Wilbur Wants to Kill Himself (2002)

The chronically suicidal Wilbur and his good-hearted big brother Harbour are in their thirties, when their father dies, leaving them with nothing but a worn down second-hand bookshop in Glasgow.

Director:

Lone Scherfig

Writers:

Lone Scherfig, Anders Thomas Jensen

Stars:

Jamie Sives, Adrian Rawlins, Shirley Henderson

10 wins & 21 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jamie Sives	...	Wilbur
Adrian Rawlins	...	Harbour
Shirley Henderson	...	Alice
Lisa McKinlay	...	Mary
Mads Mikkelsen	...	Horst
Julia Davis	...	Moira
Susan Vidler	...	Sophie
Robert McIntosh	...	Taylor
Lorraine McIntosh	...	Ruby
Gordon Brown	...	Wayne
Mhairi Morrison	...	Claire (as Mhairi Steenbock)
Andrew Townsley	...	Doctor
Coral Preston	...	Jenny
Colin McAllister	...	Male Supervisor
Owen Gorman	...	Porter

Storyline

The good-hearted Harbour has spent his whole life trying to take care of his motherless and suicidal little brother, Wilbur. The brothers are inseparable. When in their thirties, they lose their father and inherit his second-hand bookshop. One day Alice enters the shop with her little daughter. Alice is a cleaning lady at the nearby hospital and she sells the books that the patients leave behind. The daughter Mary yearns for a home where the books don't always get sold. Harbour falls in love with Alice and soon all four of them are closely intertwined in each other's lives - and perhaps even deaths.

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Plot Keywords:

suicide by slashing one's wrists | death | snow | death of brother | brother in law sister in law relationship | 

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Taglines:

Meet a man dying to live.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and some disturbing images

Did You Know?

Trivia

One of a more or less successful series of foreign language film made by Danish filmmakers using Danish money, after the success of Danish language films around the world. Others include Breaking the Waves (1996), Dancer in the Dark (2000), It's All About Love (2003), I Am Dina (2002), Dogville (2003), Skagerrak (2003) and The King Is Alive (2000).

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Quotes

Alice: Don't you have a pair of scissors?
Harbour: No. We don't dare have anything sharp around. I've got a wee brother.

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Connections

Featured in Filmbyen, la nouvelle Mecque du cinéma? (2007)

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Soundtracks

Auld Lang Syne
(uncredited)
(when Wilbur tries to cook the duck)

User Reviews

Twisted, modern take on 'Harold and Maud'

Interesting film, but this viewer was far less impressed than the Scandinavian reviewers. Performances were great overall, though some deliveries of the clumsiest lines clunked (and Henderson's babydoll voice really irritates) Some great scenes, but the black comedy is uneven (lost in translation?)/ script patchy. All that bloody backstory for Wilbur-- was Harbour meant to be justifying the selfishness of his brother or.... what? Scherfig does a wonderful job in finding the humanity of difficult, odd characters (in 'Italian for beginners' too) Wish she'd cut the stuff that didn't work because it tries to hard to be odd. And more Mikkelsen please... what he evokes in the twitch of an eyebrow-- much more impressive than all that talk. Interesting but flawed... a director to watch, however.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Spain]

Country:

Denmark UK Sweden France

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 November 2002 (Denmark)

Also Known As:

Dos hermanos

Filming Locations:

Glasgow Necropolis, Glasgow, Strathclyde, Scotland, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$4,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$13,747, 14 March 2004

Gross USA:

$235,294

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,873,482

Company Credits

Production Co:

Zentropa Entertainments, Wilbur Ltd., Scottish Screen

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1