Writer: Goran Dukic, Etgar Keret
Director: Goran Dukic
Cast: Patrick Fugit, Shannyn Sossamon, Shea Whigham, Tom Waits, Will Arnett, Leslie Bibb, John Hawkes, Mikal P. Lazarev
Rating: R
Studio: Lionsgate
Release Date: March 25, 2008

I’d seen multiple previews for Wristcutters: A Love Story on other DVD releases by Lionsgate. My initial thought was that I wanted to see it. I knew it was an independent film and while initially, the premise sounded original and the trailer looked decent, I know that Lionsgate isn’t always the greatest when it comes to their independent flicks. I have been let down by plenty of horror movies in the past (not that this is a horror flick), that bear the Lionsgate label. Still, I’ve had moments where I’ve actually enjoyed a release and those moments are always excellent. I just hoped the film lived up to my expectations and the anticipation I felt in wanting to see it.

Suicide is a funny thing. It’s not funny ha-ha. It’s funny ironic. When you think about suicide you think about troubled, sometimes tortured souls. You think about the tragically ill, just trying to find some piece of mind. You have to ask yourself a question about whether suicide is really acceptable by whatever powers that be are out there. Does God, Zeus, Athena, Buddha, the Flying Cow with horns or whatever you worship, accept the fact that suicide occurs? Do the powers that be punish you for your suicide attempt? Christians sure seem to think so, but do those who kill to escape pain face as much punishment as those who kill to get out of a shitty life situation?

Goran Dukic attempts to answer the question of where you go when you commit suicide in Wristcutters: A Love Story. He doesn’t really explore who is in charge of where a person goes (God or otherwise). He just calls them the People in Charge (PIC). In his skewed view of punishment for suicide, you have to imagine that most people envision this as their ultimate hell, though on occasion, some people find a better life in this suicidal world. I don’t know if this is the message Dukic was trying to get across, but I took this as a ‘life is what you make of it, no matter where you are’ kind of moral message. We might not get second chances, so giving up one life might not be aw wise decision. This movie is decent for the most part even though Wristcutters: A Love Story seems to fizzle out and lose its appeal at the end.

Release Information:
Wristcutters: A Love Story ran the film festival circuit when it was originally released in 2006. The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on January 24, 2006. From there Wristcutters: A Love Story traveled to the Philadelphia International Film Festival and the Gen Art Film Festival in April, the Brooklyn Academy of Music Festival in May, the Seattle International Film Festival in June, the Edinburgh Film Festival in August, the Raindance Film Festival in September, the Edmonton International and Lyon Festival Hors-Ecran in October, and the AFI Film Festival, Taipei Golden Horse, Oslo International, Stockholm International, and Gijon International Film Festivals in November to round out appearances in 2006.

In 2007, the film continued its festival run until it had a limited theatrical release in the U.S. on October 19, 2007. This film was released on DVD at the end of January 2008 in Russia and was recently released on March 25, 2008 on DVD, in the United States. In the meantime, Wristcutters: A Love Story continues to make its rounds at various film festivals. The DVD can be found at major retailers and online, where is available at Amazon for $19.99.

The Wristcutters: A Love Story Plot
When I first heard the title for this film, Wristcutters: A Love Story, I thought it was going to be an ironic and somewhat quirky comedy of sorts. It is, in that independent film kind of way and throughout most of the movie, I thoroughly enjoyed what I was watching. I didn’t expect the ending. Oh, the irony. I was expecting something different and it really wasn’t as ironic as I thought it’d be. I felt somewhat cheated and had this movie ended in a different way, I would have probably given it a higher rating.

I didn’t expect Wristcutters: A Love Story to be a feel good family film. I didn’t expect it to be predictable. I didn’t expect it to be something that would follow the path that it did in the end. The vast majority of the movie isn’t any of these things. In the end, it becomes predictable and the ending almost feels like a cop out. Goran Dukic is an independent filmmaker. He doesn’t have to bow down to any corporate BS that many of the commercial filmmakers seem to do and yet I feel like he made Wristcutters: A Love Story into what the Hollywood box office would have wanted the movie to be.

This guy has one of the last original thoughts in Hollywood. Nobody ever discusses what happens to people who commit suicide. Sure, it wasn’t his original idea, but he based it upon a short story that was an original idea. That story is called, “Kneller’s Happy Campers” and was written by Israeli writer, Etgar Keret. While I’ve not read this story, it’s been said that Dukic adapted the story from Keret’s original tale of a man looking for love in the afterlife, hence the “A Love Story” part of the title. Still, the irony I had hoped would surface in the ending fell flat in place of predictability and security. Dukic played it safe and while many will think this story is cute, those of us who like smart films (myself included) will be or already are disappointed with what was done to the ending.

Wristcutters: A Love Story begins with the suicide of Zia (Patrick Fugit). It’s not exactly clear why Zia has committed suicide though it becomes evident as the movie progresses. Zia cleans up his apartment, makes sure everything looks perfect, and then he slits his wrists. When he ‘wakes up’ he’s in the same place he was before he died. The world looks the same. It’s just slightly more dreary and pathetic than it was when he was alive. Zia soon realizes this is the afterlife, a punishment given to those who commit suicide. Everyone around him has killed themselves in some way or manner. Zia lives with this really weird, foreign roommate, and he often dreams about the girl he left behind when he died, Desiree (Leslie Bibb). In fact, he pretty much obsesses about her.

Zia becomes friends with this Russian guy named Eugene (Shea Whigham). Eugene died in a really funny way and he lives with his mom, dad, and brother. All of them have committed suicide. Zia and Eugene slum around for the most part, that is until Zia runs into a guy he knew when he was alive who tells him that Desiree has committed suicide. Zia thinks this must be a sign so he enlists Eugene to go on a road trip, in Eugene’s broken down car. At first, Eugene doesn’t want to go, but eventually he consents.

Along the way, the two pick up a hitchhiker, Mikal (Shannyn Sossamon). Mikal claims she’s been sent to this hellhole by mistake and is in search of the PIC (people in charge). All she knows is that they can reverse her path if it is proven it was a mistake and that the people in charge wear white. Thus begins one crazy road trip with three extremely different yet unusual characters. The road trip part is a fun journey to experience, while watching Wristcutters: A Love Story. However, the very end of the movie is what was the most disappointing.

The actors did well in their respective roles, even though I wasn’t sure about Sossamon, since I’d recently seen her in Catacombs and she annoyed me terribly in that movie. If it weren’t for the ending, I’d have no complaints with Wristcutters: A Love Story, except for maybe the obscurity of the black hole, but that’s more confusion with what it represents than sheer disappointment in its presence.

Storyline/Plot:
Replayability:
Acting:
Directing:

Audio/Visual:
The visual quality for Wristcutters: A Love Story is surprisingly good for an independent flick. It was enhanced at a 1.78:1 aspect ratio and is presented in anamorphic widescreen for 16×9 television sets. Everything looked clear and though Dukic used a special camera with specific bluish washed out tones, to give the afterlife that gritty, other-worldly effect, I was impressed by how well this was transferred. There are few minor instances of grain and dirt, but otherwise, it’s all gravy.

The audio for Wristcutters: A Love Story revolved around one interesting soundtrack. The mix is Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround in English. Available with closed captioning, subtitles are available in both English and Spanish. Wristcutters: A Love Story isn’t going to require volume toggling and while the soundtrack isn’t as spectacular as say, Transformers it gets the job done for this type of movie.

Visual:
Audio:

Bonus Features:
There are some decent bonus features on the Wristcutters: A Love Story DVD. The first is an informative and funny commentary. The commentary features Dukic, Patrick Fugit, Mikal Portnoi Lazarev (who plays Eugene’s love interest, Nanuk – and also produced the movie) and producer Tatiana Kelly. It’s fun to hear all the different perspectives on the film and also hear Dukic discuss the differences between Wristcutters: A Love Story and Kneller’s Happy Campers. While I might not have been fond of the ending, it’s interesting to hear Dukic’s vision for the film.

There is a behind-the-scenes, making of type featurette called, “Making the Final Cut: The Wristcutters Journey.” This has interviews with the cast and crew. It also discusses how quickly the powers that be (financiers) wanted the movie to be made and how the budget, which wasn’t huge, affected making the movie. There is more great stuff included in this featurette.

While the two aforementioned bonuses are the main ones for this set, there are other, smaller extras. There is a set of deleted scenes. There is a photo gallery feature called ‘Patrick’s On-Set Photo Gallery” and the final bonus feature is a Director’s Storybook Look-in. While there could have been more to make the Wristcutters: A Love Story DVD even more spectacular, what is here is fun and entertaining enough to be worthwhile.

Bonus Features:
Bottom Line:
Wristcutters: A Love Story has some great moments. The story is original. The plot is interesting. I just hated the end. If you aren’t sure if you’ll like Wristcutters: A Love Story I recommend you rent it first. You might not like the cliché ending either. If you do like this movie, I recommend purchasing Wristcutters: A Love Story right away. The visual and audio transfers are good and the extras are plentiful enough to make the set worth buying.

Overall Rating:

Technorati Tags: Wristcutters, A Love Story, Goran Dukic, Independent Film, Suicide, Patrick Fuget, DVD Review, Lionsgate, Romance, Ironic Humor

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