Shembeh

From a Fulani geographical and socio-cultural context comes Shembeh a simple love story. Honestly, I was duly impressed with the general production concept (locations and costumes etc). It was decently captivated by director Cosson Chinepoh whose picture composition exploited the scenery offered by the uphill locations(eventhough I feel he gets carried away by the scenery to the detriment of the narration). Producers Nfor Lawrence Nfor and Mubuhwa Kingsley should be commended for taking this bold step and engaging in this production. Most impressive to me were the actors, not so much in their dialogue delivery but in their horse riding capabilities. Hats off to the main lead Shembeh (Sende Bende) who rode like a pro. The story is well contextualized into the Fulani social and cultural way of life but I find the directors narration weak and disjointed in several instances. The Slayer in this movie is the lighting and picture quality, in some indoor scenes we just don't get to see anything at all, then i would have loved the incorporation of real Fulani people in the set up. I also think the story was overly slow paced and some scenes  and plot points pulled on way longer than was necessary. The rhythm could inadvertently distract the viewer or cause probable drowsiness but all in all its a commendable effort. Another let down is the fact that it's a two part film which could clearly be compressed in just one part.

Synopsis

Shembeh loves Salifuh the handsome horse racer, but wealthy Vondeh has his eyes set on her and offers a dowry Shembeh's brothers and father cannot refuse. Consequently Shembeh goes under house arrest as her family prepares to forcefully marry her to an over confident Vondeh much to Salifuh and Shembeh's sister's dismay. With several attempts to free Shembeh resulting to naught Is the love story between Shembeh and Salifuh feasible? Watch and tell me what you think.