TIFF 2026: ‘Half’ Review
After being ambushed by bandits and left for dead, twin siblings Ethan and Ivy (Ranjith Sajeev and Aiswarya Raj) are beyond broken. Abused and brutalized, their bodies lay dragged off the side of the road in a mixture of blood and dirt. That is, until nightfall, when their wounds heal and Samjad’s latest film, HALF, mutates into a revenge arc with two charismatic vampires at its helm—each ready to burn the world down to deliver vengeance. India’s answer to From Dusk Till Dawn by way of The Night Comes For Us, Samjad takes the curry western to Hell and back with a bloodthirsty twist. While everything outside its characters’ wrath lacks the same impact, HALF rips through its desert setting with varied action, elevated by an infectious soundtrack and relentless energy.
Brutal sequences of dismemberment and impalement colour the violent world that the film’s protagonists tear through with fervour. When we’re introduced to the antagonists of the film—a family of bandits luring unsuspecting drivers off the main road before killing them and stripping their car for parts—it’s already clear how much they’re begging for punishment. After they derail Ivy’s trip to her new job in Pai Nagar, they somehow reach new heights of despicableness thanks to a couple of grotesque embellishments by the criminals; embellishments that compel Ethan and Ivy to decimate everything in their path. Police overlooking the crimes and the local community turning a blind eye bring local town corruption into the fold, giving Samjad’s film a neo-western texture. It avoids leaning on tropes from its myriad influences by simply always mixing up its ingredients.
HALF also never relents in its violence. With action choreography from Very Tri Yulisman (The Raid 2), every brawl is punctuated by gnarly practical effects and bone-crunching sound design. Thanks to Ethan and Ivy’s charismatic brother-sister dynamic and having lived as vampires for as long as they have, the two have a rapport that makes every action scene entertaining. An early bar fight sees Ethan wearing a Brothers of Destruction T-shirt as he decimates everyone in his path, and Ivy slips her headphones on to fully savour the combination of music and mayhem. The two fight in tandem, not unlike Hammer Girl and Baseball Bat Man (who is also played by Tri Yulisman) in The Raid 2, but their relationship is a little more defined. That leads the film in much more upbeat directions, even as it coats the screen in blood splatter. Comedic moments are frequently injected throughout HALF without ever losing a step in its viciousness.
Once the film’s inciting event kicks off Ethan and Ivy’s crusade, Samjad and co-writer Praveen Viswanath integrate action naturally, evading staleness by varying the types of action on display. From the cruelty inflicted on Ethan and Ivy to blistering car chases that turn into chaotic martial-arts brawls, HALF always positions itself for something fresh within its trajectory of violence. The camera is often playful, thanks to cinematographer Pappinu, who captures the flow of action between siblings with a steady hand. It’s also a film bursting with cool images, especially since the screenplay bucks vampire-film expectations with clever lore that lets Ethan and Ivy stay in the daylight but only see while wearing dark sunglasses. The way the film weaves its world-building into the set pieces is invigorating and subtly integrated.
HALF is the kind of action movie that keeps you satisfied throughout, but it still occasionally tries to be more than pure, uncut midnight fuel. For all the gore and mayhem that the twins unleash, every attempt to nuance the world around them feels half-baked, especially in the film’s final few moments. The backstory behind Ethan and Ivy’s upbringing and supernatural abilities is also light, emphasizing their close relationship instead. This isn’t too much of a problem, but it’s a little surprising given how much time is spent in the beginning before things go awry. Still, HALF runs the gamut of cool set pieces and dastardly villains, making a meal out of its premise with close attention to turning brutal action into a crowd-pleasing rip through the desert. Much like Jean Luc Herbulot’s Saloum or Robert Rodriguez’s From Dusk Till Dawn, it brings together action and horror with a light touch and a heavy emphasis on blood-soaked fun.
The 51st Toronto International Film Festival takes place between September 10th and 20th. HALF celebrates its World premiere on September 18th as part of TIFF’s Midnight Madness program. You can find the full list of films selected for the festival here.
