Disc of the Week (4/19/11)

You’ve all seen The King’s Speech, right? Good. If you haven’t, that’s your homework for the week. Stop reading here, and go watch it. Get out. The rest of this post does not apply to you.

OK, now that it’s just us, allow me to recommend Rabbit Hole—a quiet little drama released at the end of 2010 that didn’t get much attention beside an Oscar nomination for Nicole Kidman. The material being dealt with is touchy to say the least, but the film never sensationalizes the tragic situation.

Aaron Eckhart and Nicole Kidman play a married couple whose young child was suddenly killed when he ran into a busy steet. The film follows their emotional journey as they try to cope with the loss and move forward with their lives. While the two of them tend to focus on the negative, the film itself chooses a more hopeful route. When the first scene begins, the accident itself is months in the past. Rabbit Hole is not about grief. It’s about recovering from grief.

It ain’t perfect. There are a few scenes that play a little too much like an over-the-top acting tutorial, but in its subtler moments Rabbit Hole tears at your heartstrings just as hard as it needs to. It doesn’t blind you with sadness. It explores the lives of sad people.

Another reason to check this movie out: the performance of Miles Teller as a mournful high-school student. This is a kid to watch.