Review: 'Rabbit Hole' is understated emotional drama

Film: Rabbit hole
Cast: Nicole Kidman, Aaron Eckhart, Sandra Oh, Jon Tenney, Dianne Wiest
Director: John Cameron Mitchell
Rating: ***  ½

Emotions may appear the same in every culture but their treatment differs.  

When  an American couple Becca and Howie (Kidman and Eckhart) lose their 4 year old son Danny in an accident, they are heart-broken.

Counselling and support-group therapy have little effect on the couple’s overwhelming pain and bewilderment following that tragic and needless loss. Becca and Howie try hard to keep their relationship going but it’s a tough ask.They first have to work their way out of that unbearable pain.

Grief is the topic of examination in Pullitzer winning author David Lindsay-Ubire’s original screenplay adapted from his own play. John Cameron Mitchell’s narrative is stark, unadorned and underwhelming.

There is an understated warmth inherent in the telling. Mitchell’s dramatisation is incisive and illuminating about the way in which a self-obsessed culture deals with their intimate tragedies.

His fleeting insertion of shots depicting a comic book in progress adds weight to the intrigue and interest.  Anton Sanko’s score, all pianos and string, allows the audience room to stay in touch yet remain slightly unaffected by the couples pain.

Kidman and Eckhart frame understated study’s of their respective characters and that particularly adds to the unforgettable nature of this whole experience.