Watching ‘My Father’s Shadow’ in Cannes

My Father’s Shadow chronicles an impromptu day trip to Lagos taken by brothers, Remi and Akin, with their absentee father, Fola ‘Kapo’. One day, Fola reappears at their home outside Lagos and decides the boys should accompany him on a determined mission to claim his long-delayed wages. The boys—especially the older brother, Remi—idolize their father, though they harbour resentment over his sporadic absences from their lives. Still, the three set off on an odyssey through Lagos’ beautifully chaotic streets. The boys experience the highs of visiting an amusement park reopened just for them and tasting beer for the first time at a buka. They encounter colourful characters who, like them, place Fola on a lofty pedestal. But they can’t escape the creeping sense of dread that something isn’t quite right—not with their father or with the state of the country, as the results of the June 1993 elections remain delayed. Filmed on location in Lagos, with additional scenes shot in Ibadan, My Father’s Shadow is Nigeria’s first-ever official selection at the Cannes Film Festival, competing in the Un Certain Regard section.

Davies Jr’s direction is dreamy and nostalgic, grounded in a distinctly personal point of view. Cinematographer Jermaine Edwards’ work here is some of the most striking cinematography I have seen in any contemporary feature film set in Lagos; watching it genuinely feels like walking through hazy memories. Its themes of masculinity, hero worship and its coming-of-age beach scenes are reminiscent of Barry Jenkins’ Moonlight—a film I consider one of the most beautiful of our time.