Over The Fence

The movie ‘Over the fence’ tells a story of a classic girl-rivalry between two married neighbours which escalates to epic proportions when they both set out to compete for the position of the women neighbourhood union president. Based on this description you would be right to think that the stakes involved in the movie are pretty low. Also based on the performances you are not likely to start to believe that being appointed the women union president is the most important thing in the world. However, you will be entertained and it did raise some hilarious questions such as a) Are the politics in estate meetings so ludicrously cutthroat and savage b) Do they really have campaign teams and debates and most importantly c) Can someone really nominate themselves without being seconded for these things? Isn’t that like a crazy undemocratic and ridiculously inefficient system?

The main cast of Ijeoma Grace Agu, Uzor Arukwe, Bimbo Ademoye and Rene Adeleye all deliver competent performances but in the battle of the housewives I found myself firmly #TeamLola whose performance as the utterly convincing salty wife with complete lack of self-awareness was hilarious with her facial expressions that were more priceless than her delivery. The performance of Ijeoma Grace Agu as Sandra, the good natured airy housewife and occasional child was alright but uncomfortable although through no fault of her own (she was written that way I suppose for the sake of juxtaposition). However, the erratic accents of both housewives are unnecessary, distracting and jarring. The husbands also acquit themselves with good-natured, comfortable and legitimately funny performances.

I expected the movie to chronicle a series of antics which escalate to comical proportions until they reconcile and they all live happily ever after. Essentially everything you would expect from a movie about a women’s estates election and although by the end it would have lost its charm, it delivers this in spades. Particularly littered through the movie are some genuinely funny lines that just punctuated the absurdity and hilarity of the stakes involved such as:

Exhibit A – An Exchange between one of the candidates and a Judas-like supporter:
“I have to go, my husband is home.” “You’re divorced!” and
Exhibit B/the movies best line – Candidate A describing Candidate B
“People like her and the reasons we have problems in Nigeria. Not the government!”

Honest opinion: If you don’t take it and yourself too seriously. You just might enjoy this movie.