You know, when you're given an ultimatum by your doctor that you have only a limited time left to live because of your illness, it can be very distressing and difficult to deal with, regardless of how long. However, when you are told you only have five minutes to live, that's when it starts to become absurd. This is best illustrated in this short film simply called "Why Me?", made by our neighbors to the north, Canada.The short depicts Nesbitt Spoon (Marshall Efron), whom, after a check- up, is told to see the doctor in his office. When the doctor (Richard Gilbert) tells him the bad news, which I mentioned already, Mr. Spoon practically goes through all of the five stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and finally acceptance, all within his final five minutes of life on this planet.This just goes to show that even though the thought of our impending death isn't a funny thing, it can be made funny. In the case of this picture, it's morbidly hilarious due to the absurdity of the scenario, and I'm sure that everyone, regardless of how healthy they are, can relate if they were told that they only have just five minutes of life left and reacted the same way. It's short, sweet, and to the point, and worth a look.The short can be seen for free at the National Film Board of Canada's website (nfb.ca) or on their YouTube Channel.

Wow, is this a morbid little cartoon from The National Film Board of Canada! Still, despite the subject matter, the cartoon is very watchable and funny in an offbeat sort of way.The animation is rather simple but effective. You see a rather ordinary man enter a doctor's office and wait for his appointment. When he is called, his doctor tells him that he only has five minutes to live! Now your first thought might be "how can he KNOW it's only five minutes--none of this makes sense". Sure, but it is a cartoon and you'll just have to suspend your sense of disbelief. What happens next is like an illustration of the steps to loss and grieving by Dr. Elizabeth Kübler-Ross--denial, bargaining, acceptance, etc.. While this all could have been very depressing to watch and morbid, I found that the people who made this film were brilliant in being able to balance all this with a light touch and sense of humor.Overall, well worth seeing, though perhaps this isn't a great cartoon for young kids.