The Black Book

In ‘The Black Book,’ Paul Edima (Richard Mofe-Damijo – RMD), now retired and seeking redemption, enjoys a simple life with his son (Olumide Oworu). However, when the Nigerian police unjustly target and frame his son as a criminal, Paul’s attempts to clear his name lead him back into his old, shadowy world. The film takes viewers on a gripping journey through the complexities of Nigerian politics and justice, revealing the deep ties between the two and Paul’s own entanglement with this world decades ago.

Nollywood has done action movies in the past, but dare I say that this is the first (or one of the first) to truly take the audience on a journey along with a singular character in a manner similar to the Takens and John Wicks of the world. Truly, that is what The Black Book is. It is a Nigerian take on a John Wick-esque storyline that replaces the American elements with elements that truly feel authentic for our society. So while the John Wicks and Takens might have big blowouts with Italian drug Lords or what have you, we have a “Big Daddy” run by a boss lady (Shaffy Bello) who runs things from the center of the market.

The Black Book works in this aspect because it is never too foreign to be unrelatable. The added feather on the cap is the entire Kaduna sequence where the filmmakers take us to a world less often seen on nollywood screens in order to freely and fully display the scale and significance of the character of ‘the General’ (Alex Usifo). An effort that does not go unnoticed.

The movie is powered by the strength of strong performers. Richard Mofe-Damijo (RMD) delivers a standout performance as the militant ex-soldier, embodying the character’s nuances flawlessly. Even in the action scenes, RMD never looks out of place on screen. Paired against the great Sam Dede (Angel) the two have excellent on screen chemistry together in the few scenes that they are placed together. Ade Laoye does justice to a character that is written to be inherently annoying with the decisions and actions she takes yet she manages to make a small place for the character in the audience’s hearts. A special mention is necessary for Bimbo Akintola in the scene on the phone to the kidnappers where she breaks down. Even though she does not go full Chioma Chukwuka from “Gangs of Lagos“, there is a loudness about her small whimpers that stays with you beyond the scene.

Another thing that must be extolled here is the casting decisions. From RMD to the actor who plays his younger self and the unquestionably striking similarities between the two. There’s also the award deserving decision to cast Femi Branch as the younger “General”. There are too many casting decisions done intentionally and wisely in a way that pay off in this movie. Actors are used in manners that nollywood usually does not use them in a movie, such as having Funky Mallam in a movie and not having it be an unlearned Hausa character with an accent.

There are certain things in the movie that still feel woefully staged and many aspects that are too obviously copy and paste from another industry, that if we weren’t initially awed by the delight of seeing our favorite actors in those roles we might be tempted to cringe at the scenes in and of themselves. One of these would have to be the Denola Grey scenes, just pick any one, and it might be copy and paste from an American action movie. It works here because much of the audience is enamored by seeing the otherwise ‘glamourous’ actor in a ruthless role. However, I’m curious to know if the effect is similar for audience members without background knowledge of these actors – any of them, not just Denola.

Also certain scenes may have been cut short due to time constraints but some truly deserved to have had a little bit more dedicated time than they were eventually given. One of these would be the scene where RMD is taken to see his son’s body laying on the beach. It is clear that RMD’s character was building up towards something strong emotionally but that was cut short by how precipitously the police officers come in and cart the body away. Another one of these would be the Kaduna scenes. As RMD and Big Daddy make their way over, we are informed of the grandeur of the General’s Kaduna empire and its clear that there is a lot to take in but more time could have been spent depicting that beyond just roads and barricades so that the audience gets a deeper sense of the challenge that lay ahead for Paul and his crew.

Flaws aside, The Black Book is a significant win of a film for the industry as it shows that we have the writing capacity to tell a story like this in a manner that follows through from start to finish. The budget shows up in this movie, but not for unnecessary cameos and for flashy scenes, but in the work of the world-building that is required to achieve the final result of convincing us that Paul Edima’s character truly is as ‘bad’ as he is made out to be. Because by the second half of the movie, his character takes on a persona where no matter what trap you see the enemy laying ahead for him you have full faith that Paul is going to come in there and scatter it for them. And that’s a win for nollywood in my book!