*The Nigerian action thriller “The Black Book” spent three weeks among Netflix’s top 10 English-language titles globally.
The critically acclaim project from Anakle Films and directed by Editi Effiong, “tells a fictional story exploring the West African country’s conflicted history with military dictatorship, drug trafficking, and politics, through a retired hitman’s journey to seek justice. Since its premiere on Netflix this past September, The Black Book became the first Nigerian film to take the position of Top 3 globally on Netflix,” per the studio’s news release.
Here’s the official synopsis: “The Black Book details the fictional story of Paul Edima, a former military and drug cartel hitman in Nigeria who cemented his legend with an unparalleled record of assassinations, coups, abductions and drug operations. After walking away to live a quiet life for 30 years, Edima is forced back to seek justice when his only son is killed by a gang of corrupt policemen.”
“This achievement for an independent African film is nothing short of historic,” Effiong said in a statement. “The film has been well received globally and has surpassed our expectations. This film carries deep cultural significance, portraying the struggles of the Nigerian people over the years. I am immensely proud that The Black Book has brought this narrative to life.”
Dubbed the Nigerian ‘John Wick,” The Black Book” cost just $1 million, Forbes reports. The film has been watched by over 20 million viewers and has taken a spot on Netflix’s top 10 list for three consecutive weeks in 69 countries, according to the news release.
When I designed the colour pallette for #TheBlackBook, we created 3 distinct looks – Lagos, Kaduna, and flashbacks. Everything worked well until we got to Kaduna – the haze we expected, but we didn’t quite plan for the absence of green”.
The ambient dust was great for texture,… pic.twitter.com/2CeGsbAdZf
— Editi Effiòng (@EditiEffiong) October 26, 2023
“The Black Book’s success proves African stories, made on the continent by Africans, can stand on their merit on the global stage. Great storytelling is universal and although the story of The Black Book is inspired by what has happened in Nigeria, the themes have resonated across the world, especially in South America and South East Asia, with South Korea being a standout case study, where the film was #1 according to Netflix official data” Effiong said.
“The Black Book has shaken up how the world sees the Nigerian cinematic experience, and the results have been incredible; the Anakle Films production team has been blessed with world-class actors to bring this new Nigerian narrative to life, as well as the chance to incorporate some amazing sets and never-before-seen large-scale location shoots into the feature,” Effiong continued.
The film features an ensemble cast of Africa’s most well-known actors, including Richard Mofe-Damijo, Alex Usifo, Sam Dede, Denola Grey, Shaffy Bello and Ireti Doyle.
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