Mahershala Ali stars in the electrifying action drama Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother.
Provocative is a word that is too often bandied about. Though the word so aptly describes Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother, the newest film written and directed by Bassam Tariq starring Mahershala Ali. Tariq subverts the form and conventions of an action thriller, specifically the hitman subgenre, to speak about so much more.
Latif (Ali) is a man whose past is not just shrouded in mystery, but his current life is an enigma as well. The skilled killer has just finished killing a target in a dirty Houston bathroom when we first meet him. A final job that will allow him, after the recent loss of his wife, to care for his eldest daughter (Adia), son (Jahleel Kamara), and newborn daughter, and settle into a normal life. Though Mike (Laith Nakli) has no intention of letting Latif’s ample skills go unused.
As his newborn rejects the formula, needing the real thing, and the precious supply of his wife’s own milk dwindles, Latif makes an impulsive decision that puts him back into Mike’s orbit and into the middle of a dangerous feud between Mike’s nephew Hatty (Abubakr Ali), a porn producer, and Hwan Yoon (John Cho), a religious fundamentalist.
Few, if any, actors working today are as good as Mahershala Ali. Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother reminds those who have forgotten that he is the standard his contemporaries have to live up to. Be it using a sword to take down his enemies or fighting with his daughter, there isn’t a false moment in Ali’s performance. One believes Latif is a breaker of bones and a family man, enigmatic in nature though brimming with transparent emotions.
Rising to Ali’s performance is the supporting cast led by John Cho and Giancarlo Esposito. Esposito at this point is a national treasure incapable of a bad performance. Cho continues to impress, delivering great performances, and here is no different as the menacing religious zealot. The true find is Adia, who plays Ali’s grief-stricken daughter. The moments between her and Ali are the film’s heart and soul. Abubakr Ali, Jahleel Kamara, Tramell Tillman, Tiffany Boone, and Laith Nakli all do exemplary supporting work as well.
Though Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother is a propulsive action film, it is a meditative one with heart, emotion, and a stirring soul that is about the healing of a broken family. Like the character Latif, the film is a contradiction in terms. It finds its unique voice in Latif’s violent actions and inability to help his daughter’s unfathomable grief at the loss of her mother. Writer/director Tariq has created a unique film in the execution of its story and action, both earthy and rich in character, never playing easy clichés. Even in its grandstand moments where settings are familiar (strip club, millionaire’s mansion, etc.), it never unfolds the way one expects. Even in its action-filled finale, Tariq finds a way to subvert not just the genre but expectations with a moment that is one of the most deliciously audacious in recent cinema.
Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother is a bold work of art and one of the very best films of 2026.
Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother is in Select Theaters September 25 and Theaters Everywhere October.
Mahershala Ali stars in the electrifying action drama Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother.
Provocative is a word that is too often bandied about. Though the word so aptly describes Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother, the newest film written and directed by Bassam Tariq starring Mahershala Ali. Tariq subverts the form and conventions of an action thriller, specifically the hitman subgenre, to speak about so much more.
Latif (Ali) is a man whose past is not just shrouded in mystery, but his current life is an enigma as well. The skilled killer has just finished killing a target in a dirty Houston bathroom when we first meet him. A final job that will allow him, after the recent loss of his wife, to care for his eldest daughter (Adia), son (Jahleel Kamara), and newborn daughter, and settle into a normal life. Though Mike (Laith Nakli) has no intention of letting Latif’s ample skills go unused.
As his newborn rejects the formula, needing the real thing, and the precious supply of his wife’s own milk dwindles, Latif makes an impulsive decision that puts him back into Mike’s orbit and into the middle of a dangerous feud between Mike’s nephew Hatty (Abubakr Ali), a porn producer, and Hwan Yoon (John Cho), a religious fundamentalist.
Few, if any, actors working today are as good as Mahershala Ali. Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother reminds those who have forgotten that he is the standard his contemporaries have to live up to. Be it using a sword to take down his enemies or fighting with his daughter, there isn’t a false moment in Ali’s performance. One believes Latif is a breaker of bones and a family man, enigmatic in nature though brimming with transparent emotions.
Rising to Ali’s performance is the supporting cast led by John Cho and Giancarlo Esposito. Esposito at this point is a national treasure incapable of a bad performance. Cho continues to impress, delivering great performances, and here is no different as the menacing religious zealot. The true find is Adia, who plays Ali’s grief-stricken daughter. The moments between her and Ali are the film’s heart and soul. Abubakr Ali, Jahleel Kamara, Tramell Tillman, Tiffany Boone, and Laith Nakli all do exemplary supporting work as well.
Though Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother is a propulsive action film, it is a meditative one with heart, emotion, and a stirring soul that is about the healing of a broken family. Like the character Latif, the film is a contradiction in terms. It finds its unique voice in Latif’s violent actions and inability to help his daughter’s unfathomable grief at the loss of her mother. Writer/director Tariq has created a unique film in the execution of its story and action, both earthy and rich in character, never playing easy clichés. Even in its grandstand moments where settings are familiar (strip club, millionaire’s mansion, etc.), it never unfolds the way one expects. Even in its action-filled finale, Tariq finds a way to subvert not just the genre but expectations with a moment that is one of the most deliciously audacious in recent cinema.
Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother is a bold work of art and one of the very best films of 2026.
Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother is in Select Theaters September 25 and Theaters Everywhere October.
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