A wrestling movie with zero wrestling? This Nigerian doc bends reality itself.
While no wrestling is actually depicted, Atilogivu: The Story of a Wrestling Match documents gymnastic dancing to drum and flute music of the Ibu people, east of the River Niger.
Direction
Iloputaife's refusal to explain — she trusts you to keep up.
Sound
Drum and flute become characters, not accompaniment.
Director
Ijeoma Iloputaife
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The Ibu people's 'wrestling' is actually a ceremonial dance ritual where spiritual and physical competition blur — the film's title is intentionally literal, not misleading.
Ijeoma Iloputaife was among the first Nigerian women to direct feature-length documentaries; this film's stubborn refusal to cater to Western ethnographic expectations was quietly radical for 1982.
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