‘Code of Silence’ tackles rape…with doses of humour – By Toni Kan

By Toni Kan

Top Nollywood practitioners last week came together to celebrate the latest from the prolific stable of Emem Isong’s  Royal Arts Academy at a colorful premiere. The movie is produced in conjunction with Nollywood Workshops.

Aptly titled Code of Silence, this movie ventures into the unspoken territory of rape and the reluctance of our society to tackle it headlong. A young, single-minded undergraduate gets violated by a wealthy politician and one of his thugs. This spurs a series of reactions, all typical of the confusion that attends the incidence of rape and ultimately could usually make the commission go unpunished in this side of the world.

Code of Silence however travels considerable distance to encourage the reversal of tendencies like stigma which restrains victims and their families from speaking up when rape occurs. This movie speaks to everyone: it addresses the issue of what society loses when women are subjected to forced sex, when we all keep quiet about it and why men should have more respect for themselves by not taking the low bend into being rapists.

As serious as the issues which its treats are, Code of Silence, which is directed by Emem Isong, gives the audience quite a dose of laughter. Patience  Ozokwor otherwise known as Mama G, gives a good account of herself  as the grieving of a girl who got deflowered without her consent (and by a man old enough to be her father) as well as when opportunity presents itself for her to give us some comic relief.

In company with Ozokwor are well known Nollywood acts like Ini Edo, Omoni Oboli, Shawn Faqua, Amechi Muonagor and Desmond Elliot.  New faces, Makida Moka who plays the lead role of Adanma and Bimbo Peters who plays Dunni, Adanma’s street wise and bosom friend, justify the confidence of the producers of Code of Silence.