My Father's Shadow review: 'a must-see that rewards repeat viewing'
★★★★☆ | Set against Nigeria’s 1993 political turmoil, Akinola Davies Jr’s debut follows two brothers as reverence gives way to revelation, writes Michael Morgan
It’s 1993 Nigeria and we are in the midst of the country’s tumultuous election process. Unspeakable violence, upheaval and political instability are the order of the day.
Two precocious children, Remi and Aki, long for their father’s return. He is often away from home on business. As they occupy themselves playing with cleverly self-crafted paper WWE toys, he suddenly appears.
Folarin, played with quiet gravitas by Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù, is their no-nonsense father who will not be questioned about his decisions. Chief among them is his latest move: to urgently take his two young sons on an odyssey to Lagos, without explanation.
What follows is a journey that allows for rare, hard-won intimacy, as father and sons reconnect and rebuild familiarity. Minibus, motorbike and sometimes sheer determination on foot all come into play. Folarin’s determination to reach Lagos could, in itself, have sustained an entirely separate film.
The story unfolds over the course of a single day, one infused with a sense of the surreal and touched by quiet mysticism. Along the way, the boys begin to realise that their father is not quite who he appears to be.
As they encounter colleagues, friends and acquaintances who greet him warmly as “Kapo”, they discover a man who is loved, respected and revered. However, in swift succession, closely guarded truths emerge.
Rather than diminishing him in their eyes, these revelations deepen the bond between father and sons. Through his flaws, they seem to love him even more deeply.
The film’s masterstroke is how it turns the audience into questioning children, too. You just don’t realise it until the questions soon begin to stack up!
There is a sense of wonder in watching a devoted father who clearly loves his children yet, by all accounts, spends little time with them.
You’ll find yourself pondering his choices and the motifs that present themselves in the story. Why does a man so apparently devoted to his wife leave her, according to the children, increasingly unhappy? Why the wandering eye? And what is behind the constant nosebleeds?
Superbly shot from the children’s point of view, a crucial choice, the film’s characters, colours and compositions blend to reflect a child’s gaze while maintaining a brisk narrative pace.
The supersaturated palette, frequent close-ups and sumptuous cinematography work in harmony, creating a stunning visual language. These confident, creative decisions underline why this debut from director Akinola Davies Jr has resonated so strongly.
The film has rightly earned a BAFTA nomination for Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer and stands as a very strong contender.
Now showing in selected cinemas, His Father’s Shadow is a must-see that rewards repeat viewing.
Rich, vibrant and quietly assured, its deft storytelling offers a masterclass in how to draw an audience in, retain their attention and leave them turning the film over in their minds long after the final reel.
Michael Morgan is a pen-for-hire who has previously written for The Voice, Hip Hop Connection, TOUCH magazine, iNews and the Metro. Passionate about the needs of young adults and those living with mental health conditions, he spent several years working as a mentor alongside people excluded from mainstream education. A habitual line-stepper, lover of Hip Hop and film, Michael has previously been a regular film pundit on BBC Radio Essex. He has also presented, produced and directed ‘The Frontrow’, his own programme, which aired on BEN TV.