Wristcutters: A Love Story (2006)

A film set in a strange afterlife way station that has been reserved for people who have committed suicide.

Director:

Goran Dukic

Writers:

Goran Dukic (screenplay), Etgar Keret (short story "Kneller's Happy Campers")

Stars:

Patrick Fugit, Shea Whigham, Tom Waits

8 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Patrick Fugit	...	Zia
Shannyn Sossamon	...	Mikal
Shea Whigham	...	Eugene
Leslie Bibb	...	Desiree
Mark Boone Junior	...	Mike (as Mark Boone Jr.)
Abraham Benrubi	...	Erik
Cameron Bowen	...	Kostya
Mikal P. Lazarev	...	Nanuk
Clayne Crawford	...	Jim
Tom Waits	...	Kneller
Chase Ellison	...	Kid Kostya
John Hawkes	...	Yan
Will Arnett	...	Messiah
Adam Gifford	...	Gas Station Attendant (as Adam G.)
Mary Pat Gleason	...	Eugene's Mother

Storyline

Despondent over his breakup with Desiree, Zia slashes his wrists and goes to an afterlife peopled by suicides, a high-desert landscape dotted by old tires, burned-out cars, and abandoned sofas. He gets a job in a pizza joint. By chance, Zia learns that Desiree offed herself a few months after he did, and she's looking for him. He sets off with Eugene (an electrocuted Russian rocker) to find her, and they pick up a hitchhiker, Mikal, who's looking for the People in Charge, believing she's there by mistake. They're soon at the camp of Kneller, where casual miracles proliferate. They hear rumors of a miraculous king. Can Zia find Desiree? Then what? Where there's death there's hope.

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Plot Keywords:

suicide | hitchhiker | death | afterlife | camping | 

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Taglines:

Love will always exist, even after you've "offed" yourself.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Fantasy | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and disturbing content involving suicide

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English Russian

Release Date:

2 November 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

Csuklónyiszálók

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$42,808 (USA) (19 October 2007)

Gross:

$104,077 (USA) (26 October 2007)

Company Credits

Production Co:

No Matter Pictures, Crispy Films, Adam Sherman

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Eugene kills himself on stage by pouring a beer onto his guitar, he is drinking "Dead Guy Ale", brewed by Rogue Brewing Company.

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Goofs

Approximately 44 minutes into the movie, when Zia first encounters the note written by Desiree, she writes the letter "I" in cursive, when he goes outside to show it to his two friends, the letter "I" in the note is shown again in print.

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Quotes

Mikal: Where are you going?
Eugene: East-ish.
Mikal: East-ish?

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Connections

References Nanook of the North (1922)

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Soundtracks

Dead and Lovely
Written by Kathleen Brennan and Tom Waits
Performed by Tom Waits
Courtesy of Anti

User Reviews

I just didn't feel it.

I stumbled upon the trailer on the internet, and it looked like it had all the makings of a quirky indie film: an interesting setup, a road trip, Tom Waits, so I was excited to see it, and... I don't know, it just fell kind of flat for me. It was neither all that funny, or all the dramatic, just sort of plodded along. There were whole spans of this movie that were aimless and without spark. The characters never become full or interesting. It's not bad, it's not good, it felt like cinematic purgatory. I just kept waiting for the movie to take off, but then it was over. Patrick Fugit does a good job trying to make an incredibly uncompelling character watchable, and Shea Wigham's a riot when given the chance. Still, you'll spend the movie wishing there had been a more experienced director, crew and a more innovative writer (Charlie Kaufman, vielleicht?)