by Akinwande Jordan
What makes a compelling performance as an actor? What makes an actor hold your attention even when a story is lacklustre and unappealing?
In a genre where overacting and under (horrendous) acting often graces our screen, charisma more than talent is what keeps you seated. Charisma is what keeps you watching. The artistic catalyst for a great performance in a repulsive story. Nse Ikpe-Etim has charisma oozing out of her every time she is on screen. And that, to a certain degree, is worth studying or at least talking about.
Great actors who star in predominantly bad films are always interesting to look at from the perspective of an attentive audience. You are watching an artist with immense talent making the best of flawed material repeatedly and trying not to bore the audience to death. There was always the search for balance between what is portrayed and how it’s interpreted. Basically, the actor, despite the inadequacy of the writing or plot, is trying not to look like a complete clown on screen. That’s what we can call a salvageable performance. And Nse Ikpe-Etim has saved a lot of movies just by simply doing her job right.
At first glance, her filmography looks a bit predictable, and it almost feels like it is not doing her talent any justice. A lot of money-grabs, skit makers infested franchises and comedy geared towards a certain demographic, and quite frankly, one can excuse it because an actor, at the end of the day, has to work. Due to the length of her filmography, it is impossible to get through all of her films, but for the sake of brevity, we will analyse her recent performances in King of Boys (2021) and Shanty Town (2022) and films such as The Visit (2012).
The Visit is probably the one that stands out the most. It’s a four-cast film where she outshines everyone without doing anything in excess. She doesn’t do anything special. No method acting or Shelly Duval-like extremities to get her to a point of derangement. She simply makes great choices in scenes where you don’t have the luxury of making such choices, in scenes where you just have to embrace the cringe and get your paycheck. There is the argument of “well, that’s the job”, but if you look critically at the state of mainstream Nigerian cinema, the job is really just robotic-like delivering lines most times and a lot of yelling. So it’s refreshing to see someone do something you can tell took a lot of effort in the face of utter mediocrity.
Watching (rewatching) King of Boys was a little different. She plays the role of Jumoke Randle, an overly ambitious first lady of Lagos state. And despite the numerous flaws in the film-turned-series, one is compelled to stay for her performance because of her ability to exude sensuality whilst still being menacing. She could still deliver the somewhat repetitive dialogue with grace and balance. Not too much. Not too little. Just the right amount is how you play pretend. No one is the arbiter of great performances, art is subjective, but charisma and dedication to craft are objectively recognisable even in the worst films.
About her filmography – we honestly won’t say she’s a victim of the industry’s inability to make films worthy of her craftsmanship. To say she’s a victim sounds reductive and dismissive. But seeing what she can do with subpar material makes you wonder if we’ve been doing her a disservice by not giving her flowers more often than we do right now.
No one is implying nominating her for the Oscars or making her star in a Hollywood production – those two things are great in theory, but they don’t actually equate to transcendental work. That is what she needs – that is what should be written for her specifically in mind. A body of work that will put her in a position to truly tap into what she has to offer because she does have a lot to offer, especially in an industry that demands less from you.
She’s no prodigy, but in this line of work, there are very few people born with innate talent. She simply cares about her craft enough to do a very good job. You and I can tell because every time she’s on our screen, regardless of how bad the story is, she asks you to listen with her eyes, and you do, in fact, listen because that is the role of a charismatic star.
