By Spencer Williams

The Skeleton Twins serves as a great reminder to us all that even though my older sister once fed me unsalted popcorn as a joke, I was able to forgive her after ten years.

Directed by Craig Johnson (who co-wrote the film with Mark Heyman), The Skeleton Twins tells the heartwarming tale of two suicidal siblings (Played by Bill Hader and Kirsten Wiig, both fantastic in dramatic roles) coming together to figure out where their lives went wrong after ten years of separation. The film starts with Bill Hader’s Milo attempting suicide in a bathtub, after having written perhaps the worst/best suicide note of all time. Coincidentally, we also meet Kirsten Wiig’s Maggie right before she attempts to down a midnight snack sized handful of pills. It becomes clear from the get-go that Bridesmaids this is not. Thankfully, Maggie’s suicide attempt is interrupted by a call informing her of Milo’s suicide attempt, and they end up meeting each other at the hospital where he is staying for the night. On a whim, Maggie decides to take Milo home with her. Then shit starts to get real.

We learn quickly that Milo, who dresses like he’s just discovered the elusive Men’s section at Forever 21, is a failed actor currently utilizing his great talents to serve people at a restaurant in LA. Maggie is married to an outdoorsy bro named Lance (the kind of guy who loved 127 Hours way more than you did) and works a much more glamorous job as a dentist, giving her plenty of free time to bang her hunky Australian scuba instructor, Billy (Boyd Holbrook), on the side.

The film is at its best when Maggie and Milo are together on screen. A scene where the siblings lip synch to Starship’s “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” ranks among the funniest and most heartwarming of the year. Not everything works though, and a subplot involving a curiously inappropriate ex (Ty Burrell) of Milo’s isn’t fleshed out enough to achieve the emotional response that it strives for. However, due to the strong performances given by Wiig and Hader, the film avoids falling too close into melodramatic waters.

Both Wiig and Hader find nuances and mannerisms in their characters that make them more than just damaged people. Hader’s Milo is a refreshingly multi-dimensional gay character searching for a way out of an unfulfilling life, while Wiig’s Maggie is an emotionally complex woman trying to navigate her way through an unsatisfying marriage while keeping her head above water. The comedic chemistry between the two actors goes a long way in keeping The Skeleton Twins’ darker elements from swallowing the entire film. The tone of the film may sometimes be inconsistent, but the performances and the hilarious script insure that audiences will want to hug their siblings the minute the credits start to roll.