Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother Review: Mahershala Ali's Hitman Drama Is Not What You're Expecting [TIFF]

In place of a stylish action movie, Mahershala Ali's Muslim, sword-wielding hitman is a thoughtful character study about faith, family, and hardship.

Published Sep 12, 2026, 11:30 PM EDT

Alex is the Senior Editor of Reviews & Prestige Content, overseeing ScreenRant's film reviews as one of its Rotten Tomatoes-approved critics. After graduating from Brown University with a B.A. in English, he spent a locked-down year in Scotland completing a Master's in Film Studies from the University of Edinburgh, which he hears is a nice, lively city. He now lives in and works from Milan, Italy, conveniently a short train ride from the Venice Film Festival, which he first covered for SR in 2024.

Mahershala Ali may have missed out on the chance to play Blade in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but at least he’s given the chance to artfully swing a sword around and kill some people in Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother, a TIFF 2026 world premiere that compels with its exploration of tested faith, but somewhat underwhelms with the infrequency of its action.

From filmmaker Bassam Tariq, Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother stars two-time Academy Award winner Mahershala Ali as Latif, a devout Muslim and secret contract killer grieving the recent loss of his wife and struggling to navigate single parenthood. While desperately pursuing breast milk for his baby daughter, Latif is drawn into a conflict between his longtime employer Mike (Laith Nakli) and a gun-toting cowboy evangelist (John Cho) that puts the well-being of him and his family at risk.

Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother Replaces Action With A Faith-Based Character Journey

Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother has been marketed as an Ali-led, Muslim, samurai action movie, but existing promotional materials misdirect the true nature of Bassam Tariq’s latest film. Although it opens with a gritty, physical clash between Ali and a target in the tight confines of a public bathroom, the vast majority of what follows is devoid of the kind of action many viewers may expect. There are only a handful of set-pieces in the film, none of which last long enough to impress or shock in any meaningful way.

The lack of action, however, creates more opportunities for a thoughtful exploration of strained faith, the contradictions of spirituality, and the struggles of single fatherhood. One of the film’s most salient points of novelty is Latif being both a contract killer and a devout Muslim – the man who mercilessly kills people with a sword (he refuses to use guns) is the same person who prays like clockwork and adheres closely to Islamic values. Tariq steeps his film in Muslim iconography, parables, and more, affording it a unique visual and thematic identity compared to other major studio fare.

Adia is a revelation and a scene-stealer...

Over the course of the film, Tariq interrogates the limits of faith when faced with extraordinary hardship. Latif’s once iron-clad belief in Islam begins to waver as something as seemingly simple as securing breast milk becomes an insurmountable task. He struggles to have a grip on his adolescent daughter and 10-year-old son as their spirituality similarly begins to falter. This isn’t necessarily a groundbreaking take on religion, but, thanks to extraordinary performances from Ali and Adia, who plays his teenage daughter, the steady crumbling, and potential reconstruction, of Latif’s faith is a gripping character journey to follow.

Powerful Performances From Mahershala Ali & Adia Form A Resonant Emotional Throughline

Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother further subverts expectations by having its story revolve around a fairly routine, yet symbolically meaningful plot device. The narrative is driven by Latif’s search for breast milk for his baby daughter, who is allergic to and keeps rejecting formula. He is not out on some contract, nor dodging bullets left, right, and center. Instead, he’s a dedicated family man on a task that will be all too familiar to parents of young children. In turn, this gives Tariq’s film a shade of John Wick – not in the intricacy of its action, but in using a conventional plot device, like a dog, to drive the emotion of the story.

Speaking of emotion, Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother is rather restrained for much of its runtime, although its climax packs a powerful emotional punch. Again, this is driven by Ali and Adia. That Ali is one of the most commanding screen presences working today is no secret, but Adia is a revelation and a scene-stealer as his teenage daughter. Perhaps even more than Ali, she sells the affective throughline with remarkable emotional intelligence and heart.

Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother Is Surprisingly Hilarious

For as dense as its themes are, Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother surprises with just how funny it is. Tariq’s film offers more laugh-out-loud moments than the average studio comedy, primarily through Latif’s son (played by Jahleel Kamara), whose burgeoning interest in women and playing shooter video games lays the groundwork for plenty of chuckle-worthy back-and-forths with his father.

Tariq also has fun deconstructing the unfortunately widely held perception of Islam as an overly serious, oppressive religion. Several jokes about ISIS are just a few examples of Tariq humanizing Muslims in a way that generates laughs and, hopefully, pushes back against bigoted views of the religion.

As it winds down, the movie can’t quite shake the impression that it is overly restrained. While emotional in its final stretch, it lacks the punctuation of violence one might expect given the promotional material, and the commentary on religious matters, while interesting, seems to culminate on a rather simplistic note. Those issues notwithstanding, Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother delivers an expertly made viewing experience, although not necessarily the one audiences might expect.

Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother premiered at the 2026 Toronto International Film Festival. The movie releases in limited US theaters on September 25, before expanding nationwide on October 9.