With just two films, writer, director, and actor Cooper Raiff has found a very specific voice that manages to be honest, relatable, and extremely earnest in equal measure. With his 2020 debut Shithouse, he created an almost Richard Linklater-esque romance that showed a completely unique take on loneliness and frustration with college life. In his 2022 film, Cha Cha Real Smooth, Raiff turned what could’ve been a simple rom-com into a story about finding yourself, knowing when to break away from a relationship, and gaining the maturity to become an adult. With his latest project, Hal & Harper, Raiff tries his hand at television with an eight-episode series created independently that reconfirms him as one of the most exciting up-and-coming entertainment creators working today, while telling a story that’s his most mature and intricate yet.
What Is ‘Hal & Harper’ About?

Image via Sundance Institute

As the title implies, Hal & Harper follows Hal (Raiff) and Harper (Lili Reinhart), a brother and sister who, as their father (Mark Ruffalo) says, had to grow up much faster than they should’ve. When the pair were kids, something traumatic happened to them, which wrecked their father and left these two reliant on each other. As adults, Hal and Harper have remained close—maybe too close. In his senior year of college, Hal frequently leaves his roommates to sleep on his sister’s couch, and the two are pretty much inseparable. Yet Harper has always had a sense of independence, even within her family; lately, she’s been trying to figure out the next step of her life, as well as whether she wants a future with her longtime girlfriend, Jesse (Alyah Chanelle Scott), or her coworker, Audrey (Addison Timlin).
Among all this, Hal and Harper’s father is getting ready to start a new family with his girlfriend Kate (Betty Gilpin), and preparing to sell their childhood home — yet he’s struggling to completely say goodbye to the past and move forward with this promising future. As we earn glimpses of what happened in their childhood, Hal & Harper offers flashbacks where Raiff plays the 7-year-old version of Hal, and Reinhart plays the 9-year-old version of Harper. Meanwhile, in the present, Hal, Harper, and their father try their best to leave their past in the past, but struggle to do so.
‘Hal & Harper’ Shows Cooper Raiff’s Growth as a Storyteller

Image Via Sundance Film Festival

Raiff wrote and directed all eight episodes of Hal & Harper over six years, and it’s a fascinating series to watch in conjunction with the rest of his career. Aspects of his other films come to light here, as if he’s expanding on those stories but also showing different angles to them. For example, in his senior year, Hal starts an on-and-off-again relationship with Abby (Havana Rose Liu), which feels very reminiscent of Shithouse in ways, but also almost like a version of that story that has more room to breathe and more directions to explore — especially in how Hal tries to remain friends with his roommates while still being attached at the hip to his sister. Meanwhile, Harper’s struggle between continuing her relationship with Jesse or starting a new one with Audrey also reminds of Dakota Johnson’s character in Cha Cha Real Smooth, who has to similarly decide which romantic path she wants to go down.
There’s also a maturity to Hal & Harper that Raiff has touched on in other projects, but really shines in this series. His movies almost have a wide-eyed optimism, but here, there’s a darkness behind those eyes relating to a past that every character is trying to avoid thinking about for too long. Hal is always making jokes, almost as if to distract himself, while Harper is used to retreating within and their father closes himself off to everyone who loves him. What makes this all work so beautifully, however, is that Raiff isn’t afraid of silence. We learn so much about these characters by how they spend their time alone, away from each other, whether it’s Hal and Harper’s father not being able to get out of bed and take care of his kids, or questions about the past that Harper only asks when no one else is around. Through Raiff’s direction, a simple montage set to the perfect song tells us so much about these characters without dragging us into exhausting exposition that bluntly explains who these three are.
It’s also truly impressive how well Raiff and Reinhart playing children works in Hal & Harper. It’s a clever way to show that these two, in fact, did grow up too fast, but the actors also play younger versions of their characterswith such a smart specificity and melancholy. Raiff is great as an excitable 7-year-old who talks a mile a minute and just wants to make a new friend, while Reinhart is truly moving at the 9-year-old Harper. Even the way that she looks at her fellow classmates shows that she simply isn’t on their youthful wavelength anymore. She’s changed, and she’s aware she’s not who she used to be anymore.
Raiff, Reinhart, Ruffalo, and the Entire Cast of ‘Hal & Harper’ Are Exceptional

Image by Jovelle Tamayo via Sundance Institute

Even though this is a series grounded in tragedy, it’s also genuinely hilarious. The rapport between Raiff and Reinhart is always perfect and feels like these two truly have spent 20+ years together and are dependent on each other. Even in Hal & Harper’s most heartbreaking moments, Raiff finds some clever, funny way to punctuate the darkness, whether it’s a character holding an ice cream cone during an incredibly traumatic moment or someone telling a joke at the wrong time.
What ties Hal & Harper together at its core is the incredible performances from the entire cast, which makes every combination of characters fascinating to watch, and makes us want the best for even the most minor characters. Reinhart, in particular, is a force of nature here, one of the quieter characters who often feels like she’s ready to burst. Especially in the aforementioned flashbacks, Reinhart makes Harper one of the most empathetic and harrowing characters, and there’s an honesty and truth in the way she explores this trauma.
Raiff is also excellent as someone who needs to find that maturity Harper found so long ago, and be content with being with just himself. Raiff is hysterical throughout the series, but can turn on a dime, turning into a frustrated, angry, and scared kid in a second. As his kids grow up around him, Ruffalo brilliantly presents depression with realism, as if some days, he can’t even get off the floor to feed Hal & Harper. Even when he thinks he’s gotten away from it, that depression comes back in full force to haunt him with the smallest reminder of his past. Also tremendous is Gilpin’s Kate, who deeply loves this family she finds herself, but is aware of the complex dynamic she’s walking into. Some of the most tender moments in the entire series revolve around Ruffalo and Gilpin trying to figure out who they are as a couple and individually in the lead-up to their child being born.
Cooper Raiff Creates a Rich World Where We Care About Every Character and Storyline

Image by Jovelle Tamayo via Sundance Institute

Hal & Harper’s entire cast of characters feels so fully realized and lived in, to the point that every presence is rich and worthy of exploration. Havana Rose Liu’s Abby is a great foil for Hal’s romantic interest, showing the maturity that he so often lacks. Both Alyah Chanelle Scott’s Jesse and Addison Timlin’s Audrey are presented in a way where we somehow want Harper to end up with both of them. Raiff wonderfully depicts the arc of Jesse and Harper’s young love in a montage that almost feels like an abbreviated Shithouse, but somehow even more powerful moments, despite the lack of any dialogue. Meanwhile, Audrey’s understanding and her deep care for Harper is something we can sense from just the way she looks at this woman she’s falling for. Every character gets their due, no matter how small, such as Hal’s roommate (Christopher Meyer), who goes on a brief road trip with Hal, and, in those few minutes, we learn so much about their relationship—and again, largely without dialogue. Hal & Harper knows that we need to be invested in these characters, and Raiff and his incredible cast do the work to make every one of them shine.
Hal & Harper is a type of TV show we don’t see too often, one that embraces silence and quieter moments, allowing these characters to breathe and let them grow naturally. Raiff’s series is also laugh-out-loud funny and heartbreakingly real in its approach to loss, love, and tragedy—which the show easily switches between in mere moments. Raiff had already proved with Shithouse and Cha Cha Real Smooth that he’s a writer and director who knows how to build a world of characters and bring an honesty to them that we rarely get in entertainment, but Hal & Harper feels like an even bigger step forward. With its pitch-perfect handling of extremely complex emotions and situations, and a truly remarkable cast across the board, we need more shows as emotionally vulnerable and beautifully earnest as Hal & Harper.
Hal & Harper had its world premiere at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival.

Hal & Harper

Cooper Raiff’s Hal & Harper is a beautifully earnest, moving, and hilarious dramedy with tremendous performances by Lili Reinhart and Mark Ruffalo.

Release Date

January 26, 2025

Runtime

110 minutes

Director

Cooper Raiff

Producers

Thomas Hartmann

Pros & Cons

Cooper Raiff knows how to make us care about each character and their complex relationships with compassion and love.
Raiff, Reinhart, and Ruffalo are all excellent as a family still struggling with past trauma.
Hal & Harper knows how to balances its comedy and drama perfectly.

Release Date

January 26, 2025

Director

Cooper Raiff