As is often the case with festivals these days, I walked into Kill Me knowing nothing more than that it starred Charlie Day. I’ve seen Day perform in a few projects like Pacific Rim and Horrible Bosses, but I’ve never quite followed his career, or watched his signature sitcom It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia. And perhaps bizarrely, my own voice and mannerisms are apparently so similar to Day’s that I’ve been told dozens of times, spontaneously and independently, that I remind people of Charlie Day.
Well, after seeing what Charlie Day is capable of in first time writer/director Peter Warren’s film, I’m perhaps going to lean into the Charlie Day comparisons a little more often. Here in this beguiling film that is equal parts heart warming and devastating, while also keeping you guessing, Day plays Jimmy, a troubled man who once attempted suicide years ago, but swears this most recent occurrence of waking up in a bathtub with slit wrists wasn’t his own doing. Of course, his support structure (sister, mother, and stepfather) really pay no mind to what they see as Jimmy’s delusion or ducking of responsibility. And yet, Margot (Allison Williams), Jimmy’s 911 operator who received his call, takes a particular interest in Jimmy’s case due to some of her own personal reasons. As Jimmy and Margot go further and further down the rabbit hole, Warren ensures that while we’re never quite sure whether some evidence is incriminating or delusional, we do find a lot of authenticity, woundedness, and flawed characters trying their best to care for Jimmy in whatever ways they see best.
Somewhat beyond genre descriptors, Kill Me is at times laugh out loud hilarious, at other times profoundly dark and touching on the depths of human suffering, and still other times mysterious and compelling like the best mysteries or thrillers. It’s a pretty astonishing debut from Warren, who manages to balance these tones quite adeptly. I will say that Kill Me’s commitment to keeping its cards close to its chest and vacillating constantly between Jimmy’s perceived reality and the reality perceived by other characters did begin to feel almost slavish by the end. I won’t spoil the film by any means, but perhaps intentionally Warren leaves the objective truth of what happened to Jimmy hazy, likely to put forth the argument that perception often can be reality for individuals struggling with mental health issues or those trying to support them. For my tastes, perhaps this paradigm was stretched just one or two twists too far.
But while the film didn’t wholly lock together for me at the end, that doesn’t mean it wasn’t a massively effective debut feature. Day is somewhat of a revelation in terms of fully embodying a complex lead character who handily leads the whole film on his shoulders and who draws you in enough to both love Jimmy and be driven crazy by him, much like his dearest loved ones feel. There’s legitimate chemistry between Day and Williams, two hurting people who actually don’t appear to be toxic for one another, but rather who share a seemingly honest and authentic bond. (Or do they?) I would be remiss not to mention that the incomparable Giancarlo Esposito rounds out the headliners of the cast as Jimmy’s therapist. As Jimmy tries to unravel the truth, Margot often seems the only one listening to him, while his family and therapist perceive Jimmy to the only thing unraveling.
Where Kill Me succeeds quite profoundly is in human connection. We may never know the “truth” of what happened to Jimmy, but Day’s performance (and Warren’s filmmaking) draws us in to recognize Jimmy, and to root for him. Jimmy’s sister, played by Aya Cash, can at times come off as a bitter or condescending character, but in the end we understand that she, along with his mother (Jessica Harper) are all, just like Jimmy, trying their best in a complicated world and with limited tools at their disposal. You may laugh, you may cry, you may not get all the answers you seek. Such is life, and such is writer/director Peter Warren’s feature debut Kill Me.
And I’m Out.
Absolutely, it’s amazing to see how much he leaned into the role. It really showed a different side of his acting than we’ve seen before.