Dvd Review: Wristcutters

***Note***

Nothing will be spoiled. 

***endNote***

Approaching this review, I cannot escape the fact that this film is a romantic comedy about suicide and the “life” that comes after. It’s not an afterlife, because this implies that there is some closure to your previous life. In Wristcutters, it’s a little different. When you off yourself, you don’t go to heaven or hell, you end up living another crappy life in a world that is just bad enough to make you pine for your original crappy life.  

To mirror the degraded, copy of a copy nature of the land of the dead, director Goran Dukic, puts the colours out of phase, the film looks like a pair of worn-out, acid washed jeans. Furthermore, no-one cares about anything: jobs, responsibilities, etc. We mainly see people getting drunk or just standing around. Which leads to a somewhat strange question: where does all the food, electricity and everything come from? 

We meet Zia, living his unremarkable life and subsequently killing himself. But instead the release he desires, he’s even more pent up: he works a do nothing job at a pizza parlor and constantly fights with his roommate. He meets Eugene, an eastern European rock musician, who has a unique view on this strange new world. Soon, Zia finds out his former girlfriend is also a suicide case, so he and Eugene set out on a road trip to find her. Enter the second love interest, Mikal, the sexy hitch-hiker, who may or may not be where she is supposed to be. Apparently, the people in charge of running the show are sloppy in the record keeping.  

The story develops some real heart as the trio form some chemistry and reaches a crescendo when they run into Kneller and his band of happy campers. As Kneller reveals the nature of the land in weird riddles, Zia and Mikal realize that they both long for the same things in this life and their last. 

Though the characters talk about their deaths, they don’t try to explain their actions. They mostly lament how things haven’t changed in any particular way. When Zia complains that going out makes him depressed, Eugene quips “So what are you going to do? Kill yourself?” 

This film has is pretty heart-warming despite its morbid nature. It’s a little heavy at times but a sense of gravity does bring an appropriate air of drama. It’s a interesting concept and it’s pretty fun to watch.  

As a footnote, the music that is featured in the film comes from a band called Gogol Bordello, a self-proclaimed gypsy-punk band. Their songs really bring an eclectic, rustic feel to the film and I liked that very much.

Sources: Wristcutters online , Gogol Bordello