Movie Title: Dark October
Release Date: 3 February 2023
Director: Toka McBaror
Runtime: 1 hour, 49 minutes
Cast: Chuks Joseph, Munachi Okpara, Kem-Ajieh Ikechukwu, Kelechukwu Oriaku, Chibie Johnny, Boman Bognet, Oge Gabriel ad Chika Okpala.
The year was 2012 when news, posts, and videos regarding four students from the University of Port Harcourt went viral on traditional and social media platforms.
These students were victims of a major scourge in society called jungle justice.
For an average person who owned a blackberry phone back then, chances are they almost burst into tears and got angry upon seeing how the four students, popularly called the “Aluu4”, were beaten to death by members of a local community.
It has been twelve years since the incident occurred. Weeks ago, famous blogger Linda Ikeji announced that her film, “Dark October,” based on the incident, would be exclusively released on Netflix. As expected, there were a lot of controversies surrounding its release, primarily due to her not seeking the consent of the victim’s family members for the film’s production.
Dark October is Linda Ikeji’s Nollywood debut, so it’s safe to commend her boldness in producing a tragic, real-life-inspired film. However, her accolade comes with many “buts” due to her inability to properly execute the story idea.
The film needs to give viewers more in-depth details of what happened back then. While the events inspire the film, it would have been much better if somebody had done more research, a proper script, and better actors.
The Plot
In the opening shot, we see a half-naked guy walk, bleeding from different parts of his body. After some minutes, we cut to a month earlier, where we see the same guy, Tizzy, but this time looking healthy.
Tizzy speaks to his friend, Big L., about their music careers while complaining about Wisdom, a fellow student who owes Tizzy some money. The boys soon leave for a rap battle, which they win, qualifying them to perform live at the Student Union Showcase, basically the Grammys of the University.
The following few scenes have the boys trying to make a name for themselves in the Uniport music scene and hatching a plan to make Wisdom pay the money he owes. They devise a project with the help of a cultist to scare Wisdom.
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Early in the morning, the boys set out to scare Wisdom into paying what he owes. Unfortunately, Wisdom runs away, meets some local vigilantes, and lies to them that the boys came to steal his electronic devices.
Swiftly, the vigilantes arrest the boys and bring them to their leader, who proposes beating them. Then, one of the men decided to stall the growing number of angry community members who had been made aware of the situation and wanted “justice.”
His efforts proved to no avail as the boys were dragged out to the streets, stripped naked, and beaten. We are back to the opening scene when we see Tizzy staring at the corpse of himself and his friend set ablaze.
The Good
It’s about time filmmakers portray the jungle justice issue as a significant theme in a Nollywood movie. One lesson from the recent case involving a lady named Deborah is that many Nigerians still believe in jungle justice.
Dark October sheds a spotlight on the dangers of jungle justice, portraying how violence birthed from wrong accusations can put an end to a life filled with beautiful aspirations.
The cinematography, although not a hundred per cent, was also impressive. A favourite scene in the context of shots is where the community members beat the boys. Through different visual angles, the film made us feel various emotions simultaneously.
Additionally, it would be a crime not to commend the vast nostalgia effect Dark October gave via setting and props. The viewer is greeted with an unfiltered version of a typical university dorm in 2012, while the flip phones, Blackberries, and costumes contribute to a realistic scene.
Finally, the special effects are top tier; this element was the film’s true star and the concept.
The Bad
Dark October is an example of a film whose producers felt they had a robust and magnetic idea, so less attention should be paid to its execution.
Let’s start with the scripting. Each time the actors mentioned the word “bro”, it got to a point where a frustrated sigh subconsciously followed. Dialogues did not reflect how humans spoke in real life, especially among friends.
The dialogues could have been more unforgivable because some contributed little to the plot development. Speaking of plot development, it felt bland. The events that happened throughout the film were unable to make viewers not fast forward to the climax of the story.
Dark October also should have told us more about the boys than we already knew through new articles and old social media posts.
When creating a movie inspired by an event that remains grounded in Nigerian history, research is an effective tool that can contribute to its success. For example, the Linda Ikeji-produced movie felt like the writers visited several new websites that reported the incident and decided they had a comprehensive view of what happened.
Then we have the acting. The efforts to show new talents on our screen are great, but some scenes would make you cringe at the acting performances.
Final Verdict
Stream It! Beyond its cinematic flaws, Dark October holds an important message for every Nigerian about jungle justice.
Dark October is now streaming on Netflix.
Say no to jungle justice!
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