Taxi Driver (Oko Ashewo) starring Odunlade Adekola Nollywood Movie Review
Taxi Driver (Oko Ashewo)
Movie Review by Tolulope Ajiboye (@iamnotJUKE)
Cast: Femi Jacobs, Odunlade Adekola, Ijeoma Grace Agu, Hafiz Oyetoro
Director: Emeka Daniel Oriahi
Synopsis: Adigun (Femi Jacobs) a “Johnny Just Come” arrives Lagos to take over is late father’s taxi and probably find greener pastures. Invited by Baba T (Odunlade Adekola), his sojourn to Lagos to seek a better life quickly spins into a life of betrayal, peculiar love, and even murder. This story basically shows the plethora of possible events that can take place in the life of the average Lagos taxi driver.
Review:
It might not be heavy handed to imply that anyone and I mean anyone who has lived or lives in Lagos would not only relate to this movie but would also feel attached to it in some way.This is because the movie doesn’t even feel like a movie. It runs almost like a documentary that shows you what you may already know about Lagos but with a very comical approach.
Every actor/actress here drowns themselves into the character they are playing and act it like it’s their own lives. The relationship between the characters and even the conversation between them was not only funny but came out very natural.
It would also be important to note that the shots, continuity and costuming did everything to draw us close to the characters and they did very well. Although there were one or two scenes that seemed a bit unnecessary or overstretched, it was just that: one or two scenes.
Unlike many Nollywood movies that usually have funny picture quality and bad sound, Taxi Driver is very different. Every word is audible and everything can be seen even considering the fact that well more than half of the movie was set at night time.
I’d like to give a heads up to non-Yoruba speakers. Even though it was well subtitled in Pidgin English, some of the subtitles didn’t seem to convey the weight of some of the things that were said in Yoruba and so there are a few scenes that may not register well with non-speakers because the acting, facial expressions and gesticulations might not correspond with the subtitles in those scenes. This is still no reason to not see the movie anyway.
Taxi Driver (Oko Ashewo) is a fantastic movie but I have just question. What was inside the suitcase that shown so bright when it was open? Don’t know what I’m talking about? Please try to take some time off and visit any cinema around you so you don’t feel left out. It is a must watch for everyone!
You can watch the trailer below
Tolu Ajiboye is a graduate of Mass Communication who loves to read and write about many different things. With a specific flare for entertainment and a peculiar way with words he has an attentive eye for the things many people might overlook and expresses these thoughts very well in writing.
