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Review by David Sims ★★★★

quite remarkable and beautifully acted; doing something new with the sports movie while still pushing all the familiar buttons is genuinely hard to do

2

Bryan Tyree Henry, coach me.

Review by Sydney🚀 ★★★½

Gets the classic sports biopic stuff in and then reminds us that the story doesn’t end there, especially not for a girl like Claressa Shields in a sport that wasn’t “for” women at the time. I loved the emphasis on the value of coaching and what her success meant to the community in Flint, really solid inspiring stuff!! Ryan Destiny & Brian Tyree Henry are so good! More people should see this!

Review by Kit Lazer ★★★½

Boxing was the easiest fight this woman has ever had.

Review by claira curtis ★★★½

Deviates from most other boxing films’ rhythms by placing the big fight at the center of the film instead of having the third act culminate into it. This notion points us toward the true fight that Claressa Shields has dedicated much of her time toward: equality in sports, especially boxing. We see her resistance to the world’s discrediting of female athletes from the moment the film starts and these aspects of the film pile on top of each other to create something weighty and well-established in its ending. It would have been so easy for the film to clap its hands together and declare that the Olympic win is the victory to this story, but bringing us back out of…

Review by Matt Neglia ★★★½ Liked

Cinematographer turned director, Rachel Morrison, makes her feature directorial debut with THE FIRE INSIDE, proving she has tremendous promise behind the camera with an emphasis on character & place. Ryan Destiny is fiery & commanding as female boxer Claressa Shields while Brian Tyree Henry delivers one of his very best performances as her trainer. While the first two thirds play as expected, it’s after the Olympic match where Barry Jenkins’ screenplay confronts hard truths and digs deeper into its characters. Looks great. Feels great. A knockout crowdpleaser with heart & depth.

Next Best Picture’s full review here

Review by MarMar ★★★★

Like the real life boxer this movie is based up on, this is too damn good to be ignored. Pound for pound this is deeply inspiring and emotionally heavy. I needed this

1

A terrific third act that tells the part of inspirational sports dramas that most movies leave out: what happens after the gold medal. Only other movie I can think of that even nods to that is… wait for it… the one the only…. Foxcatcher, baby.

4

ryan destiny you will always be famous

1

The directorial debut of cinematographer Rachel Morrison, The Fire Inside tells the true story of American boxer Claressa ‘T-Rex’ Shields and her journey to the 2012 Olympics. Early on, Morrison – the first woman to ever be nominated for a Best Cinematography Oscar for her work on Mudbound – visually tells us everything we need to know about where Shields has come from. A bird’s eye view sees a young Claressa (Jazmin Headley) running through empty building lots and broken fences in the snow. What could be any deprived Black neighborhood in America is, in fact, Flint, Michigan, a beaten-down but resilient town where Claressa will rise from a desperate home life to become the first woman to win Olympic…

Review by Joeleex ★★★★ Liked

i’m a sucker for sport stories

Review by Brother Bro ★★★½

Exceeded my expectations! Solidly crafted with a memorable story. Bryan Tyree Henry was a real standout as always, and Ryan Destiny gives one of the year’s finest breakout performances. Sits above the typical sports movie