3 WORKING DAYS (FILM REVIEW)

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Desperate times, they say call for desperate measures. Have you ever been in a situation where you were tempted to resort to a lifestyle you once left behind?

Such was the dilemma of Onari Peters in this film titled “3 Working Days."

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SYNOPSES

Deyemi Okanlawon, Onari Peters, who runs a mechanic garage (Narry Auto Garage) finds himself running against time to save his son, Jack after a nearby shooting by a gang led by Queen (played by Nancy Isime) occasions an ugly turn around for a once peacefully jolly family.

Time is of the essence as Onari is required to make a deposit of Three Million, One Hundred and Fifteen Thousand Naira (N3,115,000) for his son’s surgery yet his guts is tested when Tristan Bank with its manager as David (portrayed by Uzor Arukwe) alongside customer service rep (portrayed by Gbubemi Ejeye) showcasing a lackadaisical attitude to banking would give him a wait time of “3 Working Days” to get his banking issues sorted.

Onari’s former boss, Ransom (portrayed by Femi Adebayo), is of no help either leaving Onari with no choice but to take matters into his own hands.

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MY REVIEW

The first time I saw Emmanuel Odunaro, the little boy who played Jack here in the movie “At Ease” the first question that came to my mind was “could this be Deyemi Okanlawon’s son?” Dude, looks so much like him. You can imagine my excitement when I saw them paired up as father and son in this particular film.

Jerry Ossai, as the director of this film, did an incredible job. Using skitmaker/musician Lawal Michael Nasiru Bolaji a.k.a Nas Boi’s 2024 viral song “Small Money” as both the opening and closing soundtracks was quite impressive.

The color grading, cinematography, and sound score set the tone for this fast-paced film with amazing sequencing of scenes, making room for a suspenseful thrill for viewers giving rise to a somewhat unpredictable ending.

“3 Working Days” had me glued to the edge of my seat with some “ooooh!” And “ahhhhh!” Moments brought on by a few twists and turns.

This film highlights the problem of banking in the Nigerian system. From the frustration due to network issues to poor customer services to corruption and what have you.

It also shows how much the saying holds true “those who live by the gun, die by the gun!” Sadly, most times, it’s the innocent relatives of some of these gunmen that suffer the brunt and retribution of it all while the culprits manage to find redemption.

All the actors brought on their A-game, but three acts stood out for me - Adetola Jones (as Valerie) who played Onari’s wife. I simply can’t get over how much she reminds me of Genevieve Nnaji. Deyemi took this role personally as he embodied every aspect of it, applaudably so! Adokiye Horsfall, who played one of the members of the gang, that guy is good with smooth lines and delivery.

I loved seeing Mike Ezeronye as Deputy Superintendent, Isah Isama. He brought his on-screen presence to this film. My girl, Linda Osifo, gave me a proud moment there with a remarkable slo-mo entry. Victor Osuagwu did his thing, too. Tobi Makinde from “Jenifa’s Diary” brought some comic relief and interpreted his role well, too. Bolaji Ogunmola (as Emma) gave us her calm effect, too!

Nancy Isime was good, but I find that her voice type & language use do not often match up with action roles in the way it is channeled, especially in this film, as they seem a bit disconnected. A different approach may be helpful. She’s nonetheless a brilliant actress.

Mike Afolarin and Gbubemi Ejeye (as Anu), both from the Netflix’s hit series “Far From Home” did great, but what’s with Anu’s wig situation? She had to wear a wig on a full-blown bob-braid? Why??? The braid was fine on its own. So why? Maybe a wardrobe/costume malfunction, I guess.

This film appeared to have borrowed a leaf from several movies like Netflix’s “Tokunbo” Prime Video’s “Criminal” and some other Hollywood movies with themes of bank heist, revenge and personal vendetta.

Everything was going relatively awesome till that last fight scene at the wharf! What happened? Did “NEPA” take the light?” (if I may ask in the Nigerian context) Was there power failure?

I mean, one minute, one person is punching the other person next to a van, the next minute, there’s a blackout and what follows after is the person being punched now far away from the van with only a wee bit of blood stain in one corner or the eye. Whatever happened to the bruises from the punches! A dent on injury details, I suppose

The movie also just had to have a penultimate ending in the most cliches of ways typical of most Hollywood action movies where the police arrive at the last fight scene when everything is over.

Conclusively, this was an amazing watch. Although some parts sort of seemed unrealistic at some point, the poster design too could have been better. The overall movie, however, was enjoyable, relatable, entertaining, intriguing, and with lessons to learn.

I'll give this a 7/10.

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I hope that this was interesting to read. Thanks for coming around.