The heartache that comes with losing a child is unimaginable. It is also tremendously difficult to convey via the medium of film. “Rabbit Hole” is a film about something very profound… without ever becoming something profound itself. I admired the movie more than I liked it. A common miscalculation that moviegoers make is to universally equate the weight of the subject matter with the worth of a film. In truth, a terrible film can be made about the holocaust, just as a brilliant film can be made about kid’s toys. As Roger Ebert once wrote, “It is not what a film is about, but how it is about it.”
I bore that in mind when watching “Rabbit Hole” — an honest and raw movie about a married couple trying to cope with the accidental death of their young son. It is an emotionally hefty subject that will assuredly connect with those who have experienced such a tragedy. However, it may be too hefty an emotion to convey to audiences who have not. As a result, the movie keeps most of us at arm’s length — only ever showing us the complex emotional roller coaster, never letting us ride.
Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart are both very good here. It takes a lot of courage to accept roles like these. I would imagine it is very tough on the actors to “go there” for such an extended period of time. I also appreciated the fact that the screenplay doesn’t require them to be in hysterics from beginning to end. There are some lighthearted moments interspersed throughout, and the film gives the characters time to breathe with quiet scenes of the mundane tasks that life still demands, even after such an ordeal.
“Rabbit Hole” is not a movie I will likely revisit. It is a respectable effort, but not a particularly memorable one. The heavy subject matter will likely persuade some critics to bestow a better rating than it ultimately deserves. I think it is a good movie… but it doesn’t even approach the profundity of its ambitions.
