The Suicide Theory

Intriguing movie, seriously sit back and enjoy; twists to come, great acting and incredible story!

With a provocative name like THE SUICIDE THEORY and little knowledge of its story, I had no idea what to expect from this new independent Australian feature film. Suspecting something gratuitous and/or deeply disturbing I was surprised and relieved to be confronted with a unique and original film, which was dramatic and comical in equal measure. It tells the story of two men who are both dealing with unimaginable grief. One of them (Steven) has harnessed his darkness by becoming a gun-for-hire while the other man (Percival) is desperately suicidal. Percival believes himself to be cursed when no method of suicide actually works and so he employs Steven to kill him. The two men form an unlikely bond when Steven's attempts to kill Percival all fail. The story is complex and to reveal any more would be to ruin it for you. So good is this film that I uncomfortably held in one of the biggest pisses I've ever had to take. I kept waiting for a moment to quickly duck out but the film was so gripping that I couldn't leave. Every beat seemed important and to have left the cinema, even for a moment, would have ruined the film. I am struggling to find any criticisms with THE SUICIDE THEORY aside from the fact that the title may be off putting to many people... however it is a very appropriate title. Director Dru Brown has crafted an amazing looking film with rock-solid performances from every single player. Leo Cain and Steve Mouzakis are fantastic as the two leads and their on screen chemistry is undeniable. Both deliver sincere and outstanding performances. The script is good too and moves from beat to beat without drooping and it keeps the story moving at full steam ahead. The film is shot well, lit well and edited well. It's an accomplished film, which will stick with me for some time. I am already wanting to watch it again and cannot wait to see what good things Dru Brown moves onto from here. This is an exceptional film.

From my website FakeShemp.Net

I watched this film knowing nothing about the plot, and the premise got me immediately hooked. A killer gets hired by suicidal man to kill him, as he has a "theory" that he cannot die, and will only be able to die once he does not want to die. The killer man job is to figure out how to kill this man, i.e., how to make him not want to die and then kill him. The killer tries to kill him a couple of times, not believing the theory, but fails, until the hard evidence makes him start to consider the theory.

Once the premise is established, we get to know little by little the background of both protagonists, and discover how they are somehow connected, and poses the questions is everything happening for a reason? Or is it us that we give reason to the inevitable coincidences that occur in our lives? This is done not subtly at all, but it's a good question to be asked.

In the end, we reach a resolution though a series of events that are connected for a reason, or in the other interpretation, through a series of coincidences too strong not to think they were meant to happen.

My only minor criticism is that the "twists" are very predictable, but this is minor, since possibly the intention was not to give a shocking twists, but to show how a series of unlikely connections makes us wander if they are happening for a reason, the main question of the movie.

Quite interesting though not spectacular film, it did leave me thinking a bit, and I enjoyed my time through the darkness of the tone, the character development, and the questions thrown unanswered by the movie.

Acting is superb and the director tells us so much about the characters with closeups. As in all good thrillers you don't get the full impact of the film until the very end. But you must be very observant to catch some key elements of the plot to put all the clues together. I had to watch it twice to see some key scenes.

The writing is excellent as well. There are a few chuckles but nothing that diminishes the intensity of this film. The writing reveals the characters very well in their actions. Great job of revealing complex characters.

Philosophy plays a part on another level. So enjoy and watch it several times. I will probably watch it again.

The Suicide Theory is as dark as the title suggests, but beyond that, this film is well calculated and very deep. Whilst it does suffer from a weak story at times and odd pacing, The Suicide Theory revives itself with it's original, fresh take on the hit-man genre. Whilst I wouldn't call this film an action film, it defiantly borders psychological thriller cross drama, giving you more questions than answers about mortality and the meaning of life.

The Suicide Theory is captivating, good to watch and one film that surprised me a bit. The themes explored in this film may be controversial to some, but ultimately, this film produces one of the most ballsy stories that has ever come on screen.