AFI Fest, boxing, Brian Tyree Henry, Chidubem Rafael Echendu, Chrystian Buddington, Claressa Shields, drama, film festivals, Jazmin Headley, Maurice Wayne Anglin, movies, Nendia Lewars, Olunike Adeliyi, reviews, Ryan Destiny, Sarah Allen, Sekhai Smith, Shechinah Mpumlwana, The Fire Inside, TIFF, Toronto International Film Festival
December 24, 2024
by Carla Hay
Directed by Rachel Morrison
Culture Representation: Taking place from 2006 to 2013, in the United States and in Europe, the dramatic biopic film “The Fire Inside” (based on the life of boxer Claressa Shields) features a predominantly African American cast of characters (with some white people) representing the working-class and middle-class.
Culture Clash: Claressa Shields rises from a financially disadvantaged background in Michigan to become a champion Olympic boxer, but she experiences obstacles, sexism and naysayers along the way.
Culture Audience: “The Fire Inside” will appeal primarily to people who are interested in sports biopics and movies about people who triumph against the odds.
“The Fire Inside” is good but not outstanding as a biopic of champion boxer Claressa Shields. Ryan Destiny shines in her portrayal of Shields. However, this drama has the usual biopic formulas of underestimated athletes who triumph. The acting performances in the movie are better than the movie’s screenplay and direction.
“The Fire Inside” is the feature-film directorial debut of Rachel Morrison, whose filmmaking background is mostly in cinematography. Morrison made Oscar history as the first woman to get an Academy Award nomination for Best Cinematography, for her work on the 2017 Netflix drama “Mudbound.” “The Fire Inside” was written by Barry Jenkins, who won an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay, for the 2016 drama “Moonlight.” Jenkins is also one of the producers of “The Fire Inside.”
Mike DeLuca, another producer of “The Fire Inside,” has been nominated for three Oscars for Best Picture: for 2010’s “The Social Network,” for 2011’s “Moneyball” and for 2013’s “Captain Phillips.” “The Fire Inside” also has Brian Tyree Henry (who was Oscar-nominated for Best Supporting Actor for 2022’s “Causeway”) as one of the principal cast members. With all of this Oscar-caliber talent in key roles for making “The Fire Inside,” some viewers might have certain expectations. “The Fire Inside” certainly isn’t a terrible movie, but it’s not Oscar-worthy either.
“The Fire Inside” had its world premiere at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival and its U.S. premiere at the 2024 edition of AFI Fest. “The Fire Inside” is told in chronological order, from 2006 to 2013, the earliest years of Shields’ boxing career. However, the movie skips over certain of years her life during this time period. For the purposes of this review, the real people will be referred to be their last names. The characters in the movie will be referred to by their first names.
The movie begins in 2006 in Flint, Michigan, where 11-year-old Claressa Shields (played by Jazmin Headley) is shown as a spectator at Berston House, a boxing gym. (“The Fire Inside” was actually filmed in the Canadian province of Ontario.) Claressa wants to train as a boxer, but Berston House trainer Jason Crutchfield (played by Henry) tells her, “We don’t tran no girls at Berston House.” Some of the boys in the gym also taunt Claressa for wanting to become a boxer at this gym.
Claressa won’t leave the gym until she gets a chance to prove herself. And so, Jason allows Claressa to do a boxing match against one of the boys. The boy she’s pitted against is one of the boys who insulted her by saying Claressa was on the “shortbus,” which is slang for saying that Claressa is stupid. Predictably, Claressa wins against this bully.
Jason, who is a happily married father of two kids, goes home and tells his wife Mickey (played by De’Adre Aziza) about Claressa and asks Mickey what she thinks about Claressa being a boxer. Mickey says there shouldn’t be a problem if Claressa really wants to box. And just like that, Jason decides to be Claressa’s trainer and allows her to train with him at Berston House. It’s very “only in a movie” moment.
Claressa’s home life in Flint is chaotic and dysfunctional. She and her two younger siblings—sister Briana and brother Peanut—are being raised by their single mother Jackie Shields (played by Olunike Adeliyi), who likes to party and often neglects her children. Shechinah Mpumlwana has the role of teenage Briana. Nendia Lewars has the role of pre-teen Briana. Sekhai Smith has the role of teenage Peanut. Chidubem Rafael Echendu has the role of pre-teen Peanut.
Jackie frequently doesn’t have enough money to give proper meals to her kids. Claressa’s father Clarence (played by Adam Clark) is an ex-con deadbeat dad who is in and out of her life. Predictably, Clarence re-appears in Claressa’s life after she becomes a champion boxer, and he thinks he can benefit from whatever fortune that he thinks Claressa will get as a boxer.
After showing Claressa in 2006, “The Fire Inside” then fast-forwards to 2011. Claressa (played by Destiny), who has the boxing nickname T-Rex, is now a 16-year-old boxer on a winning streak. Claressa is also living with Jason and his family after getting into an argument with her mother Jackie, who threw her out of the home and let Claressa live with Jason and his family. What happened in the five-year period where she trained to get to this point? Don’t expect the movie to answer to that question because the “The Fire Inside” doesn’t give any details.
Instead, “The Fire Inside” becomes a checklist of accomplishments for teenage/young adult Claressa, leading toward her ultimate goal to become the first American female boxer to win a gold medal at the Olympics. Claressa’s first shot at this Olympic dream is at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. British boxer Savannah Marshall (played by Nicole Drury) is Claressa’s biggest rival. Jason is still her chief mentor/trainer, but because he’s not an official Olympic coach/trainer, he can’t go with her to the Olympics as a coach/trainer. This restriction causes some stress and drama for Claressa.
The movie also has a subplot about Claressa’s romance with a fellow teenage student named Corey (played by Chrystian Buddington), whom she has known since they were pre-teens. (Maurice Wayne Anglin has the role of pre-teen Corey.) Expect to see Jason lecturing Claressa about not letting her love life affect her boxing ambitions. Jason tells Claressa after seeing her hanging out with Corey at Berston House: “No dating at the gym!”
Most of the supporting characters in “The Fire Inside” aren’t given much depth. Corey is supportive of Claressa’s boxing goals, but the movie depicts him as an utterly generic boyfriend. Claressa’s family members get less screen time than her trainer Jason. Nicole Thompson (played by Sarah Allen), the head of media and marketing for the U.S. Olympic boxing team, is a bland executive. Nicole is initially skeptical that Claressa can win a gold medal in boxing. But if Claressa weren’t a champion boxer, then this movie wouldn’t have been made.
“The Fire Inside” goes beyond the expected boxing matches to show how—even with Claressa’s championship status—Jason (who also became Claressa’s manager/agent) struggled to get sponsorship deals for Claressa. It’s stated repeatedly in the movie that this lack of sponsorship support isn’t because Jason was incompetent but because of prejudice against female boxers. It’s admirable that “The Fire Inside” shows the harsh reality that some Olympic champions don’t get the financial rewards or sponsorship support that many people wrongly assume that all Olympic champion athletes get.
Aside from these career struggles, “The Fire Inside” only hints at Claressa’s internal struggles. There’s a poignant scene where she confesses to Corey that she has trauma from being sexually abused years ago by one of her mother’s ex-boyfriends. The movie reveals this information and then doesn’t mention it again. It’s a very superficial way of addressing an issue that no doubt affected Claressa’s emotional well-being.
As for the training scenes and the boxing matches, they are competently filmed but aren’t particularly innovative. The pacing of the movie occasionally drags in scenes where Claressa is not boxing or training, with no further insight into her personality. Destiny does an admirable job of portraying Claressa’s determination, grit and vulnerability. The other cast members do the best that they can in very stereotypical roles.
Unfortunately, the screenplay for “The Fire Inside” diminishes many of the characters by having them speaking in conversations that sound more like contrived soundbites than natural dialogue. Most viewers already know that “The Fire Inside” is supposed to be a feel-good, inspirational story about a real-life person. And the movie at least fulfills that purpose. However, it’s not done in an exceptional way that’s on par with Shields’ exceptional talent and accomplishments.
Amazon MGM Studios will release “The Fire Inside” in U.S. cinemas on December 25, 2024.