The Skeleton Twins: Movie Review

When I hear the names Bill Hadar, Kristen Wiig, and Luke Wilson, the first thing that comes to mind isn’t family drama. Hadar and Wiig are both best known for their run on “Saturday Night Live” before breaking into features. It is not surprising that the comedic actors can hold their own dramatically. When it comes to “The Skeleton Twins”, the performances are not the problem. Neither is the screenplay by Mark Heyman and Craig Johnson. The biggest issue is just how slow and depressing the whole thing is to watch.

Maggie and Milo Dean (Wiig and Hadar respectively) are estranged twins who are reunited after Milo tries to commit suicide. Milo moves in with his sister and her husband Lance (Wilson). It doesn’t take Milo long to realize that his sister is also very unhappy. Even though Maggie has a husband that loves her dearly, she secretly feels undeserving and she is unable to control her urges to ruin the things that are good in her life. This includes having an affair with her scuba instructor (Boyd Holbrook).

Milo maybe over trying to take his own life, but that doesn’t stop him from putting himself through more pain. Very shortly after arriving back in his hometown, Milo seeks out his first love, Rich (Ty Burrell) who just so happened to be his high-school English Teacher, a relationship that played a big part in the siblings going their separate ways when they were younger.

“The Skeleton Twins” is at its best when focused on Milo and Lance. This happens to be one of Luke Wilson’s best performances and we are sympathetic towards his character. It is Hadar however that steals every scene. He could easily play his character as a stereotypical gay male, but he dials it back and plays Milo in a very real way. I just wished the “The Skeleton Twins” didn’t leave me walking out of the theater with a dark cloud over my head. There are a few laughs but this is not the dramatic-comedy that the trailers would lead you to believe. Keep that in mind before deciding if you want to check it out for yourself.

By: Marc Ferman