Amanda Oruh

Writer/director Olive Nwosu’s neo-noir Lady is a raw character study full of life and color. In Lady’s corner of the world, the teeming metropolis of Lagos Nigeria, Nwosu presents a place as assured and celebratory as it is one of risks and dangers. Lady comes from a strong female gaze, focusing on duality, male vs female, the individual vs the collective, and the interior vs the exterior lives of the film’s characters, especially as it relates to gender. These characters are postering as strong in a world where women are often reduced to objectifying themselves in order to survive, while trying to allow themselves to show vulnerability and trust with each other.