Rabbit Hole

RABBIT HOLE (2010)

written by David Lindsay-Abaire (based on his play)

directed by John Cameron Mitchell 

[filmography: Shortbus (2006), Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2001)]

starring Nicole Kidman, Aaron Eckhart, Dianne Wiest, and Sandra Oh

ENJOYMENT: ***** (out of 5)

"Loved it"

    This happens to be my favorite genre of movie, however, rarely do I see a film that falls into this specific categorization.  The genre, as I call it, is a "powerhouse drama".  In a powerhouse drama, very little laughing occurs on my part, except when merely showing that I relate with the views or the characters, and the plot deals with big ugly human emotions--although not always pretty emotions, but pain and hardship. Movies in this genre include Eyes Wide Shut, The Hours, Husbands and Wives, Match Point, Magnolia, Revolutionary Road, and Closer.  These movies are some of my favorites because they acknowledge the pain in life, deal with it thoughtfully, and offer a bit of consolation and perspective that I wouldn't have received otherwise.

    Rabbit Hole is no different.  This film is beautifully shot, beautifully acted, and beautifully sculpted; however, the hardships experienced by its characters are far from beautiful.  The film is about a woman and her husband who have recently lost their son, and their struggles to heal from what might be the most painful of conceivable travesties.  I knew about my-previous-sentence worth of information on the plot before going in to see this film, and I believe this helped me enjoy the ride a bit more, so I won't spoil anymore.  However, what I do want to say is that the way this film deals with these emotions is purely magnificent filmmaking.  The movie does not illustrate the typical superficial emotions you'd expect a family to go through in their circumstances--like blame and psychotic depression--but gives a dichotomy of emotions among the two main characters that are deeper, fully cooked, and more believable. 

    

    What I really appreciated about this film was the depth of its characters and plot.  This is what I've found to be quite common in Pulitzer-Prize-winning plays that are turned into movies, that they have all the kinks worked out through countless repetition, and are extremely tight as a result.  There was nothing cliche to me at all in this film.  The feelings experienced in this film were human emotions--as shown in the main characters--and were emotions that no amount of understanding or forgiveness could erase.  There is still a lot of love in the film, and it's not at all about vengeance or betrayal.  The film is headed by two extremely intelligent characters, somewhat ignorant of the world outside of theirs, and full of vibrant and interesting dialogues, story development, and discussions of morals that were somewhat life-affirming.  Rabbit Hole is my favorite film of the year, lead by two incredibly brilliant actors that should definitely see Oscar nominations.  For Nicole Kidman, I wouldn't be too surprised if she won her second Academy Award for Best Actress this year*.

AWARD PREDICTIONS: Rabbit Hole will earn a nomination for Best Picture at the Academy Awards (if there is any justice in the world), Nicole Kidman a nomination for Best Actress, Aaron Eckhart a nomination for Best Actor, and David Lindsay-Abaire a nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay.

*Nicole Kidman previously won Best Actress in a Leading Role for her performance as Virginia Woolf in 2002's The Hours