The Fire Inside (2024)

Ryan Destiny and Brian Tyree Henry deliver quite strongly in this biopic of the USA’s first boxing Olympic gold medalist. It follows her own career path so we know just what happened where and when, but it’s the characterful efforts that resonate more as she portrays Claressa Shields. From a very young age this tenacious young girl (Kylee D. Allen/Jazmin Headley) is running for miles to reach his gym only to be told that she couldn’t train with the boys. Henry’s Jason Crutchfield does give her a chance eventually and that’s what convinces him that she has potential. Despite her growing up in a poverty-stricken home, with her father incarcerated, they determine that if she can dedicate herself to her chosen path then perhaps fame and fortune might follow - and that proves quite an incentive for a woman who wants, passionately, to get her family out of their squalor. It’s quite an interesting look at the efforts and politics required to attain selection, exacerbated by a general reticence amongst the sporting authorities about women boxing at all and it also illustrates just how fickle those few moments of fame can be when it comes to resonating with the marketing and sponsorship communities who are all too quick to say thanks but no thanks after the ticker-tape parades have ended. Although this is very specifically aimed at her particular achievements, I think it’s fair to apply the principle to a great many would-be Olympic (amateur) athletes who participate in less lucrative sport - regardless of their sex - and who live on meagre pickings whilst others - usually in offices somewhere - reap greater financial rewards. Moreover, even the little cash on offer to assist (in her case a mere $1,000 per month but even for the men with whom she rightfully demands parity, it’s only $3,000) doesn’t extent to their training and support personnel whose relationships, rapport and dynamic with the athlete would seem better placed to deliver results. It’s interspersed with plenty of faux-actuality to give us a sense of just how strenuous this activity is, and as sporting dramas go it delivers fact, fiction and inspiration in a tempered and authentic fashion. Worth a watch.

Feb 13, 2025