October 1 is a 2014 Nigerian thriller film written by Tunde Babalola, produced and directed by Kunle Afolayan, and starring Sadiq Daba, Kayode Olaiya, and Demola Adedoyin.

Critics reviewed the film positively, praising its cinematography, production design and costuming, writing, and acting.

Police inspector Danladi Waziri is summoned by the British colonial authorities to present his findings on a series of rapes and murders of young women in Akote, a remote village in Western Nigeria.

Upon his arrival in Akote, he is received by Sergeant Afonja, who tells him that a man on horseback being admired by several villagers is Prince Aderopo, the first of their community to graduate from university.

As he begins his investigation, Waziri notices a pattern in the killings and concludes that the rapes and murders are the work of a serial killer.

In the evening, while Aderopo is meeting with his childhood friends Tawa and Agbekoya in the village bar, one of his guards deserts his post to spend time with his lover.

At the bar, Baba Ifa, the town's chief priest, warns Waziri and Afonja that the killings will continue until the murderer is satisfied.

Okafor, the girl's father, and his fellow tribesmen capture a travelling Hausa man, claiming that he is the serial killer.

Waziri visits Tawa and discovers that Aderopo and Agbekoya both received the same scholarship from Reverend Dowling, the village priest.

Waziri subsequently presents his account of the investigation to the British, who instruct him to withhold Aderopo's identity; he reluctantly agrees to do so for the sake of a peaceful independence.

Several writers submitted scripts before he met Tunde Babalola, who was eventually hired to write the screenplay, originally titled Dust.

[8] Afolayan stated that he selected Sadiq Daba to play Waziri because he wanted someone from the north of Nigeria who could speak Hausa and had a "look" that matched the film's 1960s aesthetics.

Cinematographer Yinka Edward said he used natural-looking lighting to capture a realistic look because he wanted to tie the cinematography to Aderopo's emotional state.

[23] Terra Kulture, a Nigerian arts promoter, organized private screenings prior to the film's wider release.

[45] Wilfred Okiche of YNaija linked the film's character study of psychological abuse with the nation's political dysfunction, which is rooted in a colonial logic of consolidating several tribal groups in one country.

[46] In The Nation, Victor Akande highlighted the film's commentary on the colonial mentality, pointing to Aderopo and Agbekoya's belief that Western education would improve them, while actually moving them away from tradition.

[47] Akande and Yishau Olukorede have noted that audiences would recognize parallels between those themes and the Boko Haram insurgency's criticism of Western education.

[7][47] Additionally, Jane Agouye, writing in The Punch, described the serial murders as a metaphor for the "rape of the country's natural resources by the white men".

Ezinne Michaelia Ezepue and Chidera G. Nwafor have argued that Afolayan "advocates for decolonization" by using the film's characters as stand-ins for the psychosocial effects of British colonial rule on Nigeria.

Kan also praised the direction and plot, noting that although the killer is presented from the beginning of the film, Afolayan leaves the audience doubting whether they have actually interpreted the evidence correctly.

[44] Wilfred Okiche of YNaija praised the film's production design, but noted "some niggling issues with live action scenes and vivid stunts".