Attimes I wonder how far desperation can push a good person before survival would start to look more important than doing the right thing?
Efe has the education and technical ability, but not the opportunities to match them. He was struggling to provide for his family, dealing with humiliation and financial pressure, and watching the life he imagined for himself gradually slip away. The part where luck would have crowned his great preparation faded off right before his eyes when he could not find his laptop anymore after pitching his project to a company.
Then he runs into Oboz, a role played by Bucci Franklin, an old acquaintance whose life couldn't look more different. Unlike Efe, Oboz has found wealth through cybercrime. He introduces Efe to a world where technical intelligence can suddenly become extremely profitable and this is where things started to get interesting.
Efe didn't immediately become the stereotypical “Yahoo boy.” What made his journey compelling was watching the gradual erosion of his principles. One compromise led to another, and in a blink of an eye, the man who initially wanted to use his skills simply to cater for his family needs and live a better life found himself deeper in a criminal operation than he had ever imagined.
However, the series isn't only about Efe and Oboz. There is also Inspector Mo Ogunlesi played by Bimbo Akintola, a determined investigator pursuing cybercrime, while Nosa played by Stella Damasus gave the story the emotional family dimension as Efe's wife. Chidi Mokeme played Teacher, another important figure within the criminal world, while Ireti Doyle played Superintendent Babalola. Lilian Afegbai, Teniola Aladese, Sunshine Rosman and Michael Ejoor also feature in significant roles.
What I particularly enjoyed in this series is how the series doesn't make Efe's transformation happen overnight. You actually see the desperation behind his decisions. The debt, the humiliation, the pressure to provide and the temptation of seeing someone with less education living the life he desperately wanted and then come the consequences of his decisions.
To Kill a Monkey became increasingly emotional as relationships begin to suffer and money starts competing with loyalty, family and conscience. There were moments of betrayals (especially between Efe and Ozor or his wife Nosa), painful choices and moments that makes you wonder whether Efe is still trying to survive or has simply become part of the very system he once needed protection from.
The performances are one of the series' strongest points. William Benson gave Efe a believable vulnerability, while Bucci Franklin brings charisma to Oboz. Stella Damasus and Bimbo Akintola also added considerable emotional weight from their ends as well.
Visually, Kemi Adetiba maintains the gritty, stylish atmosphere associated with her crime stories, while the series moves between family struggles, Lagos street life, cybercrime and police investigation.
That said, the storyline isn't perfect as some major developments feel rushed or happened without enough buildup, and some supporting characters deserved more depth but still, what stayed with me wasn't really the cybercrime but the question underneath everything that if life keeps giving you reasons to compromise, at what point do your circumstances stop being an excuse and your choices become your responsibility?
Sometimes, the most dangerous thing isn't the opportunity that changes your life. It's how quickly you can become comfortable with the person that opportunity turns you into and all these lessons are what makes To Kill a Monkey worth watching.
I'll be dropping my 🖊️ here on the movie review.
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All images are for the movie.
Rating: 90/100
Originally posted through scrobble.life/tv.
