High blood pressure from Teco Benson

THINGS are beginning to look
good for practitioners of the
Nigerian movie industry. They
now have an opportunity to air
their works in major cinemas in
the country. This is contrary to
the widely held view that
offerings of the industry are
not good enough to be aired in
some of these cinemas with
state of the art equipments.
From Stephanie Okereke's
Through the Glass to Emem
Isong's Guilty Pleasure and much
later to Kunle Afolayan's jubilee
hit, The Figurine, the cinemas are
opening up to filmmakers who
have somewhat upped their
game.
But while the industry still
awaits the cinema airing of
Lilian Amah-Aluko's Jungle Ride
after an impressive premiere at
the Silver Bird Galleria
penultimate Sunday, respected
filmmaker and one of the most
sought after creative minds in
Nollywood, Teco Benson, is set
to air his latest big budget
movie-High Blood Pressure in
major cinemas across the Lagos
metropolis. Benson is working
alongside his executive
producer/financier, John
Okonkwo, of GoodLife
Production to have as many film
buffs as possible see the film
across the country. According to
Benson, the suspense filled
political thriller, High Blood
Pressure, which was
painstakingly shot over a period
of six months within the Lagos
metropolis, will begin showing
at the cinemas on Friday, March
12, 2010. High Blood Pressure,
which has big names in
Nollywood like: Kanayo O.
Kanayo, Clarion Chukwura, Lilian
Bach, Yemi Blaq, Jibola Daboh,
Jim Roach and others, will be
seen by movie buffs at upscale
cinemas, such as: Silverbird,
Genesis Deluxe, Ozone in Lagos,
Abuja, Port Harcourt and other
state capitals simultaneously,
starting from March 12.
Also, fans of Nollywood movies
would also have the
opportunity of seeing the heart-
wrenching movie at the
Silverbird cinemas now
operating in Ghana and Kenya.
Speaking briefly on the synopsis
of the very contemporary flick,
which he argued would
definitely change the political
landscape, especially now that
2011, is fast approaching,
Benson said. "High Blood
Pressure is a film that truly
mirrors the dirty politics,
shenanigans, betrayal, greed,
blood spilling, cultism and the
unholy alliances daily going on
among our politicians in their
desperate quest for power. I'm
appealing to our politicians,
especially the power drunk ones
to watch this movie and help
our nation move ahead after
2011". Benson also urged movie
buffs to take advantage of the
forthcoming cinemas showings
and see the movie in a relaxed
atmosphere, warning that the
movie will not be released on
DVD, anytime soon. Okonkwo
also hailed the sterling
performances of the major
characters in the movie,
describing them as exceptional
role models and interpreters,
who truly made Nollywood and
themselves proud. While Benson
vowed to continue preaching
against societal ills with his
movies, he maintained that
salvaging Nigeria must be the
collective responsibility of all
Nigerians, filmmakers inclusive.