MOVIE REVIEW: Muri & Ko: Familiar storyline with predictable

Category: Nollywood

Movie Title: Muri & Ko

Language: English

Running time: 1 hour 44 minutes

Release date: 2024

Streaming platform: Prime Video

Director: Biodun Stephen

Cast: Kunle Remi, Bukunmi Adeaga-Ilorin, Bisola Aiyeola, Fiyinfoluwa Asenuga, Femi Jacobs and Bucci Franklin

‘Muri & Ko’ is another Nollywood film that follows a familiar narrative thread of a thief, Muri, who steals a car with an 8-year-old boy, Cole, a celebrity’s son, in the backseat.

If you’ve watched ‘Tokunbo’, you’ll immediately notice striking similarities between the two in terms of plot structure and character arcs.

While ‘Tokunbo’ is on Netflix, ‘Muri & Ko’ arrived on Prime Video earlier in the month.

Many would wonder if ‘Muri & Ko’ brings something fresh to the table or if it is merely another Nollywood production to avoid altogether.

‘Muri & Ko’ is about the story of Muri, a petty thief who upgraded from picking pockets to stealing car spare parts. One day, Muri steals a car with a little boy, Cole, in it, which is unknown to him.

Excited about the stolen car, he calls his friend and plans to sell it immediately. As he drives to the location, Cole wakes up in shock that the driver is not his grandma.

Cole’s grandma reports to the police, and the search for Cole is delayed until the detective sees Cole’s mother, Chidinma, his favourite reality TV show star, whom he claimed to use all his income to vote for. The detective immediately starts the process of finding the little boy.

As minutes passed, the tense relationship began to straighten up. They resolved their differences and decided to make peace. Muri, who was doing everything to escape the police, showed Cole some kindness as their bond strengthened.

After a few hours of searching for Cole with no positive outcome, Cole’s parents offer N10 Million cash price to anyone who finds their son. Muri eventually escapes the police until he gets to the buyer, a notorious thug who plots to kill him without paying for the car and kidnap Cole.

Luckily, Cole saves Muri from being killed by the thugs. The two escape from the thugs until Muri returns Cole to the police station.

Muri & Ko

Character Analysis

Kunle Remi plays Muri, the small-time thief who gets in trouble for stealing a car with a celebrity’s child in it. The thought of his role in this movie strikes laughter because his appearance and acting were comic. Reno, known for his incredible acting, performed well in this movie as a razz guy.

Bukunmi Adeaga-Ilorin, popularly known as Kiekie, also appeared comical and, as expected, played her role as Muri’s girlfriend well. Her hilarious vibes brought spice to the film.

Bisola Aiyeola plays Chidinma, the mother of Cole. We all enjoy Bisola acting in funny roles, but in this movie, it is different; watching her act as a mother in distress is cool. However, she could have done better.

Fiyinfoluwa Asenuga has always been an exceptional child actor. Although his performance as Cole did not exhibit depth regarding these emotions, he was a great actor overall.

Muri & Ko

Movie Review

The film, directed by Biodun Stephen, is a simple and predictable comedy drama.

Seeing this movie makes it feel like Nollywood has run out of ideas entirely, and everybody wants to put out movies without taking the time to develop and execute the story.

Although the plot is quite simple, they did a poor job with the storyline; for instance, Cole’s grandma forgot her grandson and was instead crying over a missing car. Just because the detective has an eye for Chidinma, he immediately suspects Banji, her baby daddy, of kidnapping the son.

For a boring story like this, it would have been great if it had at least made the audience laugh aloud. Instead, 15 minutes into the movie, the urge to fast-forward came in strong, mainly when predicting the entire storyline.

Aside from Remi, the other actors’ performances were below expectations even though they are recognised as good actors. The child actor Asenuga, who played Cole, would have been allowed to explore emotions of shock, anxiety, and fear before bonding with Muri.

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The bond between Muri and Cole was realistic and exciting to see. Eventually, you will wish they spent more time together just having fun and exploring the local area and food.

Although this movie was not intriguing or memorable, the cinematography and makeup were good.

‘Muri & Ko’ is now showing on Prime Video

Muri & Ko

Verdict

4/10