Dust to Dreams review a baffling short film from director Idris Elba

"On the face of it, there's a formidable aggregation of talent and media firepower on display in this lively but faintly baffling short film set in Lagos, with an original story credit for its producer, the Nigerian super-producer Mo Abudu; it is written and directed by Idris Elba and stars Seal. Within its 19-minute running time it appears to try summarising the action of an entire 90-minute feature film."

"The premise is that Millicent (played by Nse Ikpe-Etim) runs a vibrant and hugely successful club in Lagos, but she is very ill, and the question of who is to inherit this lucrative, fashionable place causes a tense confrontation with Millicent's daughters Comfort (Eku Edewor) and Patience (Atlanta Bridget Johnson) who have come from London with the candid intention of selling up for cash; they resent having to defer to their Lagos-based sister Bisi (Constance Olatunde), who is much more committed to the club."

"And what causes, or should theoretically cause, the emotional temperature to rise is the reappearance of Johnson (played by Seal), a good-natured musician who has been away in the army and whose paternity of one or all the young women is naturally a central issue. Inevitably, it is Johnson's performance, in concert with Bisi, which is to cause instant reconciliation for one and all, but that is a glib, cliched idea that doesn't work dramatically or musically."

Dust to Dreams assembles high-profile talent and production resources but compresses too much narrative into a 19-minute runtime. Millicent, who runs a thriving Lagos club, is gravely ill, prompting a dispute among her daughters Comfort, Patience and Lagos-based Bisi over who will inherit the venue. Returning musician Johnson (played by Seal) raises questions of paternity and triggers a hurried emotional reconciliation through a musical performance. Line readings feel rushed and relationships remain underdeveloped. The short relies on clichéd resolution and would have benefited from narrowing focus and deepening fewer micro-episodes.

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