Six years after their sleeper hit The Climb, best friends Mike and Kyle are back for more. As writers/directors/actors, this pair has found their niche: hilarious, beautiful, anti-romantic comedies with a lot on their mind. Despite a bigger budget and a bit more star power, they’ve maintained their dead-pan, wholesome, and cynical sense of humor. Splitsville is not just the funniest film of the year- it’s the best.
The Climb is one of the funniest movies I have ever seen. It’s also ambitiously shot, especially as far as indie comedies go. With this in mind, I was worried that the talented pair of friends/writers may not have been able to capture the energy that made their first film so infectious. Boy, was I wrong! Michael Angelo Covino and Kyle Marvin continue to bring a fresh and inspired take on the tired comedy genre. It’s everything that most comedy films have been lacking for a long, long time.
What elevates the pair’s chemistry on screen is their chemistry offscreen, as the two have been lifelong friends, and it shows. The Climb introduced us to the flawed bromance of Mike and Kyle, and I’ve been waiting to see them back on the big screen for years. I’m happy to report that Splitsville takes everything that was on display in The Climb and doubles it. I was lucky enough to see an advanced screening of the film, along with a Q&A with the two leads/writers/director. Here’s what I, and they, think of the film.
Keeping us on our toes
As writers, Covino and Marvin love to keep things spicy. Both of their films do a great job of keeping the audience guessing just as much as they’re laughing. And this audience laughed more than any audience I can remember sitting with. There were also moments where I heard people audibly say “oh my god!” or “oh no!”. This is what the movies are for. The more unpredictable, the more hysterical, and the more frustrating, the better! Like The Climb, Splitsville is divided into chapters, each more exciting and unrelenting than the last.
The majority of scenes are composed of laugh-out-loud dialogue being performed back and forth like a diabolical pickleball match of wit and insult. There are various beats played for shock value as well, which always sneak up on you. The storytelling is fresh and enticing, while still maintaining an air of “dumb-smart-comedy”, a la The Farrelly Brothers. The film’s familiar yet ingenious approach to comedy really sets it a part from anything else being made today.
By infusing a satire of modern love with old school comedy techniques, the film is constantly keeping you between the edge of your seat and slapping your knee- literally. I am not ashamed to admit that I physically slapped my knees several times during the runtime, as well as cried tears of joyous laughter. (Honestly, I don’t think I ever laughed so hard in my life. My ribs and face were sore after the screening).
An unbeatable cast
Covino and Marvin were meant to be the next best buddy-comedy duo. It was written in the stars. While The Climb featured the likes of experienced character actors Gale Rankin, Talia Balsam, and the late great George Wendt, these two were more-or-less unknowns. Well, not anymore! With their first feature, the two gave such an unabashed display of natural and inspired acting, writing, and directing, that their new film garnered quite a few A-List stars.
Dakota Johnson and Adria Arjona are two of the hottest stars in the movies these days, literally and figuratively. While they have both shown quite the range over the years, they feel right at home in such a zesty and screwball romantic comedy of errors. In fact, the whole foursome is one of the most natural ensembles I’ve seen in any piece of media, ever. They bounce off of each other, physically and verbally, like silver balls in a love-drunk pinball machine.
I asked Covino and Marvin if they had these two in mind when writing the script. The short answer? “Yes.” The long answer being that they recently made friends with Johnson, and after reading the script, she was sold. They also both enjoyed Arjona’s performance in Hitman (who didn’t!) and she quickly got on board with the project. It’s no surprise really, they could probably get anyone to star in their film.
How to make a comedy in the 21st century
I had the pleasure of sitting front row at an early screening of Splitsville at the historic Coolidge Corner Theater. After watching the film with one of the liveliest crowds I’ve ever heard, we had the grand opportunity to hear about the film from the Horses’ mouths. Michael Angelo Covino and Kyle Marvin are everything I’d hoped for. They say don’t meet your heroes, but in this case, I disagree. Covino and Marvin were down to earth, and as cynical yet wholesome as their on-screen personas would have you believe. They had fun with the moderator, and the audience, bringing a warm and welcoming energy to the stage.
Just two guys who love movies
“Watching action movies these days- they’re all shaky cams or up in your face, you can usually tell when they’re using a stunt double” Covino says, when discussing his approach for directing a fight scene. “We wanted you to able to tell that, yeah, that’s us doing on our own stunts.” They also discussed how modern comedies tend to feel very stale and fall flat. While their film appears meticulously planned out, when asked about his approach to directing Covino says “Eh, we were kinda wingin’ it”.
It makes sense, as the two also discussed their sparing but brilliant use of improv at times. Their sense of humor and friendship bleeds from the dialogue, and the fun they all had on set is very apparent. The story also features various real life inspirations, one of which results in the most shocking sequence in the film. And their biggest influences, film-wise? Comedies of the 60s and 70s, specifically Italian films such as Divorce Italian Style and The Pizza Triangle.
Overall, I could just tell that these two really care. Not about making a super deep, meaningful, highbrow film– just something to make us all laugh. And yet, in creating such an irreverent and zany comedy, and tackling very relevant relationship topics, they’ve created something more meaningful than any arthouse or blockbuster film to come out in 2025.
Splitsville is in select theaters now, and will have a wider release on September 5th. Go see it.
