NOOB FILM REVIEW - OTHER HALF directed by HAEVINDHRAN PILLAY for 15th KKIFF

SYNOPSIS
Two strangers engage in what seems to be a heartfelt conversation about their ideal partners, highlighting the surprising nature of connection and the quest for the right soulmate in a world of possibilities.

REVIEW
Here is an excellent example of what a short film should show and not say. From the color start of the film, it turns black and white as the date starts. The coffee cups are placed with the milk pattern in the opposite direction (up and down). The same goes for the title montage (the word 'other' is in white and the word 'half' is black).

FORESHADOWING AND MONTAGE PLAY
The director uses film language to discuss the couple's fate, whether they will make it together or not. First, their shirt color is also of the opposite tone (one is black, and another is black), and they are never in the same frame together.

Some ‘hope’ is shown, e.g., when the guy says that he likes a girl who knows what she wants, and the girl right away calls the waiter and comments about her coffee being a bit too thick.

When she described her type of guy, she preferred one who watches anime. The camera straight away showed the guy's phone with One Piece wallpaper.

The only time where the couple is together in one frame is near the end, but yet still there is a big gap between them in the middle of the screen. And the finale confirmed the earlier hints when actually the couple are not even sitting at the same table.

It's Hitchcock's play on the theory of montage iinm. The last frame means something totally different if you change the middle frame with something else.

A simple story yes. But it is about the way it is shown.

It can be watched here
https://www.kkiff.com/four-short-films-by-sabah-film-lab-2024/