Set in a familiar boarding school and steeped in local folklore, “Ms. Kanyin” promised horror — but delivered something else. Spoilers ahead!
I was really looking forward to watching “Ms. Kanyin” — a horror film directed by Jerry Ossai and now streaming on Prime Video. With a cast that includes Temi Otedola, Michelle Dede, Demola Adedoyin, Natse Jemide, and set in a Nigerian boarding school, it immediately piqued my interest. At school, there are countless eerie tales of strange mystical events happening — folklore passed down from seniors to juniors, with each generation retelling the stories inside and beyond school walls.
Blending elements of Nigerian folklore with high school drama, “Ms. Kanyin” attempts to bring a fresh perspective to the horror genre. At the centre of the story is a mysterious teacher, a cursed tree and a group of students whose choices lead to deadly consequences.
When horror hits close to home
Strangely enough, “Ms. Kanyin” was filmed at my old boarding school — Adesoye College Offa, Kwara state. There, I heard many chilling tales of supernatural occurrences — people possessed, mysterious deaths and burial sites with roaming ghosts. The one that stuck with me was the legend of the tree that never died. I’ve told so many people about the morning I was admiring the tree — with bare branches — standing tall and strangely still. By lunchtime, it was suddenly full of leaves as though it had bloomed in a few short hours. I sudden change shocked me, and I questioned whether I had imagined things. When I discussed this with friends, they told me the tree had stood there long before the school existed — and that the villagers had warned everyone never to cut it down.
To my surprise, the opening scenes of “Ms. Kanyin” featured a tree eerily similar — same look, same legend. In that scene, the tree accepts a blood sacrifice and evokes death on those who surround it. That sparked my interest in seeing what role the tree would play and how the film would end.
The film also touches on the pressure senior students face to attain successful grades to enter prestigious universities. The main character, Amara, played by Temi Otedola, is failing her French class taught by “Ms. Kanyin”, played by Michelle Dede. As a teacher, Kanyin is strict, honest and has a hard time adjusting to life at Sterling Academy. With the WAEC exams fast approaching, Amara feels immense pressure to get a perfect score — it’s the only way she can meet Harvard’s admission requirements.
When Amara comes across the WAEC exams in the possession of Ms. Kanyin, she plots with her friends to steal them. The evil tree posses Ms. Kanyin, sending her on a hunt for all the students who caused her decline. Ms. Kanyin draws inspiration from the popular African legend Madame Koi Koi, her heels clicking and clacking as she walks through the hallways to hunt down her prey.
Read also: Temi Otedola A portrait of beauty as a ritual, reflection, and reclamation
A strong premise with uneven execution
What the film got right was the buildup of the characters’ stories and the mystery of the tree coexisting within boarding school life. The exploration of academic pressure and meeting expectations made the characters relatable. However, the film leaned too heavily on its main characters: Amara and Ms. Kanyin. As a result, the pacing of the film was rushed and the storyline developed noticeable holes. The plot introduced romantic interests and sexual assault with no proper resolution. The relationship between Amara and her friends didn’t feel real enough, lacking chemistry amongst themselves.
Despite this, the cinematography and colouring of the film were quite beautiful. The fashion styling felt authentic and reminded me of what I used to wear back in boarding school. The set consisted of a variety of locations, from the swimming pool, the dining hall, the bathrooms, the principal’s home, office spaces, dormitories, to the forest — it lended a realistic nature to the film.
Although the film was marketed as horror, it leaned more into mystery and drama than the horror genre. It lacked the tension and jump scares expected from the genre and needed more time to develop the horror elements and thematic depth. The final act was rushed, clunky and disjointed. This made key moments, like the death of the principal, feel empty and confusing. Many of the details that concerned the possessed Ms. Kanyin lacked coherence and stripped the storyline of potential.
What felt missing was a clear purpose — the filmmakers never fully clarified their intent or the message they wanted viewers to take away. While it stands as a commendable creative and visual effort, it ultimately didn’t live up to my expectations. Despite my personal feelings, the film reached number one on the Amazon Prime streaming charts in its first few weeks.
