Dark, funny, and entirely refreshing are the first words that come to mind after seeing Craig Johnson’s new film The Skeleton Twins starring SNL alumni Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader.  The duo play Maggie and Milo, idiosyncratic siblings who have lost touch for 10 years and are reunited by a suicide attempt, yet both share a quirky outsider sensibility and a mid-life crisis.

The film is beautifully written and deals with some heavy topics such as child molestation, suicide, and sex in very honest terms, which is balanced with a great sense of humor.  The magic of the film is partly in it’s casting with Wiig and Hader both giving terrifically intimate and often understated performances and a strong supporting cast with Luke Wilson as Maggie’s average-guy husband and Ty Burrell as Milo’s pseudo-intellectual former high school teacher.  Comedians are excellent at playing foreboding characters often because like Robin Williams, they live those roles personally (not to say this is the case necessarily with Wiig or Hader), but the duo do manage to bring really affecting, truthful characters to the screen.  Without question this film stands out as one of the top films so far this year thanks to it’s unique and personal voice and I’d suggest you check it out.

The Skeleton Twins starring Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader opens in theaters September 12, 2014.