Kasala - Joy Ride
Thoughts On: Kasala! (2018)
When a venture with an older brother's stolen car goes wrong, four friends must scrabble together some cash fast.
Kasala is, in many ways, Ferris Bueller's Day Off if set in Lagos and not Chicago; this is therefore not a tale of middle-class rebellion and the acceptance of who one is in its raw and undeveloped form, but rather a daunting realisation of one's stupidity and a fearful scramble to escape life-altering beats. Its intense performances, grimy, polluted aesthetic and sharp montage spin a tale of hustling at its worst with comedy emerging from lazy self-destruction. Yet for all of our characters downfalls, they are one thing; honourable in accepting responsibility for the mess they have made. This acceptance is driven by fear, diluting its honourable aspect, but it is also what solidifies the brotherhood put to screen with some great chemistry between our four main characters. The only thing holding Kasala back is elements of poor sound design that leave you struggling to make sense of certain dialogue sequences. But, beyond this, Kasala is a solid disaster-in-a-day comedy.
