“The Lost Days” is Wingonia Ikpi’s first feature film. She directed a short horror flick, “Otana” (2020). She also contributed to popular Nigerian series like “Tinsel” and “Halita.” She’s also the founder and CEO of Boxonia Blueprint, a film production talent management company. Ikpi has worked on projects like Toyin Abraham’s “Ijakumo”, Okey Bakassi’s “Bank Alert”, and many more while working with Film One. So we know she has been in the game for a while now.
Plot
The movie grapples with family secrets. It also deals with grief, loneliness, and regrets, and the dynamics of family relationships. The movie is now streaming on Prime Video.
Story
“The Lost Days” opens at a hospital with Chisom Agu, a business mogul, who receives the good news that her cancer is in remission. And like with the reflection that comes with being ill or even terminally ill, Chisom (Ifeoma Fafunwa) believes that the good news is her second chance to do what is right. So she decides to visit her old lover, Kolawole (Bimbo Manuel), in a village in Abeokuta.
We learn about Chisom and Kolawole’s past there. Despite their love, Kolawole’s parents disapproved of their union due to ethnic differences. After thirty years, Kolawole is taken aback to see her. She claims that she is only here for a few days, but it ends up lasting weeks. Kola (Durotimi Okutagidi Adebule), Kolawole’s son, is not pleased that she is occupying his mother’s room, though she passed away ten years ago. Even though Chisom assures the son that she is not here to ruin the family, this causes a conflict between the father and the son.
Later, Kolawole’s first well-to-do and successful son, Moses (Baaj Adebule), also comes visiting from Lagos. But his arrival is not coincidental. He has been fired from his job, but he doesn’t tell his father. And he has researched Chisom to know that she’s a successful businesswoman.
The bits and parts of “The Lost Days” don’t cohere into a harmonious whole. The movie moves mostly through its premise and logline, while the narrative and plot remain perfunctory.
Performances
Since each performer conveys their genuine feelings of dealing with regrets, sadness, loneliness, and avarice, the performances are praiseworthy. However, the characters are so poorly developed that their performances come across as hollow. Other than what they’re going through, we don’t know anything about them.
“The Lost Days” is mostly let down by its pace which is wearisome in the entirety of the movie. The movie is hampered by this monotonous pace so much that when something exciting finally happens in the third act, it doesn’t know how to process it.
Verdict
The movie knows what it wants to say, but fails to adequately articulate itself narratively. This is caused by a plodding pace, thinly written characters, and a weak plot.
“The Lost Days” is the first of many projects by a director still learning her craft. She’s modestly new in the industry with only a few experiences here and there. So this movie only represents her first major step in filmmaking as a director, while we hope for a groundbreaking film from her in the future.
Rating:5/10
