Maurice Sam Production presents Maurice Sam (Idriss), Nadia Buari (Kaima), Alex Ayalogu (Chief Uzor), Luciana Patrick (Ceasar). Story/Writer, Onyii Cindy Umeh; Director, Okey Ifeanyi; Producer, Executive Producer, Maurice Sam; Director of Photography, Matt Femi. © 2025.
In 2011, Crown Prince Film Production released the Ghanaian feature film Thug Love, Nollywood Reviews Vol 1 pp. 173-174, starring Scott Robert and Martha Ankoma. I’m sitting here confused and really befuddled as to how to log this new Nollywood Thug love from Morris Sam Production. In the present world of google heady wine searches, popular titles get muddled up. One must be careful naming and copyrighting their works, be it writing or films as in this case, popular titles that will conflict with other names, thus could create algorithmic confusion. The Ghallywood production of Thug Love has nothing in common with present day Nollywood Thug Love, except that yesterday’s Thug Love has the premise of a well-groomed United States lawyer falling in love with a thug, a political campaign stalwart. Not much to it, in contrast to the beefy Nollywood Thug Love, now under review.
I do however have a beef with today’s Thug Love in the sense that the lead Nadia Buari doesn’t show spine in playing the role of an attorney in her most notable films. To wit: Kiss Me (2015): James Gardner and Nadia Buari in Kiss Me (2015) Nollywood Movie Reviews, Vol 1, pp.101-103. In Kiss Me, she, Nadia Buari, a New York trained lawyer back in her hometown Accra, Ghana, hired by crook politicians, should pit against James Gardner, a well-groomed, young man of every young woman’s dream, to tuck in bed besides her; a legal titan in the Ghanian politics and terrain, she soon folded in the face of such gargantuan legal mind. She falls in love with Gardner and betrays her clients, thus killing the fire that the screenplay had ignited. They both ended up running in alleys from hired killers.
Similar plot twist– can we call it a twist or weakness–occurs here. She falls in love with a thug who wants to possess her aunt’s acres of land. Instead of fighting as she’s hired to do, falls in love instead, with him, thereby killing the intensity in the story as she did in Kiss Me. Kaima (Nadia Buari), is hired as a family lawyer to represent her family in a land case that involves a notorious gangster who unlawfully claims ownership of her uncle’s acres of land from his widow. Upon learning so, Idriss (Maurice Sam) asked to have a conference with Kaima and see if they can sort things out. Kaima is steadfast in her position as not to yield to either Idriss’s threats or demands. But she does accept his invitation to lunch.
“You know what you are? A bully, and bullies don’t scare me. As a matter of fact, I eat bullies for dinner.” Kaima challenges Idriss, as she stands surrounded by thugs. The scenario played out in Kiss Me is repeated here. Bridget (Nadia Buari) tells Drake (James Gardner), “I will cut you to size!” In Kiss Me, Drake says, “You are better off going back to New York. This is Ghana!” Here in Thug Love, Idriss simply asks, “Do you know who I am?” You should be afraid of me.”
That is the last encounter Kaima and Idriss stood and spit on each other’s faces with Idriss. I guess coming so close to each other cast a spell of romance on them. They have come inches close to each other, and both smell on each other’s breath the sweet aroma of love. It is possible that they have compared each other’s weight, and there exists mutual affection between them, like the interaction between James Gardner and her in Kiss Me, where she eventually agrees and requests the young lawyer to kiss her.
Kaima’s stubborn father refused to accept Idriss. Idriss isn’t good enough for his daughter, knowing his background and all. And seeing that he can’t do otherwise to put the two lovers apart, the father staged a fake car wreck with another car, in which Kaima is supposedly killed, and buried. Did he the father achieve his desired goal here? No. The fake car wreck led Idriss to openly confirm his love for Kaima. He sent his goons home to retire from the life of crime. He cries every day, self-employed himself to work in the home where Kaima spent most of her days giving help. After all it is all a hoke. Kaima wasn’t killed in a car accident when the father gave her a fake burial. He simply wanted to drive the notorious gangster from messing with his only child.
All that feverish crying like a baby for the loss of Kaima, was a result of a game staged by Chief Uzor (Alex Ayalogu), and Idriss gets to know the intrigue of Kaima’s father, and Kaima walks on him in his living room. The dialogue here is more practiced, and over rehearsed, some lines not from the broken hearted or expected of two lovers only meeting after the staged demise. Nadia is forty-five years old, which makes her ten years older than Maurice, who is thirty-five. And by the length of time Nadia has taken in front of movie camera, this sure is an easy project for her. She walks through her scenes and the dialogue like it was nothing but not at the same time intimidating young Maurice.
Alex Ayalogu’s most admirable works include Darima’s Dilemma (2016), Slow Country (1017), My Wife and I (2017), King of Boys (2018), Afamefuna (2023) and Private Storm (2010). Nollywood Movie Reviews Vol I, pp 297-299, Mr. Jibuno (Alex Ayalogu) displays a form of behavior towards Alex (Ramsey Nouah) that is uncommon in family-oriented films. His hatred of Alex chips away every atom of dignity in the young man, and he was left empty. Mr. Jibuno, in every scene where Jibuno interacts with his stepson, their relationship concludes without positive feelings toward one another. Idriss refused to show the similar hatred Alex returns for his stepfather in Private Storm.