A Henden Productions Presents: Genevieve Nnaji (Felicima), Basorge Tariah Jr. (Charles), Frederick Leonards (Musa), Argu Agidi (Valentine), Alex Usifo (Andrew) Alex Lopez (Esieme), Yemi Blaq (Alfred). Story/Screenplay, Slim Dennis Omatan. Director Henry Omeriemeonye (C2007)
This is a high-flying movie about the world of show business and all its perks. The movie plays itself according to the opening epigram or maxim: Our lives change in just one second, all it takes in one situation, one opportunity, one gift.
The characteristic of the world of public relations firm depends on an image to survive but the enemies of Felicima (Jenevieve Nnanji), just when she’s at the highest point of her career, are ready to bring her down by damaging her same image.
One day about town, she mysteriously got attracted to a disabled panhandler sitting by the roadside, reading a newspaper. She stops by and has a brief encounter with him and later hires him in her firm to the dismay and dislike of two of her staff members. In no time the newspapers carried headlines telling the world that “Felicima” is dating a cripple, then she later lost some accounts. She is charged by FCC for corruption. Her world, her fame and even her person is threatened by heady-wine mishaps around her. Her bank account is frozen by the government.
She and her lawyer hire a private investigator to find out who’s doing these to her. In the court, when the dice is rolling in her disfavor, the investigator arrives with tape recordings and other documents implicating two of her closest staff. The Judge vindicates her and grants back to her her civil liberty and honor.
The character of Felicima, reminds me of Ayn Ryan’s character in her book the “Fountainhead”. “Fountainhead” was shot into a movie in 1949 about Howard Roark (Gary Cooper) who refuses to compromise his modern architecture in place of traditional ones. In short, he philosophically sees into the future (modernism), but not what his contractors wanted him to design. As such he lost all contracts but still pleased with himself for not giving in to them.
Feicima’s character has that trait. I guess just to prove her fountainhead character, is the reason she let her lawyer stand back and she goes into the witness box in her own defense. By her accepting and giving a new lease on the life of a cripple is unheard of in African corporate world. “Felicima” is telling an allegorical tale of showing on the screen that all humans, the sick, the poor, the rich and even the cripple like Valentine (Argu Agidi) are equal and should be given a fair chance.
Whereas Valentine stands as a symbolic element in this allegory, “Felicima” stands as the concrete. In managing the issue of Valentine as an allegory, the writer is careful not to downplay the importance of “Felicima” the concrete, in the story. The presence of Valentine is to exhibit equality and a fair chance in sharing the goods nature endowed on mankind.The problem “Felicima” is facing must be credited on a larger scale as a character who can stand for the downtrodden and along the way she carries the story to the finish line taking Valentine with her.
By “Felicima” bringing him into her establishment, and therefore antagonizing his staff and the world at large is a symbolic story dealing with man’s struggle to defend the poor and the disable in the face of a cruel world. We see how cruel and disadvantaged are the disabled when in a tear-jerking scene, Valentine is trampled by fellow passengers scrambling to board a van, on his way to interview with “Felicima”. Relentless, he ends up in the interview room in a T-shirt. One can’t forget to note that the president of the country offers Valentine job, though turns it down for the sake of his service to “Felicima”. The irony here is even the president realizes the importance of the cripple in national development.
The screenwriter’s idea to name the story “Felicima”, is a crafty literary ploy to indicate the Italian word, ‘Felicita’, meaning happiness. The theme of his story is bordering on the bringing of happiness to the soul. Good movie.