See You Then

Still from See You Then (2021)
See You Then is a drama about two women, one trans and one cis, who reunite after a ten-year absence. The two, Naomi (Lynn Chen) and Kris (Pooya Mohseni), spend the night catching up and coming to terms with the different directions their lives have gone in. The film premiered at the 2021 South by Southwest Film Festival. Written and directed by Mari Walker, See You Then is a thoughtful look at womanhood.

Premise. At its core, the film is about two women and their relationship with one another. When the duo separated, the trans woman was still male-presenting. They explore their past relationship and what their present relationship could be in their long and important conversation. It's a very realistic premise that will make audiences reflect on their own past relationships.

Talking. The entire 74-minute runtime is just the two of them talking. This is not a visual film. The actor performances are not spectacular. The characters aren’t all that interesting as they are supposed to be just regular people. This drama lacks a substantial draw for audiences. There's nothing to hold a viewer’s attention throughout the film as there is no real conflict. See You Then might be better served as a radio drama if those are still produced.

Topics. The main characters of this movie touch on a lot of important topics and because everything is just said flat out, audiences will leave the film knowing exactly how the film feels about all these issues. The women talk about a wide range of feminine issues such as motherhood, sex, privilege, the cis to trans transition, flirting, male companionship, and female friendship. There isn’t much subtext so it’s best to not look at the dialogue as dialogue but as something of a lecture or meditation on the movie’s topics.

See You Then is an uneventful film despite its important subject matter.

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