In the Shadows

In the Shadows, by director Anthony Wonke and executive produced by the film’s inspiration Ramla Ali, is a heartfelt indie biopic of the former Olympic fighter that focuses on the domestic hurdles of Somalia’s first boxer as she grapples with family, cultural expectations and an unassailable personal ambition that seems to threaten to unravel it all.

The story opens against the backdrop of the Somali civil war, the violent events of which exact a heavy price on the Ali family and lead them to emigrate as refugees to the UK. Ramla played by Jasmine Jobson (Top Boy, Surge), grows from a bullied-yet-headstrong teenager to a trainee lawyer working in London who later discovers a knack for boxing, in which she trains in secret away from the prying eyes of a conservative household, having gained inspiration from watching the success of Amir Khan at the 2004 Olympics.

With scrappy, hand-held camera driven fight choreography and an excellent physical performance from Jobson, In the Shadows excels in its quieter moments as Jobson’s Ramla contends with overbearing mother Fatima, played by Hodan Yusuf who provides a nuanced and scene-stealing performance as the matriarch of the Ali household, her trainer in the ex-Olympic hopeful Clinton (Gershwyn Eustache Jnr) with whom she develops a volatile relationship, and her overly protective brother Ismail (Moe Hashim) who watches over her with eagle eyes seemingly on the lookout for her shortcomings. Finn Cole, best known for his role in Peaky Blinders, delivers an assured performance as the supportive partner Richard, whilst Mustafa Aden gives perhaps the most gut-wrenching scene in the picture as Ramla’s father who cannot escape the shadow of the Somali war which lingers over Wonke’s domestic picture.

An unabashed and inspirational feature that, due to unforeseen circumstances, had to be saved at the last moment with additional funding from its backers as its former UK distributor True Brit Entertainment filed for administration mere weeks before the picture was set to release, which begs the question why Britain’s brightest stars such as Ali are not afforded the higher budget film biopic treatment as they would certainly receive in the US. A hard-hitting, slice-of-life biopic that doesn’t pull its punches, In the Shadows is a story of perseverance in the face of adversity, from outside forces and from within one’s own home, that highlights the best of what British cinema has to offer.

Ronan Fawsitt

In the Shadows is released nationwide on 30^th October 2026.

Read more reviews from our London Film Festival 2026 coverage here.

For further information about the event visit the London Film Festival website here.