There has been much discussion about how to handle the intersection of French citizens, immigrants, and Arabs. Dina Amer, a former journalist turned filmmaker, depicts the life of a jihadist. In You Resemble Me, she forces those who say things like, "Let them deal with the consequences of their decisions," to do so. Many will regard the film as propaganda in France, but she is asking the audience to look beyond the surface. She wants us to look into the various factors that led us here.

Amer, who has reported for the New York Times and CNN, uses her journalism background to answer the most important question: who is Hasna Ait Boulahcen? The alleged suicide bomber was killed in the aftermath of the 2015 Bataclan attacks in Paris during an explosion in an apartment building. The attack was classified as a terrorist attack by the media. You Remind Me delves into her humanity and asks the crucial questions of how she got there.

Hasna's early days are depicted in the film. This was done to shed some light on what may have influenced her to make the decisions she has. It's partially fictionalized, but it's infused with real-life testimony from her family and friends.

We see a young Hasna and her sister exploring Paris. They flee from a mother who is struggling with the rigors of raising children alone in a foreign country.

Unfortunately, the sisters are placed in foster care, which separates them. We soon see a mature twenty-something Hasna, who is living on her own, estranged from her sister, roaming in nightclubs and being subjected to abusive men.
Soon after, we see the emergence of challenging behaviors, which the film uses to show how Hasna gradually withdraws from society and into herself. Clearly, she is attempting to compartmentalize her unresolved trauma, which makes her vulnerable to her jihadist cousin and leads her to seek community in all the wrong places.

You Resemble Me is executive produced by Spike Jonze, Spike Lee, and Honey Boy Director Alma Har'el, but the vision belongs to Dina Amer. She created an ambitious vehicle that focuses on her actors. She is not only making a political statement, but she is also encouraging us to ask uncomfortable questions, which is a good thing.

She likewise utilized news clips to supplement the film's discussion of the intersection of colonization and the current crisis. This helps the audience understand that these situations aren't based on fantasy but are a collection of issues that often collide in a negative way.

You Resemble Me wants western viewers especially to start not just looking at the ending but all the moving parts.

You Resemble Me is currently playing in theaters in limited release