ADAMS APPLES - MY FIVE FALLS

Oh I love highlife – any type of highlife from the ones sung at the palm wine sellers’ joint to the ones with single instruments to the more complex ones of burgher highlife and the present day contemporary highlife, any goes for me. I love highlife to my very core. I had a heavy dose of highlife music while watching the first part of Shirley’s new ten part creation of a movie series – Adam’s Apples.


Once someone published a status on Facebook and was asking for people’s favorites between Shirley Frimpong-Manso’s 6 Hours To Christmas and Leila M. Djansi’s Sinking Sands. I commented that I am particularly interested in good movies from Ghana. It should not be a competition. We should just simply encourage good movies, arts, adverts, designs, graphics, music videos . . . our focus should be good quality arts, not absurd competition.

I watched “Family Ties”, the first part of Adams Apples over the weekend. The movie got me falling in love at different times with different reasons. The first was the choice of costume. The movie makes use of a lot of local fabric from casual attires to executive ones to the tie and brooches. My second moment of my falling was the dialogue and how it made a number of the cast seem like they are so well cut for comedy movies(we do not exactly have comedy-themed movies in Ghana). My favorite part was Anima Misa’s dialogue (prayer) to/with God and all the other scenes that involved her chicken soup plus her reaction when she was “dumped”.

My third fall had to do with the choice of music for the movie. The co writer, producer, director and executive producer for the movie used a heavy dose of highlife music with each fitting the scene so magically. It felt like a karaoke in the cinema anytime any tune played, though of course, there were no lyrics displaying. Highlife rules!

Now to my take on the cast. My fourth falling was Joselyn Dumas’ performance. I think she is a better actress than a presenter. She played her role so well. The no nonsense Miss High and Mighty who is so well equipped at putting people off that when her mother asked for her advice on how to get rid of the “chicken soup man”, her immediate answer was to tell her that she should tell him he has a bad breath. When it got to that, Mummy used a different and more dangerous line. “. . .and your mouth smells”, she said.

I give my fifth fall to the combined performances of Yvonne Okoro, Naa Ashorkor, John Dumelo, Anima Misa and the fake millionaire’s son plus Joselyn’s secretary. The secretary played her “dumb” role all well and good but do not be deceived, she is smart, really smart, at least for now and until she is caught. This fifth fall also includes Naa Ashorkor’s creative assistant. Kuks (Naa Ashorkor) was running late for a meeting and he was asked to come up with an excuse. However Kuks gave him a warning not to repeat the whole kidnapping saga. His creative excuses and utterances were not so creative but mind you, he believes they are always the best. Top notch. But I love his energy, his acting.

Anima Misa, the widow of an ex diplomat and mother of three lovely children has still not been able to come to terms with the demise of her husband three years ago. She is in a restaurant enjoying her chicken soup alone and is later on joined by another lone guest of the restaurant. She happens to go home with this gentleman after their first “date” which also happens to be her birthday. Unbeknownst to her, her daughters have planned a surprise party for her. She steps into the dark hall giggling to what nots by this new man only for the lights to come on simultaneously with a shout of “surprise” and concurrently with her embarrassment as the new man’s hand was already in her blouse, her brassier. Her three daughters characters are played by the no nonsense, does-not-smile-much-and-too-worried-about-other-people’s-opinions first child, Joselyn Dumas, the I-cant-forgive-my-husband’s-cheating-and-seeking-for-divorce second daughter, Yvonne Okoro and the I-jilted-my-love-wrongly,-only-to-have-us-working-together-later Naa Ashorkor.

The movie is still showing at the Silverbird cinemas in Accra.

Shirley does it again!