Wristcutters: A Love Story (2006, USA/UK)

In many ways, Wristcutters: A Love Story is just that - a pretty conventional love story. The good stuff is in the details. After his girlfriend dumps him, Zia (Patrick Fugit) kills himself by - you guessed it - slitting his wrists. Once he's dead, he finds himself in an afterlife that is entirely populated by suicides. He gets a crappy job, an even crappier apartment, and tries not to think too much about his ex-girlfriend. After randomly discovering that she killed herself not a month after he did, Zia enlists his only friend, Russian punk rocker Eugene (a hilarious Shea Whigham), to go on a road trip in search of her. On the way, they pick up Mikal (Shannyn Sossamon - perhaps the only role I've never disliked her in), a sign-defacing hitchhiker who's convinced that she's not supposed to be dead. What happens from that point is in some ways quite obvious, but it's the execution that's novel. The suicide afterworld is a fascinating construction, with its own set of rules and its own grim, grey desert look. The dialog is charming, the players often more so, and there is a host of excellent cameos by the likes of Tom Waits, Will Arnett, and John Hawkes.

It's a shame that Wristcutters never got the theatrical release it deserved, as it's certainly a better indie film than many I've seen in the last few years, especially the romantic comedies. I suppose the premise of a movie built around suicide made most distributors think twice. It's off-kilter without being cloyingly so, and I hope it picks up a cult audience on DVD. I also hope that first-time director Goran Dukic doesn't find his career stunted before it really begins; he's a talent to keep an eye on.