let me go. But the damage that will do to my soul will be so terrible.

I will end up being reckless, going wherever the money goes. Declining all those events and staying put with my church gave me a kind of light feeling, it was as though I had passed some major test.

5. Get a local church, be planted and prioritize your service there. Let’s face the Truth. When the world begins to demand your gift, you honestly may not be around for choir rehearsals very often. I am telling you from experience. I love to serve, but recently, I am even rarely around my city on weekends it’s been travels here and there. But as much as you can, still find a way to commit to service, it may no longer be with the choir, it could be with the media, partnership, counsellors and discipleship Team etc. The idea is that you just serve anyway. It will help you keep in touch with your local church.

Once you are flying up and down and you are no longer in touch with your local church through service. The supply of Grace your local church is supposed to supply to you out of the body of Christ will be hampered.

THE OTHER SIDE:

This part of this writing will seek to highlight a few literary flaws and seek to provide suggestions for subsequent editions:

1. PLOT TWIST: As a literature student, when I watched the movie I couldn’t help but notice a few weakness in the plot.

I feel like much creativity wasn’t put in. I already predicted the plot on the announcement of the movie; A music minister who started well, got famous, distracted by money and women and fell and that’s it. More like the everyday kind of church drama.

I know the movie is trying to capture the things happening in the music ministry. But an approach from a totally different point would have scored a great literary point.

Secondly, the plot didn’t allow for a real connection with the main character JAMES. The movie centered on all James ever did wrong. We didn’t get an opportunity to see his early days in ministry, we didn’t get an opportunity to see what He ever got right that brought him into elevation.

A little bit of flashes regarding his upcoming days, His walk with God and service in church. Would have increased the emotional connection with JAMES.

I believe people don’t get immoral because they got famous, they don’t get to start pursuing money because they got famous. Fame is usually not the reason for this things, fame is just a magnifier.

It seemed like the character James was a Newbie. No training. We never saw James once opening His Bible or kneeling to pray as a minister. Even the worst of ministers at least open their Bibles once in a while.

It felt like the script couldn’t just wait to jump in on everything wrong in the music ministry with the character of James thus it severed that emotional connection. I mean, the movie began with his birth, then boom he was already dragging honorarium with Host . Omo!

I couldnt feel that emotional connection of one who had met the Lord genuinely and deviated along the way. That created a lot of emotional distance with the character James, if it did, People will be crying for the way James ended I tell you.

Imagine that while they were trying to summon JAMES the pastor was awake in the night, crying to God and shouting “No i cant give up on James” interceding for him, and intercepts the process, imagine the goosebumps, imagine the aura of love that will trigger in the heart.

Then James runs back to him on his knees in repentance, then his Pastor stops him from public ministry and puts him through discipleship for a season before releasing him.

Kai! That would have been a perfect plot twist right there. Like, while we were expecting the movie to go a certain way popular, it hits us from a different angle. Thats a plot twist.

Well, i think the winlos know better. Maybe in other not to allow the movie get too long, they just had to jump right into the matter.

A FEW PLACES I WILL NEED CLARITY AND YOUR CONTRIBUTION;

While I agree that the movie is not a take on doctrines. Yet one can’t help but notice some disturbance in that regard. Doctrine is so important for the believers walk because it’s how we are guided into experiences in God;

1. Bottling up a Believer:

What do you think?

According to the movie the spirit of James was bottled up.

QUE: Can a believer be bottled up?

Under what conditions can that happen?

If it is under the conditions of sin have you experienced been bottled up before because you sinned? Or you no get village people?

Also bear in mind that though James was In sin all along but miokukushehe did not bottle him up, but it was when His Pastor gave up on him that Miokukushehe bottled him up.

QUE: Can we say it was the absence of the pastors covering and not the presence of sin that gave room for him to be bottled?

2. Spiritual Covering: I believe in spiritual authority and covering, I also believe in accountability, discipleship and mentoring but i think the movies perspective i have a few questions.

James was living in Sin but so long as he was under his pastors covering MIOKUKUSHESHE couldn’t have her way with Him. But once the Pastor gave up on him, the Glory now lifted and MIOKUKUSHESHE now prevailed over him.

What do you think?

What or who really provides a covering for the believer against his frailties?

A pastor or Jesus?

If the answer is your pastor, who provides covering for him? The firstman to ever provide covering for another mans fraities who provided for Him?

What if your pastor who provides covering for you is struggling with one sin secretly, how your covering wan be na?

Like i said before, i believe in spiritual covering, i am asking from the perspective painted from the movie. Because James sins was not enough to make the Glory shift, it was after his pastor gave up on him.

I will need your thoughts on that.

Lastly, The ending of the movie captured the fact that James moved on from ministry even after retracing his steps, seeking forgiveness and repentance.

Having been forgiven by God I expected that God will restore him but James ended up as an uber driver.

Can a man repent and receive Gods forgiveness and God will not restore him? Can we have at least 3 instances of such case in the Bible?

Howbeit in all, the movie was such a Great watch. I enjoyed everybit of it. I even watched it twice . I will rate it 8/10.

I will be reading your thoughts about the questions and also contributing too in the comments.

NB: please kindly comment responsibly. You don’t have to fight over contrary opinions. Tailor your points without insults. This post is to engineer a healthy conversation around the movie.