Tunde Kelani is, unarguably, one of the most dominant and resonant voices in the Nigerian film industry. His films pungently reflect an in-depth understanding of the complexities and dynamics of the diverse experiences of culture, arts and politics, religion and development issues that define Nigeria as a nation. Significantly, he is a passionate and committed artist whose works engage critical issues that espouse the African experience at the arena of politics as the continent contends with all the vestiges of slavery and colonization. Employing the contextual and critical methods of scholarly enquiry, this paper interrogates the issues of politics, power-play and ideo-social identity in contemporary Nigeria through a close viewing/reading of Tunde Kelani’s Saworo Ide, Agogo Eewo and Arugba. These films are investigated as direct and explicit portraitures of the Nigerian experience in the 20thCentury and beyond. Using Yoruba sub-group as a template, the films undertake a deconstruction of Nigerian political landscape through a critical re-reading of its history and suggest a cultural solution to the lingering political dilemmas in the nation.
The paper examines the concept of demythologisation as it is expressed in Kunle Afolayan's film, The figurine (subtitled Araromire). The paper argues that, though some influences of supernatural forces appear potent in the early parts of the film (Araromire Village around 1908), natural coincidence and human action (human orchestration) are more convincingly projected in the latter part of the film (which is set in Lagos around 2001). Examining how Femi Osofisan's drama demystifies and demythologises sacred matters, the paper argues that Afolayan adopts the same technique of demythologisation in his film, The figurine (Araromire) the same way Osofisan does in most of his plays. However, deriving its premises from certain revelations in the film, the study concludes that Kunle Afolayan's attempt at demythologisation is a partial success, as certain occurrences in the film are difficult to completely detach from supernatural influence despite their denotation as coincidences.
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