The concept of euthanasia has always been a kind of taboo, with even cinema straying away from it for the most part, considering the controversy surrounding it and the morbidity of the subject. Yushi Li, however, decided to deal with this exact issue, approaching from the perspective of Asian-Americans, and thus connecting it with some additional issues.
“Kill Me” review is part of the Submit Your Film Initiative
Ye is a Chinese-American prostitute, who used to work in a hospital but got fired unfairly. As the story begins, she is hired by Wilson, one of her clients, to be a care worker for a bedridden young man, with her task being to keep him alive for a significant fee, which she needs to help her family. Lily, however, the patient, is in extreme pain and truly longs to die and their interactions are anything but easy. Furthermore, something strange seems to be happening with Lily's family…
Yushi Li directs a 28-minute short, which suffers significantly from its narrative approach and her own editing, which results in a story that is very hard to understand what is happening and to whom. The old radio which Lily mentions is a recorder is the key issue here, since it never becomes evident what is actually does in the story and why the man throws fits every time he listens his family (?) talking through it. The same applies to Ye's situation and the ending, which presents a twist that is again difficult to understand what it is about, while the sex scenes, which are heard not visually presented, add to the confusion even more. Granted, it seems that Ye is having sex with the bedridden to convince him to stay alive, but no one could be 100% sure.
What the film lacks in the quality of the narrative, though, it makes up in cinematic approach and acting. DP Yukun Chan implements a rather intriguing approach, which includes voyeuristic and noir elements, that fit the story quite nicely. The framing is also great on a number of scenes, particularly when the two protagonists are by themselves, while the presentation of the filled-with-newspapers room adds much to the overall aesthetics.
Regarding the acting, Eve Zhao is quite convincing in highlighting her inner struggle while putting up a calm and almost cheerful facade for her patient, while the scenes when she appears completely vulnerable, particularly in her interactions with Wilson are excellently portrayed. Zhexiong Xiao as Lily presents his sickness and particularly his fits in outstanding fashion, with the highlight of an overall impressive performance being the finale.
Yushi Li has a lot to learn in terms of script writing and story progression, but an eye for visuals is definitely there, as much as her ability in casting, with the last two aspects being the ones that deem “Kill Me” a short that deserves a watch.
