If Netflix is home for Nigerian cinema, then Kunle Afolayan is pretty much at the ‘sitting on a reclining chair, reading the newspapers in shorts’ phase of it. His latest release, Ijogbon, is the third of his works in succession to be an original for the streaming platform – following A Naija Christmas and Anikulapo.
Ijogbon stars a lead quartet of Ruby Akubueze, Kayode Ojuolape Jr., Oluwaseyi Ebiesuwa, and Fawaz Aina (Ikorodu Boiz). This movie also features Gabriel Afolayan, Yemi Solade, Tana Adelana, Sam Dede, Bimbo Manuel, and Yemi Sodimu, among others.
The Good
The quartet. Our four leading characters are far from the best young actors on earth (some of them are not even ‘young’, in the acting sense). But they do incredibly well to complement each other on screen. The naïve and green kid, the self-appointed leader, the overtly cautious – almost to an annoying level, and the one who keeps them in line. They work well as a group, so much so that it’s almost impossible to grade them individually.
But, individually, there’s still a sense of believability to our ‘heroes’, not just as young immature kids. There’s a precociousness and street smart that sets them apart and makes them watchable and interesting to follow; but Afolayan’s movie still does well to give them visible lack of nous that informs some of their decision-making.
This movie also does a more than decent job with its dialogue and diction. There’s very little forced – Sam Dede aside, which still works enough to earn a pass in its failings. And it’s not just what is said, or how it is said. It’s also what is said when; characters try to assimilate linguistically, but you know which language and expression denotes impulsive frustration, relief, or panic. What the dialogue also does well is to communicate characters’ deficiencies in communication.
The Bad
While the roles played by the four leading actors compliment each other, there’s a relative, and sometimes obvious, greenness to some of the acting, perhaps with the notable exception of Akubueze, who displays experience of being on screen in her performance. This is probably where some of the directing is a bit off; there are scenes and events that get underwhelming reactions, and ones that get over-the-top ones, much of which spoke to actors keen to impress, and really should have done with better directing.
The biggest drawback of Ijogbon, though, is arguably its third act, which very much descends on itself. Not only does this forego many senses of plausibility, it also relies on a lot ex-machina moments, and falls into that terrible box of ‘doing too much while doing very little’. Not to mention the fact that it follows a climax that becomes weary very quickly, with a resolution that goes on for too long, undercuts and contradicts itself, and by extension, is a touch immaterial.
This also speaks to Ijogbon as a movie with too many moving parts, with only little for the audience to care about, or follow. The biggest case in point is the Oranmiyan Myth, which is made for too significant by the storytelling scenes, and in the end, leads to next-to-nothing.
The Ugly
The use of Yemi Sodimu’s character to speak overtly ‘complicated’ English for humour is not only overused, unfit for purpose, and with no comedic value, it also only starts from the third act of the movie, where visible tension is supposed to be the overarching, if not only, feeling for that time.
Conclusion
Ijogbon gives itself much to work with, for better and worse. It tries to take on the concept of seeking upward mobility from the perspective of a younger generation, and the path that could sometimes lead to. But it throws a bit too much in-between and pretty much contradicts itself at the end. It certainly earns points for trying, but you can't shake the sense of 'there should have been more', especially from this director.
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