MOVIE REVIEW: Wale Ojo steps into Soyinka’s shoes in ‘The Man Died’, but does it convince?

Wale Ojo steps into the shoes of Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka in "The Man Died," a historical drama directed by Awam Amkpa that revisits the writer's tumultuous 1967 arrest and imprisonment during the Nigerian Civil War. The film, which premiered on Prime Video on August 15, 2024, is inspired by Soyinka's own prison memoir, "The Man Died: Prison Notes of Wole Soyinka," published in 1972.

“

There are stories we tell because they are entertaining, and there are stories we tell because forgetting them carries a cost.

The narrative centers on Soyinka's efforts to mediate the conflict between the Federal Government and the secessionist Republic of Biafra. His attempts to avert or end the war through secret meetings with Biafran leader Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu were met with suspicion by federal authorities. Consequently, Soyinka was arrested in 1967 and held for approximately 22 months without trial, much of it in solitary confinement, before his release in 1969.

Ojo is tasked with portraying this younger Soyinka, an activist confronting military power, imprisonment, and isolation. The film is set against the backdrop of the brutal civil war (1967-1970), which followed a period of political instability, military coups, ethnic violence, and mass displacement. "The Man Died" explores not only Soyinka's personal ordeal but also the broader political turmoil, relationships, and convictions that defined his stance against repression and his fight for freedom.

“

The film stars Wale Ojo as Wole Soyinka, alongside Sam Dede, Norbert Young, Segilola Ogidan, Christinah Oshunniyi, Abraham Amkpa, Tmilolu Fosudo, Similoluwa Hassan and Ropo Ewenla.

The film had a special screening in Lagos on July 12, 2024, preceding Soyinka's 90th birthday, and has since been featured at international film festivals, including the 2025 New York African Film Festival. The movie aims to remind audiences of the enduring cost of forgetting such pivotal historical moments and Soyinka's significant role in Nigeria's struggle for democracy and human rights.

“

Inspired by Soyinka’s prison memoir, The Man Died: Prison Notes of Wole Soyinka, the film revisits one of the defining periods of the writer’s life: his arrest and imprisonment during the Nigerian Civil War.