My Father's Shadow

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My Father's Shadow

2025

1h 34m

Drama

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Popcornmeter

97%

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75 Reviews

Popcornmeter

Fewer than 50 Ratings

The UK's Best International Feature Film entry to the 98th Academy Awards® and recipient of the Caméra d'Or Special Mention at Cannes, Akinola Davis Jr.'s MY FATHER'S SHADOW is a poetic, tender portrait of father-son bonds. Framed by the political landscape of 1993 Lagos, the film follows a father and his two young sons as they journey into and around the vibrantly rendered Nigerian metropolis, quietly reckoning with their relationship while navigating a city on the precipice of democratic crisis. Brothers and collaborators Akinola Davis Jr. and Wale Davies bring us a groundbreaking feature debut -- centering an award-winning performance by Sopé Dìrísù (Slow Horses, Gangs of London) -- that reveals the profound depths of what families leave unspoken.

Critics Consensus

Weaving high-stakes political commentary with rich personal dynamics that are bolstered by Sope Dirisu's commanding performance, My Father's Shadow casts a highly promising light on feature-debut director Akinola Davies' future.

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Jacob Oller

AV Club

Feb 13

B+

The story two brothers tell themselves about their father, and about their childhood in Nigeria, My Father’s Shadow is as well-loved and well-worn as a lucky charm.

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Alissa Wilkinson

New York Times

Feb 12

It’s that sharp contrast of beauty with an undercurrent of pain that makes “My Father’s Shadow” so bittersweet, and it’s why it cuts to the quick.

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Cortlyn Kelly

Chicago Reader

Feb 11

This reflective concoction of adoration and grief is speculative magic, molded by the respective and interconnected complexities of fatherhood and boyhood.

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Oscar Goff

Cambridge Day

10h

3/4

"My Father’s Shadow" is among the most thoughtful debuts in recent years, and a wistful pleasure to watch.

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Nataliia Serebriakova

FILMINK (Australia)

Apr 12

15/20

What lingers most is not the political backdrop or even the narrative itself, but the texture of memory: the heat of the city, the noise of the streets, the quiet intimacy between two brothers navigating a world that is gradually revealing its complexity.

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Robin Clifford

Reeling Reviews

Apr 1

A-

Davies puts us into the political turmoil gripping Nigeria as a backdrop to Fola’s personal story.

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Ephraim C

@EphraimCobb27 Mar 25

A very touching film amidst a tumultuous backdrop.

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Catherine Imogen W

@RT67840195 Mar 15

I was very impressed and nearly in tears by the end. The father needs to work in Lagos during military rule. He appears to have taken part in a demonstration at Bonny Camp and to have been seriously injured - the military deny any casualties but in the last resort say "it cannot be him, nobody survived." Ok and the story is about the lovely last day his two little sons had with him in Lagos. Finally the tragedy unravels.

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Stephen C

@bob25009 Mar 7

The worldwide gross is $1,000,000.00, less than the budget of $3,400,000.00.

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Moody C

@MoodyC Feb 19

I was bored. Not really sure message here besides documenting moments in time of a tumultuous government in Nigeria. No focused storytelling here. No real conflict other than chaotic ending with people revolting govt for lying about election. There were some moments of genius at beach & night drive towards end but these are just artistic beats devoid of context or story. I believe director is trying too hard on visual & audio blemishes to make this look analog to give it an old, documentarian feel.

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john b

@JohnIrish Feb 7

This is a very different type of movie. Very stylish and deeply moving. It takes a very simple story about a father and his sons yet manages to tell a very gripping story of political unrest in Nigeria. It captures so much so simply.

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Akinola Davies

Director

Sope Dirisu

Folarin

Godwin Egbo

Actor

Chibuike Marvellous Egbo

Actor

Efon Wini

Bola

Wale Davies

Writer

Awards Leaderboard: Best Movies of 2025

My Father's Shadow: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

The UK's Best International Feature Film entry to the 98th Academy Awards® and recipient of the Caméra d'Or Special Mention at Cannes, Akinola Davis Jr.'s MY FATHER'S SHADOW is a poetic, tender portrait of father-son bonds. Framed by the political landscape of 1993 Lagos, the film follows a father and his two young sons as they journey into and around the vibrantly rendered Nigerian metropolis, quietly reckoning with their relationship while navigating a city on the precipice of democratic crisis. Brothers and collaborators Akinola Davis Jr. and Wale Davies bring us a groundbreaking feature debut -- centering an award-winning performance by Sopé Dìrísù (Slow Horses, Gangs of London) -- that reveals the profound depths of what families leave unspoken.

Director: Akinola Davies
Producer: Rachel Dargavel, Funmbi Ogunbanwo
Screenwriter: Wale Davies, Akinola Davies
Distributor: MUBI
Production Co: British Film Institute, BBC Film
Genre: Drama
Original Language: British English
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 21, 2025, Limited
Box Office (Gross USA): $105.9K
Runtime: 1h 34m

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