Starring:  Ramsey Nouah, Ini Edo, Rukky Sanda, Monalisa Chinda

Synopsis:

It’s honeymoon over for two couples that hit a rough patch while a third couple appears to have a picture perfect marriage.

Review:

Maya and Rasheed (Ini Edo & Alexx Ekubo) had only been married for two short years when the spark dimmed in their relationship. Maya went overboard to please Rasheed but every attempt she made toward lovemaking was rejected.

The second couple, Tamar and Lanre (Monalisa Chinda & Kenneth Okoli) were having the same problem. Tamar wasn’t interested in sex and she made any excuse to avoid intimacy.

The third couple, Zion and Tokunboh (Rukky Sanda & Ramsey Nouah), appeared to possess the secret to successful matrimony. They both advised their friends about relationships. 

When it was revealed that Tokunboh was cheating on Zion with not one, but two of her friends, the other couples realized that their marital problems were reconcilable.

Let’s Talk. “Keeping My Man” attempts to explore problematic marriages while balanced with humor. The humor works but the story doesn’t.

First off, both Maya and Tamar’s marriages had the same problem – lack of sex. Is sex the only problem in a marriage? This was a missed opportunity to explore other reasons for troubled marriages such as financial issues, drug habits, domestic abuse, in-law interference, and even sexual incompatibility. It does manage to touch on infidelity later in the story.

For two couples to have the same storyline was a waste although they did have different reasons for not wanting sex. Tamar recently got her body back into shape after having children and she no longer wanted to be a sex machine for her husband and risk another pregnancy. Rasheed was just an idiot. When he did want sex he wanted only the missionary position with no extras – no toys, sexy dresses, or playing characters. Apparently he didn’t want physical foreplay either.

There’s one scene where Rasheed had sex with Maya for twenty-eight seconds (yes, I timed it…tee hee). Maya refused to participate and never flinched during the session. She was completely unaffected while Rasheed did his thing (pun intended). Talk about a two-minute brother! That wasn’t even one minute. And then he rolled over and declared “that was good.”

As for story issues, I got the impression that Tokunboh’s friends didn’t know he was cheating yet they were the ones that let the cat out of the bag. Again, another missed opportunity because Tokunboh should have reprimanded his friends for breaking the “man code.” Men don’t tattle on each other. Also, at the end of the movie, Zion was holding a baby. It’s not clear whether she had the baby before the split with her husband or after.

As for technical issues, there was inadequate sound in some of the scenes. This is a nagging problem with Nollywood movies. It’s a fixable issue and I’m not clear on why filmmakers can’t resolve this. Get better equipment!

The performances in the movie were good for the most part. Ini Edo and Alexx Ekubo had the most interesting relationship and they brought humor to the movie. Monalisa Chinda and Kenneth Okoli were believable as well. 

There’s a scene where Rukky Sanda’s character came home drunk. I did not believe her portrayal of an intoxicated woman. Other than that, I thought she did a satisfactory job playing her role. Ramsey Nouah, by the way, was fantastic as usual.

The chemistry between Ramsey Nouah and Rukky Sanda didn’t work for me. Somehow I don’t believe that Ramsey Nouah’s character, Tokunboh, would have fell for a bleached blonde with a ring on her tongue. 

To explore a bit further, Rukky Sanda starred, wrote, produced, and directed this movie. I don’t have a problem with the various hats she wore in the production because if she’s funding the project then she has the right to do whatever she chooses. What I found irksome however, were the numerous times she credited herself in the closing credits. I think “Written, Produced, and Directed by Rukky Sanda” says it all. For her to continuously credit herself in various categories was redundant and self-indulgent.

Speaking of credit, Ms. Sanda has quite a few movies under the Rukky Sanda Studios umbrella and she must be commended for that. Sometimes in life you have to create your own opportunities and this is what Rukky Sanda does best. We all have one life to live and we shouldn’t spend it waiting on someone to elevate us. Sometimes we have to promote ourselves and Rukky Sanda has successfully done this while providing jobs for others in the industry.

The question of the day becomes whether or not her movies are any good. Unfortunately they’re in need of improvement but that’s okay because as in most careers we have to crawl before we walk. The problem lies in the fact that Rukky Sanda has taken on the position of Writer/Director/Filmmaker before honing her skills and that results in mediocre movies.

Overall, the movie lacked depth and intrigue. Even the title “Keeping My Man” is bothersome because of its connotation that the woman is responsible for maintaining a good marriage. “Keeping My Marriage” would have been a befitting title as this places the obligation on both parties.

We can only hope that Rukky Sanda Studios will surprise us with a 5-star movie but so far “Keeping My Man” isn’t it. EJECT

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