If you could live inside any movie, where would you go? Some might choose the glossiness of ‘Christmas in Lagos’ or the swoon-worthy romance of ‘Isoken’. Others might want the drama of ‘The Wedding Party’ or the fantasy of ‘Anikulapo’. However, Kevin Ansi, popularly known as Kevans, a filmmaker, doesn’t want comfort or romance. He wants chaos, power, and moral conflict, the kind you find in Kemi Adetiba’s ‘To Kill a Monkey’.
For Ansi, ‘To Kill a Monkey’ isn’t just a film; it’s a reflection of the world as it is. The dark thriller, steeped in greed, betrayal, and survival, mirrors the tensions of Nigeria itself, where people are constantly negotiating survival and morality.
In this edition of Nollyphile Life, he talks about what draws him to that film’s intensity, the parts of himself he would have to shed to live there, and the kind of person he believes he would become inside its world.
If you could live inside any movie, which would it be?
That’s quite tricky. But I’d say ‘To Kill a Monkey’.
Why ‘To Kill a Monkey’?
It captures power, greed, and betrayal in a very raw way. It mirrors the reality of Nigeria. When you think about Nigeria, it’s like two sides of a coin. There’s the reality of the people above and the reality of the regular Nigerian citizen. That contrast is something I see clearly in ‘To Kill a Monkey’.
What about the story or the characters made you want to live inside that world?
It was the protagonist for me, Efemini, played by William Benson. I’m drawn to him because he was constantly torn between survival and morality. He wasn’t a perfect hero, and he made questionable choices, but you could understand why. Those are choices that reflect what happens in our society every day.
Living in his world would challenge me to face those moral grey areas directly. Sometimes, you just want to see what it feels like to stand in that tension, to understand it from the inside, not just as a viewer.
What do you think living in that world would change about your real life?
It would toughen me. It would strip me of comfort. Back in the late ’90s and early 2000s, survival was a real thing. People found ways to push through. But the average Nigerian right now, I’m sorry to say, has gotten a bit lazy.
Living in that world would take me back to that mindset of constant survival. It would make me more resilient and alert. It would strip away the parts of me that lean toward comfort and replace them with the hunger to keep pushing no matter what.
What’s one scene from the movie you would love to experience in real life?
The confrontation between Efemini and his close friend Oboz when the betrayal happens. I don’t think I’ve ever been in that kind of situation before, but I’d want to experience what it feels like to have someone I trust deeply turn on me. Not because I want it to happen, but because I’m curious about what that does to a person emotionally and mentally.
On the flipside, what’s one scene you definitely want to avoid?
The violence that broke out after the betrayal. I wouldn’t want that. I’m not a violent person, and I don’t think I’d handle that part well. Even if the situation pushed me to it, I’d rather avoid it completely.
Do you think you would thrive or struggle living in that movie’s world?
I think I would thrive, even if it takes a while. I value resilience. In that world, resilience and adaptability are what kept people going. I’d find a way to survive, and not just survive, but thrive because you either adapt or you get swallowed by the system.
If you could rewrite the ending of ‘To Kill a Monkey’, what would you change?
If I were to rewrite the ending, I’d make sure Efemini doesn’t fall victim to greed. But I’d still want him to live with the ghost of his decisions. Sometimes, the hardest punishment is living with your guilt. It’s not about dying or losing everything. It’s about surviving what you did.
