Review: Rabbit Hole

Review: Rabbit Hole

Rating: ***

Nonna's Rating: $$

Rotten Tomatoes: 86%

Audience: 75%

Rabbit Hole is about families dealing with the devastating grief of losing a child. You might argue that, no, it focuses on a couple, Becca (Nicole Kidman) and Howie Corbett (Aaron Eckhart) who deal with the death of their child and their grief and guilt. But this film subtly illustrates a truth that is bigger than that narrow focus: individuals, parents, relatives, friends, and acquaintances all deal with the death of a child in very different ways and on very different schedules. We see this truth in the Corbett's immediate family. Becca's mother Nat (Diane Wiest) has also lost a child and, now, a grandchild. Her sister Izzy (Tammy Blanchard), newly pregnant, copes with grief and joy simultaneously. And then there are friends who over-respond and those who don't respond at all. And in Becca and Howie's grief support group, every person responds differently to his or her loss -- and sometimes differently on different days.

The film does all this without being manipulative, depressing, maudlin, or horribly melodramatic. Knowing the subject of the film, I was a bit wary and came armed with a ton of Kleenex. Only had to use it once -- the scene involved a dog, always guaranteed to make me weep.

The performances are excellent. Wiest never disappoints, and Kidman and Eckhart are believably married as they each confront their grief. In fact, I would definitely argue that Kidman's Oscar-nominated performance is better than that of Natalie Portman's in Black Swan. (In truth, so are the performances of Annette Benning, Michelle Williams, and Jennifer Lawrence.)

This film deals realistically with grief. There are no promises that the pain will go away -- only that it will be different from time to time, that it will come back with surprising fury when least expected -- and that life will go on. There is sadness in this film, but there is hope also.

Nonna's Ratings:

$$$$ = Worth paying the Friday evening price
$$$= Worth paying the Matinee price

$$= Worth a rental
$ = Wait for cable
# = Skip it