Rabbit Hole Review
By David Kempler
Jump Into This Hole
Director John Cameron Mitchell takes an enormous departure from his "Hedwig and the Angry Inch" with "Rabbit Hole", the story of how a family deals with the death of their young son. Mitchell plays it straight with this potential
Lifetime movie-of-the-week. However, to his credit, and to the credit of the writing of David Lindsay-Abaire, who also penned the play, "Rabbit Hole" navigates this well-worn territory and makes it feel new and different.
Credit must also go to Nicole Kidman, as Becca, the young mother who has lost her son. She gives a nuanced, subdued, and at times slightly humorous performance that keeps all of us from falling into the depths of wanting to slit our collective wrists. Her husband, Howie (Aaron Eckhart), on the other hand, presents us with the father who wants to move forward with their lives, and in Becca's mind, erase the memory of their son. Eckhart is good, if not remarkable.
As part of their healing process, Howie convinces Becca that they should attend a coping group of other parents that have lost their children. It doesn't go well, and soon Howie is attending the sessions without his wife. His life centers around the group, while her life focuses on peeling away the death of her son and exploring the others involved in her son's death. I'm being vague because the story is unveiled slowly. Details of how their son died are revealed slowly.
A young man named Jason (Miles Teller) is one of the primary people involved in the tragedy and through his relationship with Becca, we come to understand her inner workings. We also learn of Jason's part in all of it and his is the most unusual character of all. Seeing the tragedy through his eyes gives "Rabbit Hole" the oomph that most of these types of films lack.
I realize that this sounds like melodramatic garbage, and that is what I thought it would be. It's not. It's a unique take on these kinds of circumstances. Kidman's performance, Mitchell's quiet direction, and Abaire's crisp writing, turn it into a worthwhile experience. You'll be rewarded if you tumble into this hole.
