“Merry Men 2: Another Mission” and Nollywood Action’s Awkward Phase

Merry Men 2: Another Mission is a 2019 Nigerian film and a sequel to Merry Men: The Real Yoruba Demons. The film is a production spearheaded by Ayo Makun popularly known as AY. The original movie was released just a year prior and having a sequel so soon is testament to its success.

Merry Men 2 recently joined Netflix’s Nigerian catalogue and has since entered the top 10 trending list in the country. However, there are a lot of indications of a disconnect between what this movie is and what this movie thinks it is.

Let’s get into it.

Plot

Merry Men 2: Another Mission sees the original gang settling down into their new wealth; before their enjoyment is cut short by a surprise attack. In the skirmish, Kemi, Ayo’s sister and Naz’s wife, is kidnapped.

The merry men soon discover that their old enemy, corrupt politician, Dame Maduka, is holding Kemi hostage and demanding they destroy the evidence the EFDC have on her. The consequence of their failure would be Kemi’s painful death and disposal in a sewer.

So, the merry men go on a mission with a twist; they have to work with the group of women who attacked and outsmarted them.

Cast

The original cast of the first Merry Men movie is part of the second one. The movie stars Ramsey Nouah, AY Makun, Jim Iyke, Folarin ‘Falz’ Falana, Damilola Adegbite, Ireti Doyle, BBNaija’s Alex Asogwa, Williams Uchemba, Regina Daniels, and Linda Osifo.

Review

Nollywood seems to be coming into itself with attempting an action franchise after years of sitting comfortably in the drama and slapstick humour genres. But in this coming-of-age of sorts, the movie still contains heavy elements of both drama and slapstick humour; so much so that it is arguably not that “action”.

Granted, it is unlikely to come across a completely action Nollywood film. But then again, I found AY’s unfunny quips, Jim Iyke’s signature outbursts, and Williams Uchemba’s entire presence completely unnecessary.

Speaking of Jim Iyke, it is almost like he is only ever cast so his outbursts can be used as a plot device. Almost, because he does manage to deliver some passion in his acting.

Editing

Right off the bat, I’m going to assume that they made Merry Men on constrained time; because there were many times the speech did not match the subtitles because the actors so obviously messed up their lines.

But as they made those mistakes, the filmmakers appeared to think no one would notice because Nigerians watch films to enjoy, not to observe or think or do anything else that is the purpose of art.

It also appeared like ALL the assassins having kidnapped loved ones was a last-minute addition to make them more likeable.

What I will commend though is Dame Maduka’s decision to double-cross them. It was perfectly in her character to do so and brought a nice resolution to the movie. Also, the existence of Zara’s son was a welcome plot twist and a possible indicator of another sequel.

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One thing I would like to know is why Falz got so little screen time. In addition to that, his reunion with the woman who seduced and scorned him seemed a bit shallow. The movie pretty much just gave in to the idea that a happy ending must include a heterosexual pairing; someone for everyone.

Comedy

AY Makun wrote himself into the script to be this funny cool guy, but the character Amaju does not come across as a lovable clown. Rather, he’s a bit of a jerk and most of his jokes sound like abandoned lines sifted out of a standup comedy show script.

Also, it is about time the overstated Yoruba accent faded out. It is tired, unfunny, and a little offensive. There is also the casual misogyny that always seeps into Nigerian humour; and too many inanities for laughs when we ought to have graduated to wit.

On a final note, if the action genre is going to become a thing in Nollywood, filmmakers should really invest in better stunts directors and sound effects; so punches don’t land like they are from an electric keyboard.

Like any coming-of-age phase, Nollywood’s new investment in action and espionage is a bit awkward. But with how enjoyable this film was in spite of its many flaws, we might come into our own sooner than later.