By Samantha Ofole-Prince
Vivica A. Fox is a Hollywood icon with an extensive body of work that includes blockbuster films and critically acclaimed performances.
Best known for hit films such as “Independence Day,” “Kill Bill,” “Soul Food,” “Two Can Play That Game,” and “Set It Off,” the actress, producer, director, author and entrepreneur has built an international brand grounded in diverse storytelling and representation.
In her latest drama, “Is God Is” Fox plays Ruby, a matriarch who summons her twin daughters to honor a final wish, which is to track down and kill their abusive father.
The film traces the of 21-year-old African American twin sisters Racine (Kara Young) and Anaia (Mallori Johnson) who were burned as children in a heinous act of domestic violence enacted by their father played by an enigmatic Sterling K. Brown.
A redemption drama led by the two female Black actresses, it tackles domestic violence and generational trauma, and Fox was attracted to the project by the dualities of her character, both her brokenness and her strength. Adding, her desire to make things right with her daughters even from her deathbed.
“Ruby is a character that people don’t get to see me play. I don’t wait for Hollywood to come to me and tell me what I am going to do next. I’m usually the boss chick or the head chick. In this, I am the mother of these twins. It was very vulnerable,” Fox reflects. “I can’t wait for people to be surprised to see me in this character.”
It’s a small role for Foxx, who audiences meet as she lies on death bed with severe burns.
“I want him dead. Real dead,” she instructs the twin sisters who have bounced around foster homes since the heinous act which audiences are shown through flashbacks. They barely know their mother so the idea of killing a father they don’t remember seems an insurmountable task. After Fox shows them her injuries, they agree to the mission and the film plods along as they try to locate their rather and, in the quest, discover they have other siblings and meet some interesting characters while on their mission.
There is brilliant camaraderie between the sisters in this memorable and rather emotional drama produced by actress Tessa Thompson (“Hedda”, “MIB: International,” “Thor: Ragnarok”). For Thompson, it was the perfect project to produce under her Viva Maude production company.
“I’m drawn to stories about inheritance: what we receive from our parents, and what we’re left to repair. The idea of daughters confronting the damage handed down to them felt mythic and intimate at the same time. That tension stayed with me.”
With strong acting, the film features a great ensemble of award-winning actors that include Janelle Monae (“Moonlight”) Erika Alexander who starred in the Oscar winning movie “American Fiction” and Mykelti Williamson who plays a lawyer.
It’s a personal story from writer and director Aleshea Harris, who makes her directorial debut with the project which is based on an adaptation of her award-winning play.
“Is God Is” is rated R for strong/bloody violence and language.
Samantha Ofole-Prince is a journalist and movie critic who covers industry-specific news that includes television and film.
Photo Credit: Kristina Bumphrey/JanuaryImages