My Suicide

Thank you, Netflix, for introducing me to this little gem. Archie's Final Project (or, listed on Netflix by its original title, "My Suicide") caught my eye due to its themes of teen suicide and school controversies; I was the subject of a similar school controversy myself at 12-years-old that resulted in my expulsion and attempted suicide before such things were really discussed and explored in depth. Thus, anything that features these important themes attracts me like a fly to light.

Gabriel Sunday plays Archie Williams, a 17-year-old media geek who announces to his media class that his final project will be to film his suicide. He also seems to believe his entire life is a movie--as another review said, this is another interesting take on the Truman Show delusion that serves its own twists and turns. Thus begins one of the most unique and interesting movies I've ever seen. My Suicide is filmed almost like a documentary, as if we are, in fact, watching Archie's final project after his planned suicide. Interwoven between scenes of the aftermath of Archie's suicide film announcement are montages of colorful teenage visual ramblings, further character development of Archie and his troubled crush Sierra, and bursts of dark comedy. Sunday is absolutely mesmerizing to watch as Archie; he was just 19 when he played the role, and he plays it so believably. Undeniably charming, troubled, awkward, odd, yet fantastically skilled at playing both sides of the line between comedy and tragedy, Sunday is nothing short of amazing, and his few film/TV credits since this are baffling to me. Why in the world isn't this man in more stuff?

A total surprise to me was Sierra's inclusion in the story (played by Brooke Nevin). At first, I thought she would distract the film from its suicidal/teen angst themes and instead focus it on teenage romance. While there is an undeniable romantic connection between Archie and Sierra, it is realistically grounded in tragedy, a skewed immature teen vision of love (shown perfectly in a surprisingly intimate mutual cutting scene), and a shared troubled mental state. My Suicide is at times hard to watch because you are watching confused teens make bad decisions or simply refuse to take important decisions seriously with lax attitudes at the risk of fatal consequences; yet, because of that, it is utterly realistic and devastating. This movie made me both laugh out loud and dread the eventual ending as I feared these characters would make the ultimate decision. Without spoilers, I can say that at least one teenager in the movie commits suicide; while the act itself isn't shown, the aftermath is (including the body) and it's soul-wrenching. It's a depressingly beautiful scene that wallows in its finality and shocking morbidity; as someone who has attempted suicide, I appreciated the way this scene was handled.

My Suicide appears to have been quite the indie darling upon its release in 2009, evidenced by its many awards at multiple film festivals. It deserves them all, though they clearly didn't give the film the exposure it truly deserves. At times delightfully comedic and at other times oppressively tragic, My Suicide starts out like a teenager's school project and seems to mature along with its protagonist as the seconds go by and the darker themes crawl over each scene like an oppressive fog. Every second of its journey is interesting and hit me close to the heart.

I just saw this movie earlier tonight at a screening, and I can honestly say that it was an excellent movie. I do hope that it gets a theatrical release. It was very different from any other movie that I have ever seen and I think that's what makes it so interesting and delightful. It is a little dark and has a lot of vulgar language, but that it was makes the movie so realistic and able to relate to. And then again, it is about suicide. Also, the movie has a great message and has a a compelling way to get through to the audience, and more importantly, the youth. Because the youth is what it is mainly targeting towards. Definitely go see it because not a lot of movies like this are out there.

This film is about a boy who suffers from the fantasy unique to our age: the belief that one's entire life is a movie. The Truman Show is a good example of this: the notion that one's entire life is so perfect, so banal, repetitious and ordinary, that it must be scripted-- it cannot possibly be real. So this boy, Archie, records as much of his life as he possibly can on video, and edits it together in his room.

The problem is, no matter how much of his life he makes into a movie, it still feels meaningless. So he announces in his high school film class that he will make a movie in which he kills himself. That will be the plot and the grand finale.

His entire neighborhood starts gossiping about him, and his life changes enormously. This is when his real movie-making starts. Suicide is always lurking near him, and the entire movie is a play on various questions of suicide: when we kill ourselves, what are we doing? Is every death a 'suicide' because of the necessarily unsafe ways we live our lives? Is suicide an act of freedom and defiance, or of conformity and weakness-- or neither?

Some great cameos from unexpected actors add to the film a lot.

This is one of those rare films that covers the entire emotional spectrum, and does so effortlessly. It is as hilarious as it is tragic, as fragmented as it is thorough. If it receives the distribution it deserves, it will be a hit.

Just saw "My Suicide" at the Berlin Film Festival, where it was hidden in the "Generation" section for children's and youth-related movies. It is hard to describe the story and visual experience of this movie in just a few lines, so to spare you an extensive review, I'll just say this: "My Suicide" is one of the most powerful, most inventive and most thought-provoking movies in years, constructed in a tour-de-force of virtuoso editing (finishing this movie after principal photography took three years) that will blow the mind of any real film lover on this planet. And it is the most insightful, intelligent movie I have ever seen on the topic of teenage suicide. "My Suicide" is surely not only the best film of the entire festival, but one of the best films of this year - if somebody is daring enough to pick it up and distribute it properly. I pray for all movie freaks out there that somebody does.

My love for disturbing movies is brought up again after watching this fantastic film. Awesome graphics, raw emotion, and a realistic portrayal of human suffering is demonstrated throughout.

The actor who claimed Archie's role was both charming and relatable with his honest personality. His crush, Sierra, is the typical gorgeous blonde, but we find that she has way more to herself than her killer looks. I really liked this because it's a reminder that we truly never know a person until...well...until we get to know them.

This movie had me laughing, crying, and gaping at the screen as the fantasy-like animation and true-to-life filming switched back and forth. (Usually not in an obnoxious way, but some people might not like it.) It also does display pornography and nudity (not excessively, but perhaps enough to make someone uncomfortable) along with lots of swearing, so it may not suit everyone.

Though it was a strange and risky movie, it is definitely an awesome film. 4/5