“Lara And The Beat”: The Filmic Baptism For Seyi Shay and Vector

The coming of age film, Lara and the Beat, screened for the first time in Nigeria on Sunday, July 8th, 2018. The film tells a story about the young and beautiful Giwa sisters caught in the centre of a financial scandal with their late parents’ media empire. The sisters are forced out of their privileged bubble and must learn to build their own future — through music and enterprise — to salvage their family’s past.

Lara and the Beat was produced by Biola Alabi Media, the team behind last year’s Banana Island Ghost (BIG). So, it is not shocking that this romantic comedy features some actors from BIG and also delivers a female-led story with humour and heart.

It also stars familiar industry faces including Somkele Iyamah-Idhalama, Chinedu Ikedieze, Bimbo Manuel, Chioma Akpotha, DJ Xclusive, Deyemi Okanlawon, Ademola Adedoyin, Shaffy Bello, Kemi Lala Akindoju, Wale Ojo, Akah Nnani and Uche Jombo.

While singers taking lead roles in their debut appearances in films is not new, thrusting Seyi Shay and Vector tha Viper into the lead role without prior film experience shows the producers’ readiness to take a risk. And it paid off.

The film is made more enjoyable with the way the plot falls into place in a chronological manner, making it relatable and easy to understand.

But for a number of scenes, it was hard to tell whether it had been days, months or years that had passed since the last time a given character had been on screen.

The film proved to be heavier on the comedic than the romantic side, with many of its jokes hitting home. And although the music was an essential part of the story, the soundtrack was not very noteworthy. Only a couple of songs were worth paying any attention to.

The film is fairly long, with a few scenes feeling a bit drawn out. But the impressive action and dialogue really held the audience’s attention, keeping us on the edge of our seats.

Despite the film’s minor shortcomings, Lara and The Beat is exciting, creative and educational. Is it going to be worth your time? Well, you can be the judge and jury on that.