Aníkúlápo — Was It Worth The Hype? [Movie Review]

I can remember seeing this movie everywhere on people's feeds a couple of weeks back. So many people were recommending it and it felt overhyped.

I eventually added it to my watch list and ended up seeing it a couple of days back. I will like to share with you the review of the great Aníkúlápo.

Firstly, I want to start by saying Nigeria has been doing well a lot lately with their film productions. Especially those projected on Netflix. As a Nigerian growing up seeing a lot of homemade movies, I think we have made quite a lot of progress. Does Aníkúlápo show that much progress?

Let's see...

About the Movie

Aníkúlápo is a Nigerian movie that highlights a good amount of the culture and livelihood of the Yorubas (one of the 3 major ethnic groups in Nigeria) in the 17th century.

The movie follows the story of a protagonist, Saro (Kunle Remi), and a deuteragonist, Queen Arolake (Bimbo Ademoye), whose meeting breeds more doom than love.

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The movie started in quite a captivating way, it showed Saro all bruised and dead but brought back to life by a creature called the Akala bird. The akala bird was believed to resurrect those whose time on earth wasn't due and help give passage to the great beyond for those whose time was up.

The movie tells the story of what led to his death and what happens next.

Saro is a traveller, an aso-ofi weaver from a village called Gbogan, he travelled to Oyo in search of a better life. Saro is found by Awarun (Sola Sobowale), who found favour in him and gives him a job and shelter. They started an affair and Awarun even went on to give him a home and work site of his own.

But this relationship turned sour when Saro started having an interest in Arolake; one of the wives of the King of the village. Arolake was considered by her co-wives to be barren.

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Awarun warned Saro of his relationship with the Queen but he did not listen. Soon, he was caught and killed. However, he was resurrected by the akala bird. Arolake witnessed this and found an artefact holding the bird's power, together with Saro, they fled to another village possessing the power of resurrection...

The movie went on to portray the moral lessons of greed, the regrets of decisions made, and the lack of contentment that leads to Saro’s doom.

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Casts

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The movie is rich in the cast, most of whom are famous for their roles in Yoruba-themed movies. One of my favourites is Sola Sobowale who played Eniola Salami in The King of Boys. She's one of my favourite actors and I think she did great playing Awarun in this film.

Kunle Remi also did a great job as the protagonist Saro.

Bimbo Ademoye played the role of the deuteragonist Queen Arolake and although there have been some controversies on the sex scene, I believe she did great all around.

It was also nice seeing Hakeem Kae-Kazim; a British-Nigerian actor.

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My thoughts and opinions

To me, Aníkúlápo was not worth the hype because I think dialogue is plain and holds no depth. It also lacks a major ingredient a typical Yoruba movie should have—decency and proverbs.

The movie also has a sex scene that was completely needless in my opinion. The nudity is unprovoked, a huge risk taken by Afolayan that eliminates the interest of many viewers.

I do like the adoption of the native Yoruba language in the movie though. I always think it's a plus to incorporate our languages into our films.

I will rate it a 5.5/10

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Have you seen Aníkúlápo?
What are your thoughts on the movie?