Aba Blues (2026): A Blast From The Past — That Won't Let Go

We are taken back in time with a romantic drama that is old school in more ways than one. Aba Blues was released to cinemas in Nigeria on March 20^th, 2026. With a runtime of 1 hour, 55 minutes, it was written and directed by Jack’enneth Opukeme. It follows the love triangle that threatens a woman’s marriage when her wealthy ex-lover returns, dead set on winning her back.

Premise

In 1980s Aba, Abia State, Amara prepares for her wedding with help from her best friend, Alero. Her overly religious mother storms in, wipes off her makeup, removes her jewelry, and harshly mocks her for not being a virgin or deserving of a white dress. Despite this, Amara goes on to have a modest but beautiful wedding to Uzor.

Six months later, the wealthy Akwabata family is introduced as their only son, Dirim, returns from schooling abroad. His mother, though elegant, faces discrimination from her in-laws for being Yoruba.

Meanwhile, Amara and Uzor live a humble but happy life; she works as a tailor, he as an artist and commercial painter. Alero, who runs a successful salon, visits often and teasingly mocks Uzor’s low finances, a known insecurity. Amara defends him, and Alero eventually relents, admitting that while Uzor isn’t rich, he genuinely loves Amara, unlike her ex, Dirim.

Later that day, Dirim visits Amara and is met with instant hostility. Knowing fully well exactly why, he still insists on staying, feigning that he only aims to patronize her services. He tries to reference their shared past, but she shuts down every attempt, only regarding him as a customer.

Amara has been avoiding her mother due to her religiously driven abuse, but a few days later, Uzor unknowingly invites her over and leaves them alone, hoping to reconcile them. It backfires; her mother resumes her harsh insults, calling Amara “impure” and undeserving of her happy marriage, leading to a heated argument before she storms off.

When Uzor returns, Amara is upset, but he makes it up to her with a trip to a drive-in theatre. Unbeknownst to them, Dirim is there with a date; seeing Amara and Uzor so in love, he leaves in frustration.

Later, Uzor’s coworker Lota invites him to their upcoming high school reunion, but Uzor declines, disliking the social pressure. When Lota mentions Dirim’s return, Uzor visibly tenses. Meanwhile, Dirim visits Amara again, offering her a fashion internship in Lagos, which she firmly rejects. He then asks about their child, and Amara coldly tells him to “ask his mother.” Uzor walks in mid-confrontation; after an awkward exchange, Dirim leaves.

Uzor then confronts Amara about keeping Dirim’s visits secret, and the discussion spirals into an argument that exposes his insecurities. That night, while drinking with Lota, Uzor confesses he has loved Amara since secondary school, but when he finally tried to tell her, she was already with Dirim. Since then, he has always felt like second place – and still does, even in their marriage.

As the reunion approaches and Amara prepares with Alero, she finally confesses that Dirim has been visiting her, to Alero’s shock and disappointment. Alero scolds her for entertaining him at all, and though Amara insists nothing is happening, Alero senses she’s not being honest and still harbors feelings for him.

Their confrontation is interrupted when Dirim arrives, pretending to pick up the outfit Amara made. Alero immediately clashes with him, trading sharp insults until Amara forces her to leave, ending the tension. Alone with Dirim, Amara firmly tells him to stay away one more time, prompting the truth of their past to surface: after high school, Dirim rejected her pregnancy and abandoned her, leaving her to face a traumatic, forced abortion arranged by both their mothers. In the aftermath, Uzor was the one who helped her heal.

Despite this, Dirim insists he still wants her love, even if it comes with resentment. Overcome by lingering emotions, Amara ultimately gives in to her feelings and sleeps with him.

From this point on, during and after the coronation, Amara’s life is turned upside down as Dirim continues to expand his presence, leading to fractures in her marriage and even causing her to antagonize Alero. Dirim faces opposition from his mother and Amara faces more abuse from hers, Uzor decides to make one last ditch effort to fight for his marriage and Amara makes her final choice.

Cast and Performances

Angel Anosike as Amara
Jide Kene Achufusi as Dirim
Nelson Enwerem as Uzor
Toni Tones as Alero
Eucharia Anuobi as Amara’s mother
Bimbo Akintola as Dirim’s mother
Chuks Joseph as Lota
Patience Ozorkwo and Odunlade Adekola also star in cameo appearances at different points during the film.

For a movie whose background identity is rooted in its primarily Igbo-focused location, the actual Igbo spoken by the characters is…rough.

I don’t know guys, I’m at a limbo where I can’t decide if I wanted more or for them to scrap it entirely.

It’s bad enough that the language is quite sparsely scattered across the film, but the few times we hear it are still a grating experience. As much as I love love love Eucharia and think that her work here is phenomenal, the semantics of it all was not fun to listen to. As an Igbo person myself, I believe that more effort could’ve been directed toward the dialogue and language training for our cast.

And while we’re on that, the only character whose English should be clear without accents is Dirim, as he is the only one with experience abroad. I find it highly ironic that the movie makes a point to discuss the stigma that surrounds Igbo-accented English but has majority of the main cast and even the background cast speak without accents. There’s literally a scene where Alero and Amara laugh about another character’s fake foreign accent, but they don’t sound much different from her. And there were subtitles so an argument can’t even be made for lack of audience understanding.

Regarding the acting itself, however, I have to give our actors their props. It takes a minute to really blossom but when it does, it’s an instant lock-in. Alero is my favorite character, as she seems to be the voice of reason…constantly.

She’s a hustler, she’s cutthroat, no-nonsense, she practically clocks Amara and Dirim’s bullshit from the very beginning, and she doesn’t let anyone belittle her or those around her. An icon, truly.

Another character I surprisingly liked was Uzor. Uzor is easy-going and chill, but he also houses a lot of insecurities and envy. However, those insecurities and envy don’t bleed into restriction or invalidation of Amara’s feelings. He recognizes Dirim’s place in Amara’s life, and despite being heartbroken by it, he was ready to let her go with him and be happy, he just wanted to try one last time, to be sure that that was what she really wanted. He’s a surprisingly complex character, and I love him for it.

What I Liked

I liked the fact that they tried to address as many traditional misconceptions and stereotypes as they could. Patience Ozorkwo’s cameo depicts an old lady who lives alone because she lost her husband and kids in the civil war, but she is unfairly bullied by the village youth who incorrectly discriminate her as a ‘witch’ who killed her loved ones. There’s also the “igbo people are greedy” stereotype that was addressed, the exploitation that comes with handmade craft in Aba and how either Lagos enterprises steal their hardwork and take credit for it while paying them peanuts or the craft is labelled fake or a copy, the “Hairline position is an indication of virginity (or lack thereof)” misconception, alongside many others.

I also loved that this was set specifically in the 1980s. First of all, I can see that they really tried to commit to the bit from the vehicle choices down to the currency. Sometimes I had to be shocked back to recalling the fact, like when Amara tells Dirim that the advance payment for her services is One Hundred and Fifty (150) Naira. Secondly, it was just a really fun and unique setting to get behind and explore. Visually, this is an amazing movie; glamourous, heated and romantic. I hate to admit it, but Amara and Dirim really did have chemistry. The tension was palpable every time they were alone together. That’s what good acting is. She has great chemistry with Uzor too. I like how the story was built carefully between her and each man so when she made her final decision, it wasn’t surprising at all but rather satisfying instead.

Recently, I’ve been coincidentally reviewing films with excellent soundtracks. And it looks like the streak goes on with this (I’m still trying to find the title of that one song I heard right before the end).

What I Didn’t Like

Dirim.

Wait, hear me out.

I don’t know if this was intentional, but something really rubs me off the wrong way about his character. He constantly disregards Amara’s wishes, relentlessly chases her with an obsession, and didn’t care about anyone’s feelings but his want for Amara. He’s not above sexualizing and disrespecting her to prove a point to Uzor, who rightfully retaliated in defense of his wife’s honor. He comes off to me as a narcissist with an infatuation, and sees Amara’s feelings as something for him to possess and own. Such traits of his character give the movie more flavor, more reason to root for Uzor even though we could clearly see that Dirim is winning. So, despite the column that this is under, if it was intentionally meant to be projected that way, then it belongs in the positive section. If it wasn’t, then the writer needs to get back to the drawing board about writing good male love interests.

And one more thing…

I understand preserving and displaying tradition, but the writer knows that Igbo is not about spouting proverbs every 2 sentences…right?

“Okpa is a bus that needs no passengers…”

What even…

Nothing about Okpa is worth such poetry.

And unfortunately, this is the case for many instances throughout the film; metaphor here, poetry there, proverbs and adages everywhere. This is another reason why I wish more thought and effort was put into the Igbo dialogue. It’s 1980s Aba for crying out loud. I’m sure there was a lot of slang, lingo, nuance, dialect, and terminology to get behind. It’s something to be said about typecasting when 1 in every 3 sets of dialogue probably has an adage or proverb attached to it, especially in a setting filled with young people who all went to secondary school together. Its unrealistic, and not in a fun way.

Final Thoughts

Aba Blues is a gripping, emotionally rich story that beautifully captures love, heartbreak, and the weight of past choices. The characters feel real and layered, especially Amara’s inner conflict and Uzor’s quiet devotion. Most of my issues come not from the story itself, but from the technicalities of the place and time it was set in.

Regardless though, it’s a compelling mix of romance and drama that keeps you invested every step of the way.

I rate Aba Blues (2026): 4 out of 5

Our Rating of This Movie

Have you seen Aba Blues? Do you really think it captured the essence of 1980s Aba and how it intertwines with the story? I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Author

Winifred Eze
Winnie is a business student by day and a writer by night, with a passion for movies and the art of storytelling. Whether it’s dissecting a film’s themes, exploring character arcs, or celebrating cinematic masterpieces, she loves diving deep into the magic of the big screen. She also strives to bring fresh perspectives and engaging discussions to fellow writers and readers.