The queer romance from Oliver Hermanus arrives in theaters Sept. 12. Paul Mescal and Josh O'Connor are starcrossed lovers in tender The History of Sound trailer

The queer romance from Oliver Hermanus arrives in theaters Sept. 12.

Paul Mescal and Josh O'Connor are star-crossed lovers in tender The History of Sound trailer

The queer romance from Oliver Hermanus arrives in theaters Sept. 12.

By Jessica Wang

Jessica is a staff writer at , where she covers TV, movies, and pop culture. Her work has appeared in Bustle, NYLON, Cosmopolitan, InStyle, and more. She lives in California with her dog.

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Published on July 24, 2025 12:05PM EDT

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Josh O'Connor and Paul Mescal in 'The History of Sound'. Credit:

Courtesy of MUBI

Paul Mescal and Josh O'Connor play lovers wrest apart by time and circumstance in the trailer for *The History of Sound*, a queer romance from director Oliver Hermanus.

Set in 1917 America against the shadows of World War I, the feature follows Lionel (Mescal), a young, promising music student who meets David (O'Connor) at the Boston Conservatory, where the two bond over their shared love of folk music. Years later, they reconnect in Maine for a musical project. The reunion and ensuing love affair begins to "shape the course of Lionel's life far beyond his own awareness," per the synopsis.

The trailer traces the star-crossed lovers' first meeting, later chronicling the divergent paths their lives take when David appears to be drafted to fight in the war. "There was a moment when I realized I had probably never been as happy as I was when collecting songs," Lionel says longingly in his future life without David, as vignettes of their time together intersperse his memory.**

Molly Price, Alison Bartlett, and Chris Cooper also star in the film, which is based on a short story by Ben Shattuck.

"I've been living with this film, this story, for five years," Hermanus said in a ruminative director's note. "This film has been a personal and defining journey; it has moved me to a new country, educated me about the power of music and song, it has conjured a re evaluation of love and the bonds that last a lifetime."**

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The film is "not simply the story of queer lives hidden due to a time of denial, of shame and secrecy.," Hermanus added. "It is the story of a man's life, expressed through the power of sound — as memory, as emotion, as family."**

Josh O'Connor in 'The History of Sound'.

Courtesy of MUBI

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"Made with a deep affection for cinema that does not shout or scream its intention," the director continued, the film "is an offering of an idea, a very potent one: what if one's first love, one's great love, and one's last love are all in one, and all too soon in one's life? What is it to live a life that is an echo? What does it sound like, in retrospect? And if offered a choice, would you change the course of your life's path?"

Mescal most recently appeared in *Gladiator II, Foe,* and *All of Us Strangers,* whereas O'Connor's most recent titles include *Challengers, Bonus Track,* and *Lee.******The History of Sound* opens Sept. 12.**

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