Last Updated on May 14, 2026 by Fadra Nally
Is God Is is a new film from playwright Aleshea Harris, making her feature directorial debut. And it shows, in all the ways one might expect and a few ways one might not.
The easy comparison would be to call her a young, Black, female Quentin Tarantino. Would that appeal to you or make you run the other way?
Honestly, I would probably run the other way with a description like that. Not because Tarantino isn’t talented, but because he can be a little insufferable. The good news is that Aleshea Harris, the writer and director of Is God Is, is not Quentin Tarantino. She’s better.
Let’s start with what I liked about the movie and why it worked. It comes down to the same things that make any good movie good: strong writing, compelling characters, and a good story. In a perfect world, you get all three. I need at least two out of three for a movie to be watchable.
Harris nails all three with her film debut.
The Story in Is God Is
We’re introduced to twin sisters Racine and Anaia, who share the physical and psychological bond of twins. But they also share the unfortunate bond of childhood trauma.
As young girls, they were caught in a fire set by their father, a tragedy that seemingly took their mother from them. Years later, they learn their mother is still alive and has spent that time suffering in pain. Her dying wish is for her twin daughters to exact revenge on their father for what he did to their family.
Hence the tagline: “Make your daddy dead. Real dead.”
The rest of the movie becomes a mission of vengeance, with two daughters sent by their mother — their God, their creator — to carry out her final wish. Along the way, you’ll encounter violence, dark humor, and more moral questions than you might expect.
The Characters in Is God Is
You could classify the film as a hero’s journey, but the trick is figuring out who the hero is exactly.
Racine, played by Kara Young, and Anaia, played by Mallori Johnson, have an unforgettable bond but very different approaches to life and to “the mission.” Although they are now young adults, we see flashes of them as little girls in the presence of their mother, as thieves in the presence of extended family, and as something much harder when faced with the people standing between them and their goal.
Their characters are a ball of tangled emotions: sensitive and emotional one minute, tough and uncompromising the next. As the story develops, so does their relationship with each other. At its heart, this is their movie, and the ending feels fitting for them both.
The Writing in Is God Is
As a 2023 Pulitzer Prize finalist for her play On Sugarland, Aleshea Harris is clearly a skilled writer. But does a stage play translate well to a screenplay? And can you bring a theatrical production to the big screen while still keeping the audience’s attention?
During the 1 hour 39 minute runtime, I can’t say that I looked away from the screen once. The pacing, dialogue, acting, forward motion of the story, and bursts of action kept me engaged the entire time. The runtime felt just right.
Not bad for a film debut.
What I Loved and What I Didn’t
Beyond the writing, characters, and story, the number one reason for a film buff to see Is God Is is the style. This is where the movie starts to feel Tarantino-esque, but in a way that feels fresh rather than derivative.
The twins are so in sync that they can often communicate without speaking. The use of onscreen text to show their mental banter feels innovative and lets us inside the minds of the sisters without slowing down the story.
The cast is also top notch, including veteran actors like Vivica A. Fox, Erika Alexander, Janelle Monáe, and a startling turn by Sterling K. Brown.
There were a few places where the transitions felt awkward or abrupt. And a few characters created tangents in the story that were never fully realized. These minor complaints could be the result of something that didn’t quite translate from stage to screen. More likely, they are simply editing or writing glitches.
But the story works because of Aleshea Harris’s talent and the strength of the entire ensemble.
Is God Is is edgy, funny, stylish, and violent. And while I don’t usually love blood, the violence feels right for this film. If you’re a movie buff, treat yourself to something new and put Aleshea Harris on your radar.
