NAIROBI HALF LIFE - My Take

I have been quite skeptical about watching Kenyan movies or programs in general. Not that I hate them or anything but I never used to feel the umph that you get when you watch a trailer for an American produced movie or program.

It's only recently that I started and thanks to Catherine Kamau 'Celina'  and Showmax (By the way if you have not subscribed to Showmax you are losing out. 250/- Bob only for 3 months... Trust me I do my series in a jav on my way home every single day. Greatest discovery after cold Hawaiian pizza and ice cold Fanta.. don't judge me and no they did not pay me for a mention...I mean who am I ... Mo'ghel).



So I found myself watching Nairobi Half Life.. (I know..if you have already watched it and you are reading this you are probably wondering from which planet am I from... relax.. Kenyan art industry bug has just caught up with me...)  OMG!! It was not what I was expecting.. it has a mix of tears,joy, shockers, disgust,laughter,reality checks and sadness (mainly sadness for because my crush was shot  was like how dare you kill him... I had a tear in my eye for real only to find his page on Facebook "facepalm" Fisilet mode activated)



The plot - This guy Maina from somewhere in the village thinks that he has gotten a deal with some agent after paying him 500/- he had made from selling some movie CDs. He plans and heads out to Nairobi but warned by his folks about the city.. you know.. the African Vegas.. His oldies I think they are related send him to some Patel shop in River road with goods. He gets to Nairobi and he gets mugged like well... If you have been to machakos country bus near muthurwa you know how merciless these thugs are.. now imagine a gang attacking you.  What a welcome... Heh!



If you know Nairobi CBD well you know how hawkers behave... So as Maina was walking all confused and lost and probably hungry.. the hawkers begin to run away from Kanjo then Boom... Kijana kuja hapa.(Young man come here).. the Kanjo arrested him thinking he is a hawker and take him to the Central police station... (what happens here... I don't want to share as I was super disgusted...I even had a gag.. the set up was so real yo to an extent where I could smell the toilets)



He meets Oti in the cell and long story short Maina joins his gang.. (They steal spares for a guy who resells them and pays the gang) One time Oti snatches a phone from a passer by and hands it over to Maina (He needed it) but this is Nairobi... No one really cares...

He overhead an Acting audition happening on some Tuesday at Phoenix and he tries it out and indeed he gets a role.. how amazing right!?!



Remember the goods Maina's oldies had sent him to deliver to Khanji..well these guys came to Nairobi and Maina meets them and explains the loss...his uncle hits him with a bottie of Coke soda.. paaaa!!! And it breaks like Shaaakalaalla !!! Damn.. Maina's head is tough he doesn't bleed.



As payback, the oldies make Maina and his gang to start Carjacking... They get guns from Dingo (Watch the movie to find out who Dingo is) so it's a success at first as they manage to get the Moti (Car) they had been asked for and the pay was to be good.. only for Maina to deliver the Moti to the agreed location and get jumped by the oldies..and they beat Him and crew so bad that they lose consciousness till morning (I was so freaking mad at these guys ...and started wondering what Oti your will do to Maina...)



So Carjacking becomes a norm..with Maina juggling 2 careers.. acting and stealing... At some point the deal almost went sour the car owner had a gun and started shooting at them... Saitan!!!



Fast forward...Oti had a disagreement with Dingo over percentage pay... The 2 gangs clash... Dingo dies (Don't ask me how.. watch yo). police arrests Oti's Gang and they are locked up in a ghost building. That is where we learn that the police do that and pick one by one as they kill the gang members to solve their unsolved cases. (makes sense?)



One time, as they (Police) came to pick a second Member, the gang plots to escape and they did only to be shot dead by the extra cops who came in after some altercations... Only Maina manages to escape... And performs at his show... This is most likely the climax of the movie... My adrenaline was at it's peak and just when I thought my Guy Oti will survive he got shot while trying to jump off the wall... I was hurt... ..



Ultimately this movie is beyond imagination... The script.. the setting... The stunts ..for real was just Hollywood material... Saying it's an amazing movie is an understatement... I LOVED IT.



Head out watch it.. let me know what you think about the movie and this post...