Terminally
ill Nathan Chapel has very little time to live. A reclusive writer and
illustrator, Nathan has developed a cult-following for his comic book,
“Death’s Requiem”. He spends his time smoking, drawing and withering
away from cancer.
Nathan
harbors a voyeuristic obsession with his neighbor Sarah, attempting to
capture her life through his own work. Sarah is self-destructive, teetering
on the edge of a fragile existence and deeply involved with a married man.
As the reality of Nathan’s illness encroaches, the
subject of his work, Death himself, appears to haunt him. As time runs out,
Nathan is forced to confront his greatest fears and his impending doom.
After witnessing Death extract the soul of a local homeless man Nathan
realizes that he cannot escape.
Nathan struggles to understand why Death has appeared
before him, refusing to believe that his ‘time is up’. Whilst deflecting
the constant annoyances of his publisher and the concerns of his doctor,
Nathan experiences dark visions and is reminded of the presence of death by
a visitation from the Reaper himself.
As Nathan makes a final attempt to purge his life of
Death by burning all of his own artwork, he realizes that Death has come to
claim Sarah’s life. Nathan attempts to stop the dark specter from stealing
her away, resulting in an act of self-sacrifice. Sarah is irrevocably moved
by Nathan’s macabre gesture, discovering new meaning for her life.
