Wristcutters: A Love Story - Plot

Plot

After Zia commits suicide, he finds himself in an afterlife limbo much the same as life, just slightly worse. Here the color is dim, there are no stars, and no one can smile. This strange realm is populated by people who have committed suicide, such as Eugene, a Russian musician who lives with his mother, father, and brother – all suicide victims. Eugene kills himself on stage by pouring a beer he is drinking onto his electric guitar. Together they waste most of their afterlives in bars, until Zia learns from a friend, Brian, that his ex-girlfriend, Desiree, has also committed suicide. He and Eugene take to the road to find her, in Eugene's rundown car. Early on, it is revealed that Eugene's car has two idiosyncrasies: a sort of black hole underneath the passenger seat where items that are dropped disappear forever and broken headlights that cannot be fixed by the most adept of mechanics. On their trip, they pick up hitchhiker Mikal, who insists there has been a mistake, and she is seeking the "people in charge" (a.k.a. the PIC) in order to be sent back.

After a few adventures across the country, the trio is traveling on a desolate highway, when Mikal pushes a button, miraculously activating the broken lights on Eugene's car. Shortly thereafter, they come upon a man lying in the middle of the dark road, and must veer off the road, wrecking the car, to avoid hitting him. They discover the man, Kneller, an eccentric commune leader, had fallen asleep while looking for his dog. He invites them back to his camp, where they quickly discover that minor "miracles" occur, as long as the campers remain apathetic about the result. The group stays with the camp longer than intended, and Zia begins to obsess over the miracles and his inability to perform them. When contrasting this to Mikal's obsession with the people in charge, she reveals that her death was an accidental overdose. Eugene meets a young woman, Nanuk, whom he romances. Just as Mikal and Zia discuss their plans to leave Kneller's camp, another camper, Yan, emerges from the woods with news that Kneller's dog has been abducted by a cult leader called "Messiah King". Kneller, Zia, Mikal, and Yan set off in search of King and Kneller's dog.

After the group becomes lost and beds down for the night, Mikal and Zia discover a nearby ocean shore, where they share a passionate night. In the morning, Kneller discovers them lying among litter. The group eventually reaches King's camp, where they discover that King (Will Arnett) is readying himself for a "real" miracle – to separate his soul from his body. As Kneller confronts King, Zia discovers that his ex-girlfriend, Desiree, is a devout cult follower, having committed suicide to follow King to the afterlife. As King is about to perform public, ritual suicide, Kneller reveals himself to be an undercover agent for the people in charge. King and Desiree are taken away, while Mikal leaves with them, promising Zia that she'll return. As Zia waits, Eugene and Nanuk arrive, explaining that Mikal has been returned to life and Kneller's camp has been shut down. They depart together on a train, giving Eugene's car to Zia. After finally performing a miracle, creating a star in the sky next to one created by Mikal, Zia enters the black hole under the car seat.

The film cuts to a large warehouse filled with halls of boxes; Kneller is seen picking up Zia's file from a box, placing it into his inside breast pocket, and commenting on how fortunate it is to know people in high places. The film cuts back to Zia, who wakes up in a hospital bed. He turns his head, noting his parents outside a door talking to doctors. When he looks at the person in the bed next to his, he sees Mikal. Both look at each other and smile.