NAIROBI HALF LIFE Review

It goes without saying that this movie has caught the attention of Kenyans in a massive way. Its been shot, written and distributed by Kenyan's and this gives it a sense of authenticity as the Kenyan Film Industry grows a bit with each new release.

The Plot

Set in Kenya's capital city, Nairobi, Nairobi Half Life centres on Mwas who is a young man from upcountry who has travelled to the City to pursue a career in acting. His first encounter in the city is with thieves where he gets robbed of all his belongings and he gets a taste of the dread police station cells where he meets his 'mentor' Oti who takes him in and shows him how to survive in the city mostly through crime.



As the story develops Mwas gets to land a job as an actor and he tries to juggle his life in crime (reminiscent of John Kiriamiti's book and soon to be made movie) and his acting career.

Conclusion

The movie clearly identifies with Kenyan life especially the day to day struggles of your average Kenya a.k.a mwananchi (loosely translated means child of the nation/country)and its use of Kenyan slang known as sheng helps bring the movie closer to home.Such elements will make it a hit in Kenya where local films find it hard to thrive but in Nairobi Half Life there is hope of breaking this cycle of defeat.

The movie is premièred on 30th August 2012 at the WestGate cinema which was an invite only event. From Friday Aug 31 to September 6, the film will be screened twice daily and tickets cost Sh.450