User Reviews

Come to think of it; you are not a student of Literature, and even if you were, all you did when some of us were reading rigorously for exams was to be reading Key Points and looking for whom to copy. You always sat at the back during Literature classes and you couldn't be bothered to identify with the characters or fish out the figures of speech.

Tell me; how will you understand Elesin Oba?

Based on the stage play written by Wole Soyinka, Death and the King's Horseman, and set in colonial times against a backdrop of a culture clash between the colonizers and the Natives of Oyo state in the time of Alaafin Ladigbolu, the movie chronicles the events surrounding Elesin Oba, the King's horseman who is bound by custom to commit suicide following the death of his master, the king. Elesin Oba knows what needs to be done and he is ready, but the British Police chief, who would rather kill a lot of people to preserve the life of one person, egged on by his overzealous native subordinate and his ignorant wife stands in his way. Eventually, Elesin Oba is disgraced and his son, a British-trained doctor who came back to bury his father takes his place.

Fam, Biyi Bamidele has created a masterpiece!

And I am not talking about the rich Yoruba culture portrayed in this movie or the outstanding theatrics of Odunlade Adekola, Shaffy Bello and Olawale Olofooro (you guys know him as Brymo, and he is a national treasure). There is something really classy about this movie. Elesin Oba is not for you to understand (if you don't gerrit, forget abourrit!). Yes, it did go back and forth at some point, the singing and dancing went on for too long. It was almost as if you are seeing a stage play in a theatre. But come to think of it, this movie is based on a stage play. What if this is a new style of adapting stage plays into motion pictures? Hollywood did it to some Shakespearean plays and it was fine. Why can't we adapt our own plays too?

Produced by Ebonylife TV and directed by Biyi Bamidele (RIP) of the Half of a Yellow Sun fame, this movie has Odunlade Adekola playing the titular character, Shaffy Bello as the Iyaloja, Deyemi Okanlawon, Omowunmi Dada, Jide Kosoko, Kelvin Ushi, we have Joke Silva and Taiwo Ajayi Lycett as the Chorus (I saw what they did there), Jenny Stead and Maek Elderkin as the ignorant White couple who desecrated the ancestral regalia of the gods and turned it into a mere costume, my girl Debbie Ohiri-Oletubo (go girl!) and Brymo the national treasure (that guy can sing up a storm sha!) in his debut.

If you don't have an open mind, stay away from this one because you won't understand it. And in this part of the world, what people don't understand, they condemn. Elesin Oba is art. And art is subjective. Kudos to the entire production team. It shows that Nollywood is on its way to the world!

Right from the opening scenes, I found this movie visually stunning. The music and dancing too were a delight. Most of the acting was great as well. I particularly wasn't impressed with the interpretation of the Pilkings' role. Their range of facial expressions was too limited, their acting a tad too flat. But that was expected. And quite frankly, even their acting was better than I've seen in most Nollywood flicks where they throw in a couple of random white people. Regardless, this is probably one of the best Nigerian movies I've seen. Simply put, it is rich in culture and craft.

Moving on, there were a few things that just didn't work for me. First, the singing that went on for too long. There was also Olunde's well-fitted suit that jarred with the times (this was the 1940s). The conversation between Olunde and Mrs. Pilkings also felt unrealistic. He said rude things without eliciting the faintest reaction from her. It was almost like she was deaf to his comments; one minute insult, the next they're smiling. In real life, she wouldn't have been so affable about the matter. And then I had my biggest eye-roll moment when Elesin Oba committed suicide at the end. If he could do that all along, why didn't he do it earlier to preserve tradition? Wouldn't that have been better than the unrealistic conversation with Mr. Pilkings where the white man understood hardcore Yoruba and the illiterate Yoruba man understood thick British English? Even worse, I still can't wrap my mind around how he managed to make a noose out of his shackles. Just how did he do it 'cause that absolutely damaged what could have been a phenomenal movie.

Other than these concerns, the movie was a breath of fresh air and I sincerely look forward to seeing more Nigerian movies of this quality.