Lagos to Oslo
| Lagos to Oslo | |
|---|---|
| [[File:Lagos to Oslo.jpg|]] | |
| Directed by | Kingsley Emmanuel |
| Produced by | Bjørn Bratli |
| Written by | Kingsley Emmanuel |
| Screenplay by | Jack Price Samuel Conibear |
| Story by | Kingsley Emmanuel |
| Starring | Michael Maponga
Marius Skymoen Richard Van Weyden Hildegard Schroedter Jannike Grut Boris Glibusic Ama K Abebrese Anthony Warren |
| Music by | Andreu Jacob |
| Cinematography | Nathan Acim Sheppard |
| Edited by | Arsenii Pronkin |
Production company | Kingsley systematic film production |
| Distributed by | Goswas digital TV |
Release date | November 27th 2020 |
| Country | Norway |
| Language | English |
Search Lagos to Oslo on Amazon.
Lagos to Oslo is produced by Kingsley systematic film production and is a criminal dram based on a true story. The writer and director is Kingsley Emmanuel. Lagos to Oslo was produced from 2018-2020 in Norway and Ghana. It is produced independently, and was sold to Goswas digital TV for streaming.
Cast[edit]
- Michael Maponga as "Aaron Akachi"
- Marius Skymoen as police officer "Tobias Mortensen"
- Richard Van Weyden as prosecutor "Thomas Berg"
- Hildegard Schroedter as "Main judge"
- Jannike Grut as "Nora Schule"
- Boris Glibusic as "Uncle Sam/ Boris Schule"
- Ama K. Abebrese as "Iruka"
- Anthony Warren as "Big Tony/ Anthony Otito"
- Louise Ryme as "Jannicke"
- Nancy Isime as "Nadia"
- Mathilde Austergård Ypsøy as police officer "Ida Andersen"
- Yohanna Idha as "undercover police custom officer"
- Inga Sand Holth as "Lena Solberg"
- Adjetey Anang as "JP"
- Borje Lundberg as "Police chief"
- David Dontoh as "Professor Obiora"
- Akofa Edjeani Asiedu as Aarons mother "Theresa Akachi"
- Siri Mikalsen as defence lawyer "Nina Fagermo"
- Kester Bandlien as "Ludvik Jindrick"
- Deon Michael Hubert as "Anthonys henchman"
- Pål Anders Nordvi as "Second judge"
- Sveinung Augestad as "Airport security guard 1"
- Victor Von Schirach as "Airport security guard 2"
- Bjørn Bratli as "Third judge"
Plot[edit]
The plot covers a period of four months in which we see the protagonist follow the siren call of material gain into the harsh, malign and secretive world of the international drug trade.
The action takes us across Nigeria, to Germany and Norway.
The events described are taken from real life. The character names have been changed to protect the innocent, and particulars- such as timelines, precise locations and wording- have been altered for structural reasons. For example, the court scene in the 3rd act is condensed and linguistically contrived to act as a summation of the major themes.
This screenplay is an earnest attempt to- not only tell the story of the protagonist and the periphery characters- but to also to reveal the exact positioning and functionality of an interconnected criminal organisation that is still in operation.
Our protagonist is Aaron Akachi (21). Aaron is a Nigerian youth, he is academically gifted, energetic and ambitious. He is also constitutionally naïve, having grown up in a relatively closeted cultural enclave.
When we first meet Aaron, he is a Chemistry student who is struggling financially to stay in university. He sees a way out of this problem in the shape of the alienly rich Anthony ‘Big Tony’ Otito. He is quickly taken in by the apparent glamour that Anthony offers and agrees to a mysterious job. His job involves going overseas but, beyond this, Aaron just knows that it pays well.
As the narrative develops, we see Aaron struggle with what his job is and what it means. We see the challenge Aaron has in trying to maintain an identity through relationships whilst delving deeper into a world that is becoming more and more visibly wrong.
Ultimately, Aaron is forced to confront the true nature of the business he is involved with and face the consequences of his naivety.
Theresa is Aaron’s mother and is quintessential in this regard. We see that the relationship between them is good and their lifestyle is wholesome and, in a sense, admirable.
We only see Theresa is concerned about Aaron when he leaves to work for Anthony, but ultimately taken in by his enthusiasm.
To begin with, Anthony Otito is seen as a potential saviour to Aaron. However, we quickly see the true nature of Anthony in his calculated luring of Aaron through charm and deception and the controlling of Aaron through threatening behaviour.
Tobias Mortensen is an inspector with the Norwegian police service. He becomes obsessed with bringing down the Norwegian branch of the crime organisation. He doesn’t think of the people involved as being potentially victims, he sees the world in absolutes.
He is a skilled and diligent investigator who is ultimately rewarded for his police work by the Norwegian authorities.
The defence lawyer is a key figure. She articulates one polar view of the drug trade in Norway, and internationally, as being more complicated an
issue than purely ‘good’ and ‘evil,’ suggesting that a fuller understanding of how and why the trade exists is needed if they are to learn how to counteract or manage it.
The prosecution lawyer represents the common view of the drug trade, that: ‘a war on drugs’ is the correct response to drug use and the drug trade, Therefore, anyone associated with it should be spiritually exiled from society. He talks in absolutes.
Professor Adams Obiora, who is impressed by Aarons talent discovers that Aaron hasn’t paid the school fees and has therefore been ungraded. Disappointed that he is losing his best student and moved by Aaron’s explanation that his father, a chemistry lecturer, died in an accident, he puts Aaron in touch with an ex-student (Anthony) who may be able to buy some land that was left to Aaron to pay for school fees.
Aaron goes home to his mother, Theresa. She is excited at the prospect of selling the land and we see the strong, healthy and loving relationship they have.
When Aaron returns to the university the Professor tells him that Anthony has agreed to see Aaron and he gives him an address. Aaron goes to the address and finds it to be a sprawling estate.
We then meet Anthony, who is impressed by Aaron’s proclivity for numbers. We also meet Nadia, who Anthony uses, in conjunction with his rich estate, to enthral Aaron. Anthony agrees to buy the property under the condition that Aaron agrees to come work for him, citing travel and an eternal absence from poverty as the reason, without ever being clear of the specific nature of the job.
Aaron agrees, goes home to tell his Mother, who is reluctant and suspicious but ultimately blinded by Aaron’s enthusiasm. The next morning, a chauffeur driven car comes to collect Aaron and he is taken to Anthony’s Lagos mansion, presumably to begin working.
He is housed at the mansion for a night. It is then that we see the true nature of Anthony’s business- he is an international drugs and arms dealer. Aaron is ignorant of this.
Anthony plans to go to a high-end casino, ‘The Buffalo Rooms’, to find JP and takes Aaron, who is his intended stooge for the Norway branch of the business.
Anthony confronts JP, pointing out that he is wearing a $250,000 chain despite there being problems in the business. JP makes an excuse and Anthony cryptically threatens him. Anthony then leaves with Aaron. JP is then approached by Iruka, Anthony’s associate, at the bar. JP has clearly never met her before and she seduces him and leads him out to the back of the building.
Here he is put into a car by two DSS agents and taken to a quiet location. Anthony is waiting here in his car with Aaron. Aaron and Anthony watch as the two DSS agents hang JP from a billboard.
Anthony suggests to Aaron that this is the fate that awaits people who betray him, never dropping his kindly tone.
Anthony’s drives to the airport where Aaron is given a stolen passport and told to board a flight to Hamburg. He is given minimal instructions about what to do next but he is told that he will be picked up by a man called ‘Uncle Sam.’ In Hamburg. We see that Aaron is scared.
He is picked up by Uncle Sam and taken to his house. Here he meets his son STEFAN SCHUYLE (17). Aaron asks Uncle Sam what he will be doing but Uncle Sam is cagey, however he does explain that he needs to follow instructions if he wants to protect himself and his Mother. He gives Aaron another passport, with the identity of Juan Domingo Rodriguez, a mobile phone and plane tickets to Bergen, Norway. Again, he is given minimal information about the nature of his work, but he knows he needs to meet a woman at a park coffee shop (Nygardsparken) at 7pm.
Aaron meets Jannicke, a drug addict, and she takes him to her house. In Jannicke’s house, we see a glimpse in to the life of
a hard drug user. We see a man taking heroin. Jannicke tells Aaron that she doesn’t want to know his name and will call him Eric. She also gives him train tickets to Oslo. Aaron is made to understand that he is going to be travelling to Jannicke’s house from Oslo regularly and that he has 4 days to get to know Oslo before an old friend will come and give him further instructions.
Nadia travels to Oslo.
Nadia goes to Aaron’s apartment in Oslo. Aaron is elated to see her and full of questions which she artfully avoids, but she does tell him that he is starting work in the morning.
We see a ferry arriving to Oslo from Germany.
Queuing for the customs barrier in a car- are NORA SCHUYLE and LUDVIK JINDRICK. A CUSTOMS OFFICER is letting people in cars off the boat and into Oslo. The customs officer inputs Nora’s and Ludvik license plate into a PC and is intrigued. She asks the couple the usual questions about why they are coming to Oslo and Nora tells her that her husband is not well and they are looking to move to Oslo for health reasons.
Apparently satisfied with the answer, the customs officer lets them into the country. However, she informs a colleague- Tobias, that there is a suspicious couple and suggests he follows them.
Tobias does so, following them to the fourth floor of a car park in Oslo, where he and his partner Ida see them drop a bag to Nadia and Aaron. They chase Nadia and Aaron who have met the TAXI DRIVER on the 3rd floor. The taxi driver tells Nadia that they are late, it’s 10:33am and they are supposed to be there at 10:22. The police reach the ground floor and realise they have lost the suspects.
Back in Aaron’s apartment, Nadia shows Aaron the contents of the bag- 14kg of heroin. She also shows him how to repackage it, using the coffee and perfume to mask the smell and to mark half the packages with an ‘X’ and the other half with a ‘Y’. Then Aaron is to take the packages to Jannicke in Bergen and collect money.
Aaron is surprised at how easy the job is, but is not sure why he is doing the job or what the substance is. Nadia does not illuminate him on these points but does tell him that he will receive a text to his normal number telling him when he should put together and turn on the dissembled phone. This is the phone he will receive instructions about when to meet the German couple. Nadia tells Aaron to never wait for longer than 2 minutes after the delivery time. Nadia tells Aaron she is leaving for Zurich in the morning. Aaron is upset over this, because he consider Nadia as a friend.
At the police station, we see the custom officer who actually is police, go into Tobias ‘office. They work out when next the German couple will be returning and deciding to be there when they do.
Sometime later, we see Aaron walking through Oslo and finds a ice skating park. He sees a pretty girl skating. She asks him to join. This is our first introduction to Lena Solberg. Aaron unwillingly join her on the ice. After they sit down together and talk. Aaron tells her that he owns a stock fish business. Aaron tries to get her number but she suggests meeting her at Andy’s Bar, her place of work, instead. Aaron agrees and gets a text telling him to turn on the dissembled phone later that day.
We see the same ferry arriving, it is around 2 weeks after the original arrival. Nora and Ludvik are queuing. The customs official alerts Tobias who gets in the back of the car.
Tobias gets them to admit to couriering heroin into Oslo and pushes for the name of the person they are dropping it too, which they don’t know. By the time they arrive at the car park, Aaron has left, he passes a police officer on the escalator.
The interrogation of Nora and Ludvik is shown, Nora is cagey but Ludvik admits that they have been acting as couriers since February 13th 2005.
Aaron meets Lena later, they spend an evening together which is cut short by Aaron receiving a message to turn the other phone on. They agree to go to a party the following night.
Aaron receives instructions to go to Jannicke’s the next morning at 10am, realising the train back to Oslo (the safest mode of transport) will not get him back in time to go to the party, he calls Lena, who suggests getting a plane to Oslo, Aaron agrees.
The next day, Aaron collects money at Jannicke’s and rushes to get the plane back to Oslo where he is to meet two young Germans according to Jannicke’s instructions.
He is interviewed by airport security as he is found with 90,000kr. He tells them it is for a stock fish business and that Jannicke is his partner. Satisfied they let him go and pass the details onto the Bergen police force who follow up with Jannicke when they see there is no business registered to her name. They also pass a photo of Aaron onto the Oslo police station who realise that the passport that Aaron is travelling under belongs to a deceased Portuguese man. Tobias becomes convinced that Aaron is the man who is orchestrating all of the business.
In Bergen, Jannicke is arrested for the possession of 1.3kg of Heroin, with intent to supply, for which she blames Aaron.
Back in Oslo, Aaron changes his phone as a precaution following the interview at the airport and meets Lena at Andy’s Pub. Lena needs to go home and change before the party and, despite Lena’s protestations, Aaron goes with her- on the proviso that he waits outside.
Aaron, needing the toilet, ignores this instruction and sees Lena’s mother in the bathroom, a broken, desperate woman, taking heroin and realises the damage he is causing and what he is involved with.
He runs home and Lena, realizing what must have happened, follows him. She finds him lying in the bath, clothed and submerged beneath the water. She pulls him out and he is hysterical. They fall asleep together in Aaron’s bed.
The next morning, Aaron awakes late, he is supposed to be meeting uncle Sam, at a hotel. He rushes to meet him, leaving Lena asleep. He meets him late, and uncle Sam is furious. He let`s Aaron know that nobody has gotten a hold of Jannicke since the day before. He also knows that Aaron took a flight instead of the train.
Uncle Sam is collected by police at the airport.
Aaron calls Nadia to quit and she tells him coldly that he has been replaced and that someone will be coming to take the key and he should move out his things.
Tobias notices that uncle Sam shares the surname of Nora and that the telephone number they have for the Oslo contact is the same that Nora had.
Tobias goes to the Chief Inspector and they decide to go to the phone company as a means of catching Aaron. They also realize that all the arrests are connected and believe Aaron to have been a part of it since February 13th. If they can find a number for Aaron, other than the phone that has been turned off, they should be able to track the person.
Tobias stays up all night and works out that the only Norwegian number that they can associate with the network is Lena’s, which is the only number that Aaron’s new, black-market number, has contacted other than the Nigerian number.
Tobias goes to Lena’s and finds money that Aaron has hidden in her mattress. She is then arrested. Tobias pressurizes her into giving Aaron’s name and address. Tobias forces Lena to arrange a meeting with Aaron and he is arrested.
We see Tobias and Lena sitting in a car waiting for Aaron. When Lena points him out, the police arrests him.
We then see the end of Aaron’s trial at Oslo district court. The prosecuting lawyer makes a speech to the judges stating that they must be extremely harsh in sentencing as Aaron represents the driving force of the Norwegian drug trade and that the ‘correct response’ is 25 years or more imprisonment. He questions Aaron, using the fake identities and the precise way he changed the drug money into Euros to devalue Aarons character in the eyes of the court.
The defense lawyer questions Aaron and brings his humanity to the attention of the court, arguing that Aaron is a victim and is only guilty of negligence. She also criticizes the criminal system in Norway for congratulating itself for catching a mere pawn. She suggests that this attitude is dangerous, because it draws attention away from the wider problem.
The judge sentences Aaron to 15 years’ imprisonment.
References[edit]
Lagos to Oslo[edit]
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