''Champagne'' is a 2014 Nigerian romantic thriller film, produced and directed by

Emem Isong Emem Isong is a Nigerian screenwriter, film producer, and film director. She has become known primarily for films in the English language, and is a dominant figure in the Nollywood industry. Her second directed feature, ''Code of Silence'', ...

. It stars Majid Michel,

Alexx Ekubo Alexx Ekubo (born Alex Ekubo-Okwaraeke; 10 April 1986) is a Nigerian actor and model. He was first runner up at the 2010 Mr Nigeria contest. He won the ''Best Actor in a Supporting Role'' award at the 2013 Best of Nollywood Awards for his role ...

Mbong Amata Mbong Amata (born 21 September 1985) is a Nigerian actress. She has acted in films such as ''Black November'', ''Forgetting June'', and ''Inale''. She won the "Most Beautiful Girl" (Akwa Ibom) in 2003, and was the 2nd runner up in the 2004 Mi ...

, Susan Peters, Tana Adelana, Kokotso Charlotte, and introduces Rosemary Zimu as Champagne. This is Emem Isong's first film as a director. The film tells the story of a young couple ( Alex Ekubo and Rosemary Zimu), who are in an "open marriage"; To meet their financial needs as a family, they often date unsuspecting people, scam them, and run away. They eventually meet Mr Douglas ( Majid Michel), who takes them on an unexpected ride.

Cast

as Tare Hopewell * Rosemary Zimu as Champagne * Majid Michel as Mr Douglas *

as * Susan Peters as * Tana Adelana as * Kokotso Charlotte as * Padita Agu Padita Agu as * Anita Chris as

Production

On the title of the film "''Champagne''", Isong states: "I just wanted to do something that is a bit associated with glitz and glamour, so I decided to name the lead character 'Champagne'. There's really nothing more to it". The film was shot in Johannesburg, South Africa and

Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

in the United States. Shooting in South Africa in particular, posed a challenge, as the Isong had never really worked in the country before now. ''Champagne'' is Emem Isong's first film as a director; in an interview, she stated that she wanted to celebrate her 20 years anniversary in the film industry with ''Champagne''.

Release

The theatrical trailer of ''Champagne'' was released on 19 November 2014. The film premiered in Lagos on 19 December 2014, and started showing at the cinemas on the same day. It premiered in the United Kingdom in March 2015.

Critical reception

The film so far has received negative critical reviews, Rosemary Zimu's performance has however been commended by most critics. Nollywood Reinvented rated the film 46%, concluding: "Alexx Ekubo and Rosemary Zimu played off each other’s strength and were able to hold the movie together in their scenes. Alexx is constantly improving as an actor and Rosemary does pretty well for a new actress even though they both could have definitely explored deeper into the emotions". Oris Aigbokhaevbolo of ''True Nollywood Stories'' gave a negative review, commenting: "An exploration of that tension between marital duties and financial necessities could take up the duration of a movie, but not with this attention-deficit fare. An unconvincing thriller in romance, near-comic clothing, and it seems no one told the actors. Save for South African newcomer Rosemary Zimu, the actors look unprepared for the film’s turning point moment. Emem Isong’s ''Champagne'' Fails To Pop". Samod Biobaku panned the film and performances from the actors (except for Zimu's performance), commenting: "In this movie, Emem songclearly struggles with creative consistency. From the lighting to the shallow dialogues and this rolls into a plot, so loose, it eventually becomes painfully disjointed. Midway into the movie, the feeling that you could walk out of the cinema hall and ask a friend to tell you what happened afterwards proved a realistic option. The story grips the highway of a saccharine-littered storyline that falls, stumbles, trips, takes flight, trips again, breaks down and somehow, manages to hurl its bulky frame across the finish-line where conflicts are ultimately resolved".

References

External links