THE OTHER HALF Trailer

An impressionistic and pained love story isn’t a unique premise for South by Southwest, which makes the strong festival reviews surrounding The Other Half all the more intriguing.

The surface-level reason for success is obvious: it’s got a couple flashy stars in Orphan Black’s Tatiana Maslany and Downton Abbey’s Tom Cullen, and both have proven adept at similar projects. Cullen first gained attention for the British romance Weekend while Maslany starred in the fantastical Two Lovers and a Bear just last year. This experience and the fact that the pair are a couple in real life should ensure that their performances will be winningly tender.

But there’s a lot more to unpack with The Other Half, starting with the conspicuous camerawork that is sure to turn some people off immediately. Rest assured that the cinematographer for this film is the impressive Bobby Shore, who handled both the thriller The Invitation and the coming-of-age drama Closet Monster last year. Shore boasts a strong resume of small films, and the stylistic flourishes I’ve seen him use are always in service of the story.

Since The Other Half is the feature debut for writer/director Joey Klein, we have nothing to use as a barometer for where he might take the film, but the trailer clearly shows that some psychological problems test the couple. This isn’t going to be two lovebirds squabbling but a relationship with real, serious obstacles. It’s a nice hint at the kind of depth that’s often missing from these stories, and hopefully it’s something that Klein and the rest of the cast and crew cash in on.

The Other Half is directed by Joey Klein and stars Tatiana Maslany and Tom Cullen. It will be released theatrically and through video-on-demand on March 10th, 2017. For international release dates, click here.

Do you think The Other Half will live up to its festival success? Let us know in the comments!