The Skeleton Twins

Synopsis: Estranged sister and brother Maggie (Kristen Wiig) and Milo (Bill Hader) both attempt suicide on the same day in different cities although neither succeeds. When Milo is released into Maggie’s care the pair return to their hometown where family secrets and past hurts bubble to the surface.

Were it not for the strong performances by Wiig and Hader, two talented comedians who feature together in television’s Saturday Night Live, The Skeleton Twins could have been overdone and melodramatic. Yet their performances are understated and natural, endowing this dysfunctional family dramedy with realism and sensitivity.

One of the film’s greatest strengths is the use of a shared sense of humour to highlight the close relationship Maggie and Milo enjoyed before their estrangement. The way they talk to one another, the mutual pleasure in dancing to 80s bands and dressing up for Halloween, as well as scenes that to great comedic effect show the pair experimenting with nitrous oxide at the dental clinic where Maggie works, have a way of cutting through the over-arching melancholy and also imbue the film with a strong sense of what has been lost.

The script, by director Craig Johnson with Mark Heyman, cleverly interweaves Milo’s recovery, aided by Maggie’s doting husband, Lance (expertly played by Luke Wilson), with Maggie’s descent into sexual promiscuity and eventually, a second suicide attempt, ultimately posing the question, who is caring for who?

With its simple plot line, it is reminiscent of Kenneth Lonergan’s drama, You Can Count On Me, a film that had Mark Ruffalo and Laura Linney as brother and sister survivors of a family tragedy. Yet with its darker subplots involving Milo’s relationship with his high school teacher, Rich (Ty Burrell), the revelation of a family history of suicide, and its themes of regret and failure, The Skeleton Twins is far edgier. The ending is rather unfortunately unbelievable but with its deft use of black humour and its strong performances for the most part The Skeleton Twins is pensive and moving.

Want more about this film?

Want something different?