“Suspicion”: A Nollywood Thriller That Struggles to Tie It All Together.

“Suspicion” is a not an easy film to pin down in a single genre. It prides itself as a “fantasy thriller” but it’s more crime drama-meets-action-meets-supernatural thriller.

The film is  Nollywood’s most modern take on the classic “juju” (black magic) themes, only that, here, director Tosin Igho treats juju more like a superpower than an ethereal phenomenon. There’s a lot of fantastical abilities to choose from: bullet imperviousness (“odenshi”), premonition, telekinesis, disappearing and teleportation.

For our protagonist, Voke (Stan Nze), he gets his superpowers from an early age when his mother (Tina Mba) boils him in a pot. It is later established that his family is steeped in the occult. But, as noted earlier, it’s a gift of some sorts, and not necessarily a tool to sow evil. Now an adult, he uses his powers to seek vengeance after a series of tragic events crush his world: the brutal murders of his best friend Rogba (Uzor Arukwe) and his goddaughter Lolu, as well as the end of a romantic relationship.

The silver lining—if it can be called one—is that Voke discovers a new power: the oddly-specific ability to spot a murder weapon. Four years pass quickly and we see that Voke has decided to put the past behind him, using his new power to pursue a career in crime-fighting by helping organizations uncover the truth behind their mysteries.

However, his new line of business makes him cross paths with persons connected with Lolu’s death. He has no choice but to plunge deeper into a world of dark magic, battling moral ambiguity and his mother’s pleas to let go along the way.

Voke is a conflicted individual, and Stan Nze does his best to convey that message. He succeeds but is outshined by co-stars Tina Mba (no surprises for the veteran here), Omowunmi Dada, Uche Elumelu and Francis Sule. The last two in particular stole the show.

Despite having a minute or two of screentime, Uche Elumelu’s Onajite makes the most of her presence and Francis Sule’s portrayal of Gbenga, Voke’s ears in the streets, offer the even deeper “Nigerianness” and the few moments of humor in an otherwise dark film.

It’s a miracle that the cast are able to deliver performances that stick for long despite “Suspicion”s desperate move to make none of them relatable by giving the middle finger to character development. Viewers are left scratching their heads as to why characters do what they do, like why Voke’s mother is excessively apprehensive and why Voke’s previous line of employment is so vague.

Character motivation is not the only thing thrown to the wind. Plot continuity is.

In its bid to offer the most surprising suspense and plot twist in Nollywood—and make no mistake, “Suspicion” twists itself out of proportion and common understanding. The list of plot holes in this movie are enough to fill an “Encyclopedia of inconsistencies”.

One such example—that should be a criminal offence if the directors fail to give clarity—is the murder weapon, a distinct knife, used to kill Lolu finding its way years later into the hands of a goon not associated with the murders, and then unto the supposedly real killer.

Yet, the plot establishes that Lolu’s killer and the assassin are two separate individuals, despite the same knife being implicated in all the murders. This begs the question: are there two identical murder knives? And if the assassin is indeed responsible for the post-Lolu killings, why does one suspect, who is later exonerated but not before becoming the assassin’s victim, claim responsibility for one of the earlier murders?

If you think this is confusing, wait the plot twist(s) hits.

For the writers of “Suspicion”—Tosin and Kolade Igho—here’s a gentle reminder: the end goal of plot twists is to resolve built-up complexity by revealing hidden truths and tying up loose ends. It is not to further convolute the narrative like this movie does. Imagine if the Saw movies, renowned for their jaw-dropping twists, decided to skip its signature reveals at the end. That is essentially what “Suspicion” does.

It’s clear what writer-director Tosin Igho aims to sidestep: predictability. However, in his quest to surprise, he undermines the very fabric of the story.

And not to belabor the movie’s missteps, but even the title feels misplaced. “Suspicion” seems inappropriate in a movie steeped in vengeance and moral dilemmas.

That said, “Suspicion” redeems itself in part with its stunning action choreography and cinematography.

The film boasts numerous action sequences, and while a few fall prey to the clichéd karate-style moves that Nollywood action films often misuse, the majority stand out for feeling authentic, distinctly African, and—perhaps most importantly—beautifully captured.

Cameras are im perpetual motion, struggling to match the relentless pace of the assassin as he takes down police officers. Coupled with breathtaking wide-angle shots of cliffs and landscapes, the films visuals are in sync with its ambitious tone.

On the VFX front, “Suspicion” doesn’t quite achieve Hollywood standard. But where it can, it pulls heavy weight with beautifully animated-assisted narration and make-up.

“Suspicion” feels, ironically, suspiciously copied, derivative, leaning heavily on familiar Hollywood-inspired suspense and action tropes rather than fully refining its original concept. There’s a lot to both love and hate in “Suspicion.” Igho manages to nails it and miss the mark in such a bizarre way that one could either tag this film “bad” or “good” and be right in both instances.

Igho is an Urhobo native, so don’t be surprised when you hear the Urhobo tongue spoken alongside the dominant Pidgin English dialogue. Even better, the film offers a fresh take on African voodoo and spirituality, miles away from the “evil” that Nigerian society has tagged it. But it forgets to add a full stop to the story.

The only remedy would be for the filmmakers to announce a sequel—or better yet, a prequel—to further explore the rich, franchise-worthy world they’ve introduced. Sadly, no such continuation has been confirmed… at least, not yet

Release Date: November 28, 2024

Runtime: 1 Hour and 55 minutes

Streaming Service: Prime Video

Director: Tosin Igho

Cast: Stan Nze, Uzor Arukwe, Omowunmi Dada, Richard Mofe-Damijo, Tina Mba, Boma Akpore, Shaffy Bello, Kalu Ikeagwu, Francis Sule, Uche Elumelu, Tony Akposeri and Jennifer Adedotun.

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