Loukman Ali’s art is hauntingly superior and is quite none like we have seen before; so much so that the only other film you can compare this film to are his own other films. Like that was not already good enough, Usama Mukwaya was put into production- setting the bar so high that now any other film that comes after this one will be in the unenviable position of being compared to it. Yet it should not pass without thanks that a bar has even been set at all. God knows we needed one as a country.
Even then, the one question that one of the main characters really wonders if everybody knows is, “Do you know why pigeons can’t enjoy movies?”
At 59,000 views in just one week following its upload, Loukman Ali’s The Blind Date featuring Martha Kay and Michael Wawuyo Jr has garnered more views than Martha Kay’s own number of YouTube subscribers which as of writing this stands at 37,800. That means that more than her number of subscribers have watched the film and many more continue to do so.
The casting and acting were great. Martha Kay, the in-distress, kidnapped spoiled daughter of a badass rich man of high social standing and possible shady engagements (Raymond Rushabiro), Allen Musumba, her mother and; Michael Wawuyo Jr., Patrick Nkakalukanyi and River Dan Rugaaju– her kidnappers who hold her for ransom.
Michael Wawuyo Jr.’s Character Sam/Jeff apparently wants more than money- he wants the rich man’s daughter too and from the looks of things, the feeling is mutual on her part- at least initially.
Michael Wawuyo Jr.’s performance was as electrifying as it was terrifying. He cut a sharp contrast between his demeanor and his actions, establishing himself right from the beginning as principled, cunning and no-nonsense. He is both fair and ruthless, gentle and cold; and brutal. It is this unpredictability and co-existential solidity of character that makes him a cliffhanger all through. No single move that he makes can be predicted.
That Wawuyo Jr. is introverted in real life, that he played the role of a born again university student “Brother John” in The Hostel TV series, and that he is in fact a born again Christian in real life, make his contradictory character in The Blind Date even more remarkable. Without a doubt, he possesses the soul, depth and mystical darkness to carry on the complexity of his character’s double-life.
Perhaps the most powerful tools employed in the making of this film are the use of sounds, close-ups, suspense, anti-climaxes and complex, poetic dialogue. The technical terms that refer to warm colour lighting, correct camera angles and focus may be inserted here to imply that this is a Ugandan film dripping in the oil of excellence like never seen before. This film must be watched.
Oh, and as for why pigeons can’t enjoy movies? It is explained in the movie. Twice.
Watch the movie, The Blind Date here.
