A Standing Ovation for Is God Is
As Aleshea Harris walked down to the front for an Is God Is Q&A after the screening, she did so to a standing ovation. A nearly sold out crowd erupted with applause for her incisive, stylish, angry new revenge film adapted from her award winning stage play. The electricity and excitement in the air was palpable as the ovation continued for both legendary actresses Erika Alexander and Vivica A Fox. It’s no secret: Aleshea Harris has arrived. An exciting new voice in cinema who perfectly transfers her stage play to the big screen with undeniable confidence and veteran savvy.
Is God Is delivers an inspired but original tale of vengeance, jam packed with brutal violence, incredible performances and an unrelenting rage. It very well may be the angriest film I’ve seen in a very long time, and that is absolutely a compliment. It’s funny, it’s brutal, but it’s also emotional and profound. Harris displays her prowess behind the camera and an immense knack for onscreen storytelling. Not only is Is God Is one of my favorite movies of the year so far, but I was honored to be able to listen to Harris talk about her inspirations and work on bringing her story to life. She sited the obvious influences – spaghetti westerns and Quentin Tarantino – but perhaps most aptly sited ancient Greek tragedies as a major contributor to her revenge story.
Inspired But Always Original
When she said this out loud, you could audibly hear the audience nod in unison, recalling moments from Is God Is that backed up this claim in real time. She said she asked herself, “What would happen if you wrote something like that but [the characters] look and act like you?” This question paired with the aforementioned inspirations are ever present in Is God Is and aid in interpreting Harris’ overall messaging of her narrative. She said that aside from those inspirations, she really just tried to make a grab bag of anything she found interesting. She referenced Lady Snowblood and O Brother Where Art Thou, which again left me recalling moments that demonstrate her love of those films.
One that really struck me about Is God Is is how Harris is clearly inspired but never attempts to simply be a copycat. Yes, Tarantino is all over this; the stylish sharp editing, the explosions of violence, women on a rampage for revenge, the singular visual language and dialogue that could only exist within Is God Is. But nothing in the film every feels like a Temu knockoff, as Harris approaches each and every decision with her own capable hand and her own very personal story. Is God Is was shot in just 25 days, and all 3 women – Harris, Alexander, and Fox all said that everyone showed up with their A game. Oh, and it helped that a majority of the crew that worked on Sinners also worked as crew for Is God Is.
Finding The Dream Cast
Vivica was Harris’ first choice, and Fox – who was lively and hilarious the entire time – said that when she got the call, she was honored to be the first choice to play god. Alexander said that it was always a blessing when someone invites you to be a part of something and said that Is God Is was the best script she ever read. Harris said she grew up watching these women (Alexander and Fox) and they both complimented her for stepping into the director’s chair with grace and respect. There was a very clear commoradre among them, a strong indication that working on Is God Is was a great experience despite Fox cracking a joke that she had a 2:30am call time.
It was a lengthy process to cast the twins. Harris said that every time she paired either Kara Young or Mallori Johnson with someone during auditions, they would just eat up their partner. But when she finally put Young and Johnson together, she knew she had found her stars.Is God Is is elevated by their performances and are both wholly committed to the material and Harris’ vision. She said that they had the most rehearsal time as they are on screen the most, and nailing their language and connection with each other onscreen was vital to making Is God Is work as a feature film.
From the Stage to The Screen
Harris said that with her dream cast in place, she tried to stay close to the original story. Converting her stage production to the big screen presented some challenges, but she was encouraged to bring the story to film by a producer who gave her the idea and set her in on the path to what we have now. Is God Is is thematically rich and there is a lot of potential for it all to feel stagey and wear it’s play form on its sleeve. Harris said that her main goal was to stay close to the poetry of Is God Is but think about where to place the camera, what you can do in actual locations, and how the craft of filmmaking could help expand the story. I have seen the play, but it’s hard to not recognize how much of Is God Is stays in tact.
There was so much from the Q&A that resonated with me and truly enhanced my already positive perspective on Is God Is. I could honestly listen to them talk about the film for hours. It is unapologetic about letting women deal and express their anger and passion. Hearing these three women share stories about making Is God Is, their shared ideas and experiences bringing the characters and camera had me locked in the entire time. They joked and laugh but were always willing to explore the darker themes present in Is God Is. These are the kinds of movies and filmmakers we need more of in theaters. These are the risks we want studios to take and give a wide platform to exciting new voices.
Harris delivers something quite special with Is God Is. It’s a can’t miss film that leaves a lasting impact and gives you plenty to think about walking out of the theater. Keep an eye on Harris. She has quite the career ahead of her, as does but relative newcomers Young and Johnson who are absolutely electric onscreen.
Is God Is is can’t miss cinema and one you should experience in a theater with biggest crowd you can find!
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