King of thieves is a Nollywood movie thriller that has won so many hearts recently. Looking back at the history of Nollywood and how far they have come I would say this movie is a big plus for the industry. It was not just a movie in name but a cultural representation of a part of my country Nigeria. A case of an amazing story telling, cultural presentation, location explored in so many good ways. Now, I am usually not the type to write reviews on Nollywood movies due to some reasons but with the recent development in the industry, I should probably consider writing more on them.
King of thieves is a thriller, mystery and supernatural movie directed by Tope Adebayo and Adebayo Tijani. It stars some top Nollywood actors like, Femi Adebayo, Odunlade Adekola, Toyin Abraham, Ibrahim Chatta, Lateef Adedimeji, Dele Odunle, amongst many others.
The kingdom of Ajeromi would result to finding every means possible to put an end to a very powerful thief and his minions before the kingdom is razed to the ground…unknown to them, Ageshinkole is far beyond just an ordinary thief.
As the movie begins, you get ushered in to a modern world, first you see the painting of the powerful Ageshinkole on a horse in a art gallery with few people gathered around mesmerized by his painting. There the narrator of the movie takes us through the story of the king of thieves. This actually reminded me of a tv show I used to see as a kid titled “tales by moonlight”, where you have children seated under a tree with an elderly man/woman. It is usually done at the hour the moonlight is up (at night basically) as the name implies with the elderly person telling them stories after stories till bedtime.
The story follows the kingdom of Ajeromi, a peaceful and prosperous kingdom which soon turned in disarry. Following the coronation of Oba Adegbite Tadenikaro who was loved by the people and accepted by the spiritual forces protecting the kingdom, and also the heavenly forces he was eventually made the new king of Ajeromi. The kingdom flourished in all, as the new king was loved greatly by all. But the peace and freedom they enjoyed was soon cut short as terror was unleashed on the land by Ageshinkole, the thief.
Would the kingdom of Ajeromi be able to save themselves from the terror and impending doom?
Would they be able to save themselves from the powerful Agenshinkole, the king of thieves?
Who will be brave enough to face the king of thieves?
The language implored in this movie is Yoruba. Yoruba language is one of the major languages in Nigeria. However, as mentioned above, the movie has a narrator who told the story from the start to finish in English and a plus to this is, it has subtitle to for those who do not understand the local language. This is one of the very few times, I have seen a movie with a narrator in it and honestly I liked it. I mean the presence of the narrator helps you understand better, giving you backstories to unclear events and brings to light things you might have missed.
I really enjoyed how much of Yoruba culture was explored, from the use of deep rooted proverbs and their strong incantations, to the spiritual beings and forces that is closely related with the Yoruba people such as the masquerades, also, different forms of traditional worship. In addition, the costume and lifestyle in general.
I enjoyed the journey of telling a tale that transcends to unimaginable secrets of the past which greatly affected the present, talking about the sins of the father being visited upon their sons. The revelation at the end was surprising, it was unpredictable actually. At first Ageshinkole was a villain who had to be stopped by any means necessary, however, the movie gave its twist at the end.
For the cast in the movie, they did great. As I watched, I could see that their hearts had been poured into this. Actors that really stood out for me was Femi Adebayo as Ageshinkole, he was beyond amazing. I know him to be a good actor but this was top notch. Toyin Abraham as the oloori, gave an amazing act as usual...honestly didn't expect less from her. Odunlade Adekola as Oba Adegbite performed well too, I applaud the cast to be honest.
As mentioned earlier, this is more like a story of the sins of the father being visited upon the sons. Just when you think the secret has been buried and long gone, it comes crawling back. King of thieves is a story of betrayal, revenge, bavery and friendship.
I started this movie with no expectations due to history of "not so good" movies in the industry, but this was actually worth my money. However, like I'll always say, there is no perfect movie and this is not excluded. It has it's flaws which in this case I choose not to pay attention to, since I enjoyed the overall movie..."who cares?"
Trailer
