Yinka Olatunbosun
A Netflix original crime drama Swallow directed by Kunle Afolayan hit the streaming site on Nigeria’s 61st Independence Day igniting mixed reactions. It’s the first in the three-movie deal between Kunle Afolayan Productions and the streaming site to tell African stories with global relevance.
With an exclusive premiere held in the 120-capacity cinema inside the new Golden Effects Studio in Ikeja, the anticipation was high. Afolayan, known for his top-quality cinematography and creative shots is a very daring director. Against the odds of delivering the ideal locale, he decidedly shot the period movie in mostly at the Central business district in Lagos- a place that has gained notoriety for replacing architectural landmarks with urban structures.
The movie Swallow, based on a 2008 novel of the same title written by the award-winning author, Sefi Atta tells a simple story of survival through the eyes of a young Yoruba lady, Tolani Ajao (Eniola “Niyola” Akinbo). Set in 1985, the movie kicks off in Makoku village, Tolani’s hometown where her dyer mother lives.
Downcast, Tolani returns to her mother with a sad story of an eventful and truncated career life in Lagos. Her narrative voice built such a huge suspense for the audience who follow as she recounts her ordeal in Lagos and the consequences of her bad choices.
Although, the plot is crafted with a moralist thrust, the audience is still able to empathise with the bad girl- Tolani’s friend and flatmate Rose Adamson (Ijeoma Grace Agu), a care-free lady whose hard work was rewarded poorly with sexual harassment and termination. Her boss and the branch manager of a Federal Community Bank, Lamidi Salako (Olusegun Akinremi) provokes her into a fight leading to her dismissal. Rose’s dream of conquering poverty through hard work was erased the moment she meets O.C money, a drug dealer in search of a mule.
Despite having a plot that revolves around drug trafficking, Swallow’s existential themes still resonate amidst today’s realities. Just as there was a mad rush into drug trafficking in the 80s, contemporary Nigeria grapples with internet scams perpetrated mostly by unemployed youths as an alternate to the nine-to-five job that does not always guarantee adequate income for a decent living.
The story gets its romantic twist with Tolani and her unemployed boyfriend, Sanwo (Deyemi Okanlawon) as well as Rose’s toxic relationship with O.C money with the shadow of her ex-boyfriend haunting her. Fortunes change for the two ladies who face sexual harassment in their work environment- attesting to the timelessness of the “me too” challenge.
As a period drama, the burden of visual plausibility lies with the director and how he manages the various elements of the production. From vintage cars to old stereo sets, the production design is spot on. Using soundtrack, Afolayan properly situates the story in the early 80s with Fela Anikulapo-Kuti’s Eko but for the club scene where Felix Liberty’s 1989 hit, Ifeoma is used. The appropriation of Ifeoma song for a story that dates back to early 80s is tricky for establishing historical accuracy. Felix hails from Edo state, just as Rose in the movie and was rumoured to be peddling drugs at that time. So, the use of his song as soundtrack must have been a connotative interpretation of the story because the early 80s in Nigerian music scene boasts of a slew of pop hits from the likes of Stella Monye, Sonny Okosun and Chris Okotie that could have been explored.
Undoubtedly, Afolayan has a knack for nurturing impossible actors which is one artistic risk he is willing to take to bring fresh voices to the global screen. Consider Niyola, the sophisticated-looking singer who assumed the Tolani character pitched up with Deyemi Okanlawon, who played Sanwo. Both actors struggled to be fluent in Yoruba but they made up for that with the undeniable chemistry. Niyola could use some acting coach just as Temi Otedola in the movie “The Citation.” Niyola seemed too gentle to convince us to believe that Tolani is a self-willed woman. Although that deceptive persona exists in real life situations, in movies, characters are created to be plausible to the viewer not imagined. The sub-plots, although marked by weak dialogue, did contribute subtly to the development of the main storyline, scoring a first movie role for Oreofeoluwa Lawal-Babalola, the young boy who went viral in a video shared on social media begging his mother to “Calm down”. His first scene appearance in Swallow turns out to be very impressive, making Afolayan’s casting experimentation worthwhile.
Rose’s characterisation is the spine of the movie and the soul of its dialogue. Hers is a classic example of a supporting actor that eclipses the lead. A natural actor, Agu makes the Rose character totally believable throughout the scenes: when she cooks, parties, boards a bus to work or shows up with new shoes. Agu is really a discovery. Sanwo’s character reinforces the value of responsible men who don’t live off their women or move on with other women once their fortune changes.
The flashback technique lends credence to the Tolani character. That reoccurring visual reference has a direct hold on how Tolani evolves and how her values and family contrast Rose’s.
Rated 13, the movie Swallow teaches invaluable moral lessons of integrity and hard work.
