Taiwo Egunjobi’s “The Fire and The Moth” Thrives On Visual Density

The Fire and The Moth is a simple story that highlights the brutal nature of survival, greed and corruption, and consequences for one’s actions. Saba, played by Tayo Faniran (Gangs of Lagos, Ada Omo Daddy), a smuggler, is set to deliver the stolen priceless Ife Bronze Head to his boss Ibrahim who, in turn, must hand over the artifact to a white paymaster, François. On this mission, Saba gets involved in a run-in with  the local police, headed by the morally bankrupt Opa Stephens (Olarotimi Fakunle), and has to seek refuge with two sisters, Abike (Ini Dima-Okojie) and Arike, so as to escape being caught. Saba needs the money from the sale to take care of his ailing father, whereas Ibrahim has exceeded the deadline given to him by the white man to deliver the item. Things get out of hand as François, having lost patience, hires another man of psychopathic tendencies, a character portrayed by Jimmy Jean-Louis (Citation), to travel down to Nigeria and retrieve the artifact from Ibrahim by any means possible. As the contracted arsonist follows the lead and goes in search of the Ife Bronze Head, he leaves behind a trail of murders.

Most of the plot is divided between Saba’s attempts to survive against the odds, and the unnamed contractor’s vengeful activities. A reflection on both characters reveals a striking similarity: they are impregnably morose-faced taciturn beings with an aptitude for scheming. Faniran and Jean-Louis infect their characters with rough features and a roguish demeanour. That way, they align with Egunjobi’s directorial vision on the project and reinforce a pattern observable in his previous work and liaison with Nemsia Studios. We remember Temi Fosudo and William Benson from A Green Fever, also written by Isaac Ayodeji and directed by Taiwo Egunjobi, not talking too much and yet endowing their respective characters Kunmi Braithwaite and Colonel Bashiru with studious, dubitable body language.

Rather than obsessing over verbose dialogues and bloated storylines, Egunjobi approaches his scenes slowly, steadily, immersing the audience in every visual  nicety at each passage of time. In The Fire and The Moth, the interior lighting is pale and subdued, which suggests a generally tense, suspicious and unfriendly atmosphere. The sound design and effects—lacking the ostentation of what is admissible in the traditional war epic or adrenaline-fuelled drama—are subtly woven into the background texture so they do not compete with the main audio component of the film. These effects convey the tension and unease that comes with the protagonist’s survivalist strategies.

The Fire and The Moth is mostly filmed in Ibadan, an ancient city in Southwest Nigeria that forms the background to all of Egunjobi’s feature films so far. His latest work flaunts the landscape (hills, forests, etc.) and serenity of the city, creating a naturalesque ambiance that contributes to the narrative authenticity of the film. This setting, combined with the costume and makeup of characters in the film, accurately depicts the simple neighbourhoods and subterranean lifestyle of the people therein. It is as if the towns, with their unassuming yet motherly outlook, provide a safe haven for the notoriety of men like Opa and other smugglers and criminals around.

Taiwo Egunjobi has his way of stealing the attention of his audience with his compact, minimalist storytelling approach and prioritization of visual density. A Green Fever bears the burden of this artistic compass. Set against the backdrop of the topsy-turvy military era of post-independent Nigeria, the film tells the story of a coup plot that is foiled courtesy of a strange man that happens to be an impostor. It is a suspenseful drama soaked in slow-paced action, ominous sound effects and the intensity of its main characters’ body language. A similar energy is maintained in The Fire and The Moth where every seemingly tactful move of the protagonist and antagonist yields dramatic tensions.

Whereas many crime thrillers are known for their rabid, high-octane drama, Egunjobi opts for draggy, nuanced intensity in The Fire and The Moth. While doing so, he creates a metaphoric pipeline between old and new ways: he pays homage to history through the Ife Bronze Head reference, and  maintains ties with the contemporary world through reflections on issues such as crime and police brutality in the Nigerian society.