In hindsight, it was not the best of plans for me – three films, four reviews, in 9 hours. I wrapped watching Toy Story 3 around 1 am; I decided to wait until this morning to write the review, then tackle True Grit, Winter’s Bone and lastly, Rabbit Hole. God – I wish I had read up on that film before deciding to leave that for last, because I haven’t written yet and I already feel emotionally spent.
A martini refresher beside me before dinner, and I am good to go on this review.
Adapted from the play by the same name, it is the story of a couple struggling to regain some sense of normalcy after an accident takes the life of their four year old son. Through a variety of channels, some planned and some happenstance, they grasp and grip with the realities of day to day life, of a house and a job that no longer fits the same as it once did. Everything they once knew, even their own co-existence is in jeopardy as they search for the right path in the midst of darkness.
Nicole Kidman’s star shines bright this, as emotionally fluctuating though her grief. Her performance was understated at times, and spot on at others, as a mother who is blinded by a sense of grief that is slowly drowning her. You get a sense of raw desperation in her searching for some semblance something that resembles her previous life, anything that can help her feel a semi sort of normalcy where she can function. As she moved though here day-to-day life, you get a sense that she is coming to terms on her own terms, striding out on her own and learning not only to stand on her own two feet again, but to walk. While amazingly powerful and intense, her role seems to be one born more out of emotion, then out of necessity. This is a nomination worthy role, but not destined for academy greatness.
Up Next Blue Valentine.
