We definitely saw a beautiful trend in the movie world this 2017, the year kind of started on a slow pace and then moved on to having fantastic movies that rocked the cinemas, it was all round entertainments and thrill, week after week, at a point it was kind of difficult to keep up to the trends and numbers of movies coming out every week.
There were some weeks I had to see about 4 latest movie just to keep up to date, but it was fun all the way for most of us, off course I must say that at some point some movies absolutely didn’t meet up to our standards and expectations but, then that’s what makes the movie industry constantly innovative and dynamic, for the movie lovers you win some and you lose some, you just can’t always predict rightly at all times, but the key thing for us is to always have fun all the way, and the producers and actors sure did give us a run for our money. I am so sure a lot of lessons had being learnt again this year, for some cashing out of the cinema was theirs all the way, for others a lot of lessons have being learnt and I am sure that 2018 will be a better lesson and a good come back for them.
2017 sure did see a twist as movie fans kept raising the bar and expecting more from their producers and actors, we absolutely wanted to see more suspense, more thrill, more action and more contents, for us it wasn’t just about any movie, but about having a more convincing and thrilling story, one that kept us thinking and reminiscing even weeks after, one we could argue over and over again and yet not get to the bottom of it. We wanted to see some more intriguing than the regular daily movie. Social media sure did have a great influence on majority of the movies this year like 2016, it was a weapon and a tool for most producers to advertise and market their movies, and it was also a medium for us the viewers to discuss, deliberate and analyze any movie we loved or didn’t love. I guess it was a win/win situation for both sides. This 2017 recession hit the pockets of many Nigerians and they were very discrete in choosing the movies they wanted to watch, they needed to be sure before hitting the cinemas, they wanted utmost value for their limited resources, they wanted world class movies, with the best editing, scripting, production, costumes and actors.
This year I am thrilled and excited to take you through the movies that rocked the cinemas and those that didn’t go home smiling. I would take you on a flash back to where we started from in 2017 and how we ended big again this year with “The Wedding Party 2”. Join me as we take a ride down the up’s and downs of 2017, as I bring to you my top Hollywood movies and my top Nollywood movies, not forgetting those that didn’t rock our world.
Taking a look at my top Hollywood movies and gross earnings for 2017 it would be nice to start with the highest earning movies- Wonder Woman a movie about a lady with super power to save the world, they grossed about $413m, then we had Thor- Ragnarok that grossed about $313m, Moana a movie for kiddies about a young girl with unique gifts and power that was destined to save her people grossed about $249m, we also had Jumanji which was launched in the cinema late 2017 and has so far grossed over $245m in just over 2 weeks, making it one of the highest grossed movies. There was also fate of the furious 8- the fast & Furious series, that displayed the best of cars and the car racing talents, they have consistently made this series of movies almost every year and every year they have kept us thrilled and entertained, they grossed about $226m. Then we had Kong Skull Island that talked about the king Kong family in a whole new dimension and they grossed about $168m.
“Hidden figures” was another brilliant movie based on a true life story about 3 women who were determined to be great and wouldn’t relent despise any circumstances or obstacles, they were brilliant and they grossed about $164m, we had “Trolls” another kiddies movie with loads of singing and dancing they sure did entertain the kids, they grossed about $154m. we had an beautiful movie about a group of young ladies, who decided to go on a trip to relax and catch up with old times, they sure did have a very good time, they grossed in about $116m, there was Logan and they did fantastically well in thrilling their fans grossing over $100m.
To the movies that didn’t rock the cinema we had “Why him”, Arrival, The Mummy, Sleepless and Pirates of the Caribbean, some of them couldn’t even break even, but then the movie world is all about the ups and the downs.
The Nollywood industry is constantly improving yearly and they have also constantly worked hard to surpass the ever growing expectations of the Nigerian viewers. To the good we had “Isoken” a beautiful story about a young girl who was 34 and yet single, it looked like it was a cardinal sin to be single, but fate shone on her and she found a soul mate, the drama around the movie was what made the movie exciting and interesting, it sure was my best Nigerian movie for 2017 and it was for many.
They grossed about $55m in the box office. We had Picture Perfect a story with Bisiola and Remmy Njoku who told a story that in life everything is never always perfect, the story was quiet touching and almost made viewers cry, it was a very beautiful story well told. Then we had Okafor’s Law that grossed in N90m in the box office, the movie talked about a young made who felt that he was strong and talented to get any girl he went for, it was quiet and intriguing story that kept most people talking and researching to see if it was true, but then it was good.
Then we had Omugwo they grossed in N45m in the cinema, the movie was about the Igbo culture and how the mother of the girl has to come around to take care of her for 3 months, it was a very funny story as the marriage was an intercultural one between Yoruba and Igbo, it was ok but didn’t get as much traction. My “Wife and I” a story about the bride and groom who switched roles, although most people didn’t quite get it, they were able to gross in N25m in the first few weeks. We had “Alter Ego”, “Idahosa”, “Celebrity Marriage”,that had good storyline and production, but didn’t make as much funds.
To end the year we had the ground breaking movie “The wedding Party 2” preceding after the part 1 that was a very big hit in 2016, smashing the target to become the highest grossing movie in the box office in Nigeria, the comeback of “The Wedding Party 2” hit the cinema in full force December 15th 2017, although they didn’t spend as much as they did in part 1 in terms of publicity, but the word of mouth and referral made the movie trend all through 2017 Christmas season. The issue was that most viewers felt that Part 1 was much better than Part 2, they weren’t as thrilled as they were with Part 1, most people who watched part 1 twice absolutely didn’t want to see part 2 again, there are also speculations that they may work on Part 3, which most people may not be happy about.
The truth here is that the producers and actors are smiling to the bank as they have already grossed over N320m in just 3 weeks, making them the highest ever grossing movie again in Nigeria, doing this back to back in 2 years and surpassing their own records. They have indeed done well for themselves and have helped improve the movie industry in Nigeria taking it to over a Billion naira industry in just a few years.
To the movies that didn’t really smile to the bank in 2017 we had “A million dollar baby”, Alakada Reloaded, 10 days in sun did make some good money, but most people didn’t feel they had a very good storyline. Banana Island Ghost was another funny storyline, there was a lot of publicity and buzz which took a lot of people to the cinema, but most of them didn’t enjoy the movie nor return a second time.
Reviewing the movie industry in 2017 a lot has being revealed showing us the movies that thrilled and those that didn’t. it’s obvious that some lessons have also being learnt by the producers who didn’t really do well this year, I am sure they will go back to the drawing board and create a new road map for 2018. The Nigerian Industry is also growing daily and we are seeing a lot of improvement in every aspect from production, to cinematography, to casting, to choice of location and planning. We have seen a switch and change in the taste of viewers and majority of them are expecting so much from the Nigerian Producers. Although majority still want foreign movies we are indeed working hard to supporting our own movies, that we can see from the gross earnings of “The wedding Party 2” setting and breaking old records in Nigeria. I must commend the Nigerian producers for the good work done so far, considering our past and how we started. We sure have stepped up our game and created new standards for the world. For us the viewer’s we are thrilled and excited as to where we are and hoping that it gets better and better each coming year.
I must commend the producers, the actors and all who work tirelessly in making the movie world a huge success. We are indeed grateful and we appreciate their efforts so far and encourage them to keep setting new standards and raising the bar each year. As usual I am extremely very happy and excited again this 2018 as I bring 2017 to an end and welcome you to my movie world come 2018, to our ever exciting and loyal readers we want to say a big thank you for your support, contributions and followership on all our social media handles. We sure look forward to keeping you thrilled, informed and entertained on the movies to look out for come 2018.
Happy New year all.
Linda Ochugbua
@lindaochugbua
