Gabriel Afolayan is already an established actor. U-Turn is his first attempt at the role of Director/Writer/Producer. If you’re sceptical about it, stick around to find out how it goes.

A driver (Olaiya Igwe) and his lone-passenger (Gabriel Afolayan) embark on what seems to be a normal trip to Ibadan in Southwest Nigeria, but suspense lies in this journey as they both conceal their hidden agendas.

U-Turn’s storyline is laced with scenes that highlight the many dangers of road travels. Reckless driving, the unreliability of the Police when it comes to road safety and the poor quality of Nigerian roads, are some of the issues that were pointed out in the movie. It is refreshing to see Nollywood address some of the issues that plague everyday Nigerians.

If there’s one thing U-Turn has going for it, it is the potential. The storyline for this screenplay is promising, it interests viewers and makes them want to keep going even if it is solely because they want to see where it leads in the end.

It is worthy to note that Olaiya Igwe did great in his performance as the driver. Gabriel Afolayan was also good in his role, but it’s common knowledge that he’s a good actor.

Where to begin? It is a case of a storyline that has great potential and poor execution, as almost always the case in Nollywood. There was very little to no proper storyline development. At the 30-minute mark, it already feels like a chore going through the movie because there is a lack of drama, suspense, action, conflict, name it all! Literally nothing to keep viewers hooked.

When the conflict eventually occurs, it is way below expectation and the resolution is even worse. There is generally a sense of drama lacking in the movie and maybe it would have been better if the viewers were let in on the hidden agenda of both the passenger and the driver from the beginning, or at least given a little back story on the actors to add a sense of depth or connection to the characters on screen.

Unnecessary scene additions is a classic Nollywood staple. U-Turn joined the bandwagon. There are at least a handful of clips that should not have been in the movie at all. This goes hand-in-hand with the problem of poor pacing this screenplay has, a recipe for disaster.

Naturally, it would be assumed that having one person direct, script, produce a movie and create soundtracks would guarantee a captivating movie, or at least coherence, right? Well, that is not the case in today’s screenplay as even down to the not so little things like dialogue is sub-par.

Aesthetics? Not great. The camera angles are all over the place and not necessarily the best fit for the scene being portrayed. There is also an issue of bad camera handling as the footage appears to be shaky in some scenes. Don’t even get started on the makeup. Amoke’s makeup was particularly unappealing. Lastly on aesthetics, not enough of the environment was filmed to pinpoint where exactly the characters are at given times. More of the environment and sights and sounds could have been showcased for a better feel of the location.

U-Turn might not have met the (very) high bar that Gabriel Afolayan has raised movie production, but it is worth your time if you are looking for something different. Add it to your list on Netflix today. Just before that, watch the trailer here:

Didi Dan-Asisah is an art enthusiast and critic. She lives in Lagos.

Ayodele Johnson

Ayodelé is a Lagos-based journalist and the Content and Editorial Coordinator at Meiza. All around the megacity, I am steering diverse lifestyle magazine audiences with ingenious hacks and insights that spur fast, informed decisions in their busy lives.