MOVIE REVIEW: Dolapo Douglas: Great lead actors, interesting premise, disappointing end

Movie Title: Dolapo Douglas

Language: Yoruba

Running time: 2 hours 16 minutes

Release date: 2024

Streaming platform: Prime Video

Producer: Oyebade Adebimpe Adedimeji

Director: Ibrahim Yekini (Itele)

Cast: Lateef Adedimeji, Ibrahim Yekini (Itele), Oyebade Adebimpe Adedimeji, Jide Kosoko, Odunlade Adekola, Muyiwa Ademola, Dayo Amusan, Akin Olaiya, Eniola Ajao, Aisha Lawal, Kayode Olaiya, Taiwo Okunola, Kehinde Okunola, Kolawole Ajeyemi and others.

Police officers are often sent on dangerous missions, risking their lives to safeguard the nation. However, despite the risks, there are no comprehensive backup plans or adequate measures to ensure their safety and well-being.

Many families have lost their loved ones in the police force due to a lack of adequate security and contingency plans to protect them from deadly missions their bosses entrust to them.

This incompetence in the police force is a typical example in the movie ‘Dolapo Douglasby Oyebade Adedimeji, which addresses the need for the police force to do better when sending officers after expert criminals who can execute any crime no matter how complex or protected a facility or personality is

In this eponymous film, a police officer, Ademola Benson, sent after an expert robbery group with no impossibility in their dictionary, eventually becomes one of them after losing his memory. After he discovers his true identity during a robbery mission, his family pays dearly for a mission he embarked on as a police officer to save the people.

Plot

The movie opens with a scene where two vehicles collide. The next scene shows Dolapo, a young girl in Ayedade village, reporting to her mother that her mate beat her. Her African mother sends her back to retaliate.

Dolapo, now an adult, joyfully informs her mother of how she beat up a debtor challenging her, crediting her fighting skills to her mother’s wisdom.

Her mother, known in the community as a sex worker, while counting some money given to her by a cocoa dealer, tries convincing her daughter, her box of fortune, as she fondly calls her, to date him.

In the City, there is a notorious robbery group headed by Father and Jagua, who have a rule of never killing. As always, they plot a strategy to rob a bank. Father and Jagua, with their boys disguised as customers, rob the bank and escape with millions.

In Ayedade village, the community head and his chiefs discuss ways to improve the community’s economy when Dolapo and the community head’s son, Akinkunmi, leave the palace. The community chiefs oppose their relationship, and the community head vows to end it if their observations are correct.

One day, during an operation, Jagua instructs one of the robbers, Dolapo Douglas (DD), to wipe away an entire family, which he refuses, reminding them that it is against the rule to kill. Vaipa immediately shoots the couple, wiping away the family as Jagua instructed. DD leaves the scene and expresses his grievances to Father.

Unsatisfied with Father’s judgment, he leaves the house and heads to a village where he meets Mama Dolapo, who takes him to a hotel where he lodges.

Fascinated by his looks and luxury car, Mama Dolapo sets Dolapo up to meet him at the hotel and seduce him, but he fails to fall for her seduction. Unhappy, Dolapo heads home to inform her mother, who encourages her to go back and seduce him again.

Dolapo successfully seduces DD, follows him to Lagos, and becomes involved in his criminal activities. DD trains Dolapo in gun handling, and she quickly becomes proficient.

In Lagos, DD and Dolapo execute a significant armed robbery. Meanwhile, Father and Jagua need Help to succeed, as DD and Dolapo have formed their team and consistently outsmart them, robbing locations that Father and Jagua had planned to target.

Unhappy about his boys’ unsuccessful robberies, Father orders them to go after the gang responsible, unknown to him that it was his son DD. The boys go after DD and Dolapo but escape while Dolapo loses her pregnancy.

After her miscarriage, Dolapo sends for her mother to come to Lagos and stay with her for a while. Mama Dolapo arrives in Lagos and continues with her life but is killed by Father and Jagua’s boys while Dolapo and DD are away for a robbery in Abuja.

DD discovers his true identity during the robbery as he meets his wife and two children. He soon regains his lost memory, leaving Dolapo threatened and worried he would return to his family.

Dolapo is devastated as she has lost her unborn child, her mother and her father. Soon after, DD, originally a police officer and not a thief, returns to his family.

However, karma quickly catches up with DD. Dolapo is displeased with his family reunion, and Vaipa, one of Father and Jagua’s associates, is out for revenge. One day, as DD is conversing with his family, Vaipa storms in, kills his wife, and shoots him.

DD, in severe pain, grabs a gun hidden under his chair and manages to shoot Vaipa. Dolapo, who has come intending to kill DD, arrives, sees that DD is wounded and his wife is dead, briefly assesses the situation, and then leaves.

Character analysis

The movie stars actors like Odunlade Adekola, Muyiwa Ademola, Ibrahim Yekini, Bimpe O. Adedimeji, Dayo Amusan, and Lateef Adedimeji, who all deliver captivating performances and bring the story to life.

Lateef Adedimeji, a prominent Nollywood actor, plays Dolapo Douglas (DD), the protagonist. He perfectly portrays a police officer on a mission to arrest armed robbers who become expert robbers after he loses his memory.

His performance keeps viewers glued to the screen, eager to see what happens to DD after disobeying Father and Jagua.

Muyiwa Ademola plays Jagua, the second-in-command of the deadly robbery group. His role in this movie is similar to his character as JB in Oyenusi, where he serves as the second-in-command to Oyenusi, played by Odunlade Adekola. Even though it mirrors his previous role in Oyenusi, he delivers a strong performance.

Adekola shines as Father, the leader of the notorious robbery group. He portrays a leader who favours one worker for their intelligence, neglecting future consequences. Adekola’s skilled performance delights the audience. His role shows that even the terrible ones have a little conscience as he picks up DD, who was almost dead after an accident and treats him like his son.

Ibrahim Yekini plays Vaipa, who wants to be his boss’s right-hand man and is willing to do anything to achieve that goal. His role adds authenticity and stability to the story. Yekini masters the character as he often plays a strong, rugged man in movies.

Bimpe O. Adedimeji doubles as the producer and a character, Dolapo, a child who always follows her mother’s instructions, not realising that her present will impact her future. Bimpe, a producer-actor, is encouraged by her mother to follow men, which results in her getting married to DD, leading to the death of her mother. Her performance captures her character’s essence well.

Dayo Amusan portrays Mama Dolapo, a young woman who relies on selling her body for money. Her love for money drives her to introduce her daughter into prostitution, unbothered about her future. Her performance is lit and crucial, bringing life into the movie.

Movie Analysis

Bimpe’s creativity is demonstrated in the production of this film, addressing the risk a police officer takes to fight robbers and criminals. The storyline is well-structured and exciting.

The cast’s performances were carefully selected and well-defined, contributing significantly to the drama’s development.

The narrative effectively portrays the consequences of bad decisions and actions people make. Mama Dolapo ends up getting shot dead by paying for her actions. DD also paid for his unintentional decision to be a robber.

Flashbacks are used where necessary to bring the past into the future, giving viewers clues about the movie.

The cinematography is top-notch; the use of lighting and camera angles effectively conveys the mood and tone of the story, differentiating the city from the village.

However, the movie ends badly, leaving viewers’ appetite hanging as it fails to shed light on DD’s predicament after he’s shot in his hand. After Vaipa shoots DD, Dolapo appears but does nothing to save DD, making her appearance in the last scene unnecessary.

Viewers may think Dolapo will rescue DD as the obstacle (DD’s wife) between her and DD is shot dead by Vaipa as a chance of being back as a couple.

Unlike known armed robbery films, in which robbers eventually meet their doom, Dolapo Douglas ends without Father, Jagua, and their boys being apprehended by the police.

This makes the police character in the movie irrelevant, with less action or confrontation between the robbers and police. It also makes the police officers cast in the film unimportant to the plot.

The movie is a good watch and produces a meaningful message about societal issues, but it fails.

Dolapo Douglas is streaming on Prime video

Verdict

6/10