The Mirror Boy (2011)

The Mirror Boy: Directed by Obi Emelonye. With Genevieve Nnaji, Osita Iheme, Fatima Jabbe, Edward Kagutuzi. The Mirror Boy is a mystical journey through Africa, seen through the eyes of a 12 year old boy, Tijan. After a London street fight, in which a local boy is hurt, Tijan’s mother decides to take him back to their roots, to Gambia. On their arrival in Banjul, Tijan encounters a strange apparition, a boy smiling at him in a mirror and vanishing. Seeing the same boy in a crowded street market the next day sets in motion a chain of events, with Tijan finding himself lost. While Tijan’s panic-stricken mother struggles to find her son, Tijan is left alone in the company of the enigmatic Mirror Boy, seemingly only visible to him. After a bruising spiritual rite of passage, The Mirror Boy takes Tijan on a mystical journey, but not all is what it seems.

“This picture had the premise for a great story and started out okay before descending into the same rehashed u0026#39;Nollywoodu0026#39; stereotypes – lacking depth of character or some sort of logic to the plot. The story floats around aimlessly without any character really convincing you of their journey as they simply appear and dissipate from the film. The only redeeming quality of this film is the Genevive Nnajiu0026#39;s performance which was barely competent but not earth shattering. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eI really wanted u0026#39;The Mirror Boyu0026#39; to be impressive and hoped the IMDb rating, which is usually a good yardstick, was warranted unfortunately this has turned out to be one of the rare exceptions when it is wide off the mark.”