‘My Father’s Shadow’ by Akinola Davies Jr. Debuts at Cannes to Rave Reviews

The backdrop heightens the stakes for a film that centers on the relationship between a father and his two sons. Directed by Davies Jr., My Father's Shadow stars Sope Dirisu as Folarin, a father who's often away for work for months at a time, hovering in and out of the life of his two sons, Akin (Godwin Egbo) and Remi (Chibuike Marvellous Egbo).

Nearly two weeks after the election that Folarin hopes will change Nigeria for good, for him and his sons, he decides to take Akin and Remi on a trip to Lagos for some bonding, amidst the spectacle of sociopolitical chaos. Their time together sees the wide-eyed boys navigate roads with stilted options due to fuel scarcity, conversations with men calling their father "Capo," discussions about Folarin's relationship with their mother, and moments encapsulating the distance and mystery between sons and many African fathers.

The film has been earning praise for its poignance, affecting depth, technical brilliance, and great praise for the acting performances by Dirisu and the Egbo brothers. Film journalist Brian Tallerico describedMy Father's Shadow as "a special movie" that "left me emotional and speechless." CNN's Thomas Page called the film "beautiful," praising the lyricism of Akinola Davies Jr's storytelling, and also spotlighting Dirisu's performance as "heartbreaking."

Film journalist Robert Daniels wrote on X that Davies Jr.'s film is "currently the best thing I've seen" at Cannes, while his review on Roger Ebert praised My Father's Shadow as a "masterwork by a first-time director whose crafting of an epic scope and sense of tender intimacy makes for another new peak for African cinema."

Rating the film a four out of five stars, The Guardian'sPeter Bradshaw praised Davis Jr.'s approach to the "transparently personal project," referring to the film's semi-autobiographical basis and praising its emotional heft. For journalist David Ehrlich, writing in Indiewire, the film's heartfelt nature is greatly helped by the casting of the Egbo brothers, "both of whom bring an unmistakably lived-in quality to their sibling dynamic," and the precise balance between the Davies brothers' script and Dirisu's performance.

There's been excitement since it was announced that My Father's Shadow was slated to premiere as an official Cannes selection, and the early positive reviews haven't only justified the early hype, they've also built up enthusiasm for when the film is available to broader audiences. Mubi has acquired distribution rights to the film in North America and the UK.

"I'm more excited about people watching the film," co-writer Wale Davies told OkayAfrica days before the film's Cannes Premiere. "As much as I enjoy the hype and the accolades, it's really about the work. When it finally goes out into the world, the whole conversation changes, and hopefully some of the dialogue we intended for the film can finally kick off."