23: A MARXIST CRITIQUE OF ECONOMIC EXPLOITATION AND POWER DYNAMICS IN ABA BLUES AND KING OF BOYS

This paper examines the representation of class struggle and economic exploitation in contemporary Nollywood cinema through a Marxist analysis of Aba Blues (2026) and King of Boys (2018). Marxist film theory provides a useful framework for understanding how cinema reproduces, and critiques socio-economic inequalities within capitalist societies. Nollywood, as one of the world’s largest film industries, increasingly engages with themes of poverty, social mobility, political corruption, labour exploitation, and class conflict. Through textual analysis, this study investigates how the selected films portray the dynamics between dominant and subordinate classes, the mechanisms of economic oppression, and the struggles of marginalized individuals seeking survival and empowerment. The findings reveal that both films expose the structural inequalities embedded in Nigerian society while simultaneously presenting different responses to class oppression. Aba Blues focuses on youth unemployment, urban poverty, and the commodification of human labour, whereas King of Boys explores political capitalism, elite domination, and the nexus between wealth and power. The study concludes that contemporary Nollywood functions as a critical cultural site for exposing class contradictions and stimulating discourse on socio-economic justice in Nigeria.