Wilbur Wants To Kill Himself

A beautifully charming and self-effacing deadpan comedy about death and melancholy, "Wilbur Wants to Kill Himself" has some of the oddball charm once found in the Bill Forsyth comedies "Local Hero" and "Comfort and Joy."

Living in the rainy gloom of Glasgow, Wilbur (Jamie Sives) has one goal, and that's to end it all. The trouble is, he constantly fails. His older brother, Harbour (Adrian Rawlins), is his polar opposite. Everything in life looks agreeable and workable to him. However, soon after marrying Alice (Shirley Henderson), a single mother, Harbour's optimism about life gets put to the test. Wilbur, meanwhile, begins to re-assess what it means to be alive."Wilbur Wants to Kill Himself" has enough guile to take death as both fact and something to tweak. Danish director Lone Scherfig creates a beautiful balance between dread and the dreadfully funny. She gets you laughing at sublime jokes that can also cause heartache. "Wilbur Wants to Kill Himself" is an offbeat comedy with a twinge. Starring Jamie Sives, Adrian Rawlins, Shirley Henderson and Lisa McKinley. Directed by Lone Scherfig. Written by Lone Scherfig and Anders Thomas Jensen. Produced by Sisse Graum Olsen. A Thinkfilm release. Comedy/Drama. Not yet rated. Running time: 105 min