Producer: Bolanle Austen-Peters
Writer: Udoka Onyeka
Director: Udoka Onyeka
Cast: Udoka Onyeke, Norbert Young, Waje Iruobe
Year: 2017
Sometimes the best films to watch are very short, very easy on the eyes and yet can pack the right message to keep us sustained through our life journey. No Good Turn is one of those films with the right message, released at the right time and with the intention of stroking our conscience to do more good.
Gbenga Jakande is a doctor. He is faced with the job of treating bomb victims and after receiving some of the victims, a Chief Inspector walks into the hospital on a murder mission. One of the patients was the suicide bomber that has caused multiple deaths and even though he is unconscious and severely damaged, Chief Inspector Kabiri wants to finish him up, it is Gbenga that appeals to Kabiri to let him live.
If you have lived in the North or if you have experienced a terror attack then you will understand the pain of seeing loved ones suffering and the anguish of wishing you knew those that have caused you pain. The point is, such films like “No Good Turn” can be really sensitive. The good thing about Udoka Onyeka’s film is that he is not too eager to tell a story that can arouse the wrong emotions. He focuses on the perspective of those that grief due to terror attacks, those that have lost due to the wickedness of man, and loss is a topic we can all handle, the only question is, the process of dealing with the loss which can be highly damaging for some.
What will you do in a situation where you have to choose between killing someone who has hurt your family and letting them live? Will you have the strength to take the high road? To forgive? We can admonish others to forgive but forgiveness is a difficult thing to do. Sometimes we only understand the difficulty of forgiveness when we have to endure the type of pain that others have had to endure and we asked them to forgive and yet, we lack the capacity to also forgive when the table turn.
Udoka makes a simple film that makes us ask a thousand necessary questions. The story is short but it inspires our thinking and opinion on life and what life can be or should be when we are put in situations with people that have caused us great harm.
A few hitches cannot be ignored on this production, for example, the way Norbert Young handles the gun when he walks into the hospital, it does not fall in place that a chief inspector will hold a gun so fearfully. The inspector is afraid to hold the gun and that scene alone distracts us but we are able to catch up because Norbert makes up for it in the next scene.
For Udoka Onhyeka, he is the good actor we love watching. His compassion in “No Good Turn” is a good thing to see since he has enjoyed many roles where he is the evil where good is.
No Good Turn is impressive, it packs the right message and is delivered through the easiest channel- YouTube. It means many more people can see and appreciate the work.
Xplore rates ”No Good Turn” with an 8/10
