Wumi Toriola plays a woman torn between her ostentatiously beautiful life and her poor upbringing in Queen Lateefah. The film, which was directed by Adeoluwa Owu, is a skillfully constructed production with excellent attention to detail. It combines comedy, romance, and drama, a style typical of modern Nollywood films.
Queen Lateefah displays the life obtainable in a ghetto and the luxurious living of the affluent. The good use of posh settings displays the aspirations of Queen Lateefah who goes about displaying the attitude of a very important person while being at the bottom of the barrel. The dilapidated “face-me-I-face-you” building where she lives depicts the harsh reality she keeps hidden while pretending to belong to the class that can afford fancy hotels, offices, and high-end venues.
The theme used in Queen Lateefah is not new as we have seen it in Jenifa and also in Acada. However, the directors were able to rebrand the theme, giving viewers the exact thing they would have hoped for in those movies. The film, though enjoyable, fails to capitalize on its comic aspect by being a Ribcracker. The film is a fun watch with good pacing even though it has some predictable twists.
Wumi Toriola was excellent due to her ability to play two roles in one i.e. she was the ghetto girl who was able to convince people that she belonged to the upper class. I could empathize with her struggles and feel the pressure of maintaining her lie. The confidence she displays even in the face of almost being found out is truly remarkable and convincing.
Kunle Remi, who plays Jide Rhodes, the dashing bachelor who falls for Lateefah, redeems himself after his appearance in the lacklustre movie Something Like Gold. The chemistry between him and Lateefah provided moments of humour, tension and romance. He was able to match the energy displayed by Wumi Toriola.
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Broda Shaggi once again mirrors his Instagram persona, which is becoming one too many. I’ll advise any director looking to cast him to ensure he stars as himself if he’s going to display something similar to his Instagram skit character. After all, Nollywood had Baba Suwe always appearing in movies as himself, thereby giving him the flexibility to display the same comic relief he’s good at. That’s why we never saw Baba Suwe playing the role of a serious doctor.
The supporting cast is solid, with veterans like Femi Adebayo, Fathia Balogun and Bimbo Manuel delivering quality performances, while newcomers like Gbubemi Ejeye delivered.
I like the use of orange and teal in the color grading of the outdoor scenes. This helped to control the highlights, giving the scenes a calm and relaxing feel. However, the blacks or shadows of the grade are not neat as I could still see traces of teal in them, Perhaps, this was because I saw the movie on a large screen.
Queen Lateefah gets a 7/10 and would have gotten a better rating if not for the theme that is played out by Nollywood.