I wouldn’t call myself a die-hard or longtime fan of the late, great Ayinla Omowura “Egunmogaji”, like I would describe myself as a J. Cole or Burna Boy fan — to mention but a few. However, thanks to my late dad, I grew up on Apala music and many people would tell you none did better than Ayinla Omowura himself.
Listening to his music — as well as other forms of Apala — still resonates with me to date, so it did feel like a betrayal on my end when I failed to go watch the movie Ayinla late last year — I’m pretty sure I’m going to overcome my dislike for Nigerian cinemas before the end of time. After watching the trailer for the movie in 2021, saying I was excited would be me massively downplaying how I felt cos, not only was the great Tunde Kelani — director of Saworoide, Oleku, and the likes— returning behind the camera, he was going to tell the story of one of your Nigeria’s foremost talented musician.
Fast forward to 2022, after months of hoping the movie makes a miraculous return to the cinemas, Netflix acquired air rights to the movie on its streaming service and I finally satisfied my thirst for watching the depiction of the life and times of Ayinla Omowura. Whether or not I enjoyed the movie is a different story entirely. So come along with me…
The Good
Ayinla offers a gentle reminder as to why director Tunde Kelani is revered for his work behind the camera. From Oleku to Saworoide — to mention but a few — Kelani had been making movies that were way ahead of their time. With good cinematography, proper use of angles, well-selected props (on some occasions), and a high level of acting from several characters, Ayinla certainly has some positives to boast of.
Speaking of acting, major props have to go to lead actor, Adedimeji Abdul-Lateef, who recently described his role in this movie as one of his toughest. Known for his versatility in the Nigerian movie industry, Adedimeji maintains the act of trying to depict a proper Itoko man from Ogun State in Nigeria. And his mannerisms and behaviors, totally tell the power and influence wielded by famous and wealthy men back then —just ask the older generation how the phrase “gbese le” was used to take away many of their belongings especially when it comes to taking another man’s woman. Did I forget to mention Adedimeji’s lovely sense of humour too?
Sadly, those were the only few positives I could find in a runtime of like 107 minutes.
The Bad
Biopics like the movie Ayinla are engaging and somewhat less difficult to produce, because, let’s face it, you have the story/plot and all you need to do is ensure you don’t go way off the mark.
I found the opening few minutes of the documentary about Ayinla Omowura particularly very annoying. Not many people know his story — especially in the current generation — so telling me how he died and who killed him just before the start of the movie, is like you telling me that I might as well go home or put off my television and not watch the movie anymore, taking away the suspense of the entire movie.
Another frustration of this movie for me was the mindless lip-synching from the lead character and those who played the role of his band. It was more of a case of Adedimeji Abdul-Lateef learning the lines of Ayinla Omowura’s songs rather than wanting to sing those songs. Don’t get me wrong, sounding exactly like the late Egunmogaji would’ve been near impossible, however, the lack of effort or the absence of scenes where the lead actor sang without a voiceover was a huge disappointment. I’m not asking him to sing or act as Rami Malek did in the Bohemian Rhapsody, but a performance along those lines or even a little passion or devotion like that would go a long way.
There’s the never-ending problem of finance and funding when it comes to Nollywood and Ayinla suffers like some of its predecessors. However, for a movie supposedly set in the year 1980, the color grading, ambiance, and editing of the movie made it seem like everything took place after the turn of the millennium. While some of the props on set depict the late 80s in Ogun State Nigeria, some structures and how they were painted failed to make reference to that time period. Without telling anyone or if the person decided to skip the first 10 minutes of the movie, he/she might actually think Ayinla Omowura died in the 2000s rather than in the 80s.
The poor set design and failure to pay attention to details was another issue with the movie. Why would a journalist in the 1980s be taking pictures with a DSLR camera in Nigeria? Or why is a modern NURTW 18-seater bus used as a mode of transport? When we all know that wouldn’t have existed back in 1980.
The Ugly
Ayinla is a good step in the right direction for the Nigerian movie industry, as it shows producers, directors, and script-writers the potential available if they’re willing to tell genuine, historical stories about Nigeria and the cultures that exist within. However, the lack of funding and the absence of a place like Hollywood, Los Angeles, means producers and filmmakers have to work with scraps and inferior materials, which is still a massive hindrance for Nollywood.
For a movie that was described as the “rise to fame and untimely death of Ayinla Omowura, Ayinla focuses on the death of the man himself but delivers a very shallow story regarding his rise to prominence, nor his background and origin.
On About Nothing movie rating - 4.0/10
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