On the Count of Three

Simultaneously funny, depressing, and life-affirming, On the Count of Three isn’t a macabre masterpiece like, say, Barry, but it scratches a similar itch.

Very well acted, with a refreshingly dark sense of humour and briskly paced, the film impresses on a number of levels.

Comfort has never felt more discomforting than it does in On the Count of Three, a profound new comedy about suicide, mental health, depression, and the absurd lengths we go to help the strange people we love.

On the Count of Three works more than it doesn’t, though the film, which is reaching theaters almost a year and a half after its Sundance 2021 debut, feels like something that its director and star has already outgrown.

Carmichael takes the unhappiness of these men seriously. That’s the precise needle the movie threads: It finds comedy in two people at the very end of their ropes without turning their depression into the butt of the joke.

A rousing tragicomedy that straddles a line between incredibly calibrated gallows humor and a devastating discourse on the burden of existence.

On the Count of Three is nothing more than a superficial character drama with some neat 35mm cinematography...

The script beautifully differentiates the importance between wanting to die and seeing no other alternative. Emphasizing the characters' state of mind somewhat inadvertently makes us understand that suicide is never a solution .

By writing it with extreme care and responsibility, the predictable yet impactful ending doesn’t leave a margin for doubts about what’s right or wrong. Everyone deals with the bad moments in life differently, but life is always worth living.

[The film] propels us forward for an eighty-six-minute thrill ride with tension constantly being ratcheted up for what seems like a perpetually postponed release. It's a wake-up call that's unafraid to acknowledge the complexity of existential terror.