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Afolayan Kunle., dir. Mokalik. 2019. 100 min. Yoruba. Nigeria. Golden Effects Pictures. No Price Reported.
Kunle Afolayan’s Mokalik—a Yoruba transliteration of the word “mechanic”—is an original contribution that compels the attention of prospective viewers, scholars, and other stakeholders because of the sophistication deployed in its creation.
As the title suggests, the film is about the shades of experience in a mechanic complex, where life is lived and memories are made. But rather than being exclusively about mechanics and other technical tradesmen, Mokalik unfolds more as a narrative about the whole of the Nigerian postcolonial state in the twenty-first century. It forges a narrative link between the occupants of the lower rung of the social ladder in Lagos and members of the upper-middle class who live on Lagos Island. The decision by Mr. Ogidan (Femi Adebayo) to send his high school-age son Ponmile (Tooni Afolayan)—generally referred to in the film as Ponle—to intern for a day at the mechanic complex not far from the Lagos Airport sets up the social class interface. The narrative thus builds up and progresses as a one-day affair, much like James Joyce’s Ulysses.
The nuanced and animated characterization in Mokalik is facilitated mostly by nicknaming, as such names pinpoint the contradictions of the personalities they reference. Names such as Adelabu and Obama remind one of both local and international politics. But more importantly, the assembly of the technicians at Iya Simi Food Canteen for their breakfast and lunch offers insights into how such a location within the workshop serves as a platform for public sphere debates among the mechanics on several issues of local...