Rabbit Hole (film)
Encyclopedia
Rabbit Hole is a 2010 drama film starring Nicole Kidman
Nicole Kidman
Nicole Mary Kidman, AC is an American-born Australian actress, singer, film producer, spokesmodel, and humanitarian. After starring in a number of small Australian films and TV shows, Kidman's breakthrough was in the 1989 thriller Dead Calm...

, Aaron Eckhart
Aaron Eckhart
Aaron Edward Eckhart is an American film and stage actor. Born in California, he moved to England at the age of 13, when his father relocated the family. Several years later, he began his acting career by performing in school plays, before moving to Sydney, Australia, for his high school senior year...

, and Dianne Wiest
Dianne Wiest
Dianne Wiest is an American actress. She has had a successful career on stage, television, and film, and has won two Academy Awards, two Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award. Wiest has also been nominated for a BAFTA Award.-Early life:...

, and directed by John Cameron Mitchell
John Cameron Mitchell
John Cameron Mitchell is an American writer, actor, and director. He is best known for his motion pictures Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Shortbus and Rabbit Hole.- Early life:...

; the screenplay is an adaptation
Film adaptation
Film adaptation is the transfer of a written work to a feature film. It is a type of derivative work.A common form of film adaptation is the use of a novel as the basis of a feature film, but film adaptation includes the use of non-fiction , autobiography, comic book, scripture, plays, and even...

 by David Lindsay-Abaire
David Lindsay-Abaire
David Lindsay-Abaire is an American playwright and lyricist. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 2007 for his play Rabbit Hole, which also earned several Tony Award nominations.-Early life and education:...

 of his 2005 play of the same name
Rabbit Hole
Rabbit Hole is a play written by David Lindsay-Abaire. It was the recipient of the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The play was originally commissioned by South Coast Repertory and first presented at its Pacific Playwrights Festival reading series in 2005...

. Kidman produced the project via her company, Blossom Films. The film premiered at the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival
2010 Toronto International Film Festival
The 35th annual Toronto International Film Festival, was held in Toronto, Ontario, Canada between September 9 and September 19, 2010. The opening night gala presented Score: A Hockey Musical, a Canadian comedy-drama musical film. Last Night closed the festival on September 19.2010 TIFF included...

 in September 2010. Lionsgate distributed the film. The plot deals with a couple struggling to heal after the death of their young son. Nicole Kidman was critically acclaimed for her performance as Becca Corbett and received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress
Academy Award for Best Actress
Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...

. It received a limited release
Limited release
Limited release is a term in the American motion picture industry for a motion picture that is playing in a select few theaters across the country ....

 in the United States on December 17, 2010 and expanded nationwide
Wide release
Wide release is a term in the American motion picture industry for a motion picture that is playing nationally . Specifically, a movie is considered to be in wide release when it is on 600 screens or more in the United States and Canada.In the US, films holding an NC-17 rating almost never have a...

 on January 14, 2011.

Plot

Becca (Nicole Kidman
Nicole Kidman
Nicole Mary Kidman, AC is an American-born Australian actress, singer, film producer, spokesmodel, and humanitarian. After starring in a number of small Australian films and TV shows, Kidman's breakthrough was in the 1989 thriller Dead Calm...

) and Howie Corbett (Aaron Eckhart
Aaron Eckhart
Aaron Edward Eckhart is an American film and stage actor. Born in California, he moved to England at the age of 13, when his father relocated the family. Several years later, he began his acting career by performing in school plays, before moving to Sydney, Australia, for his high school senior year...

) mourn the death of their 4-year-old son Danny who was killed in a car accident when he ran out into the street after his dog. Becca wants to give away Danny's clothes, remove Danny's things, and sell their house, but Howie is angry at Becca's elimination of anything that reminds them of Danny. Howie also wants to resume sexual relations with Becca and have another child, but Becca rejects his advances.

Becca's mother (Dianne Wiest
Dianne Wiest
Dianne Wiest is an American actress. She has had a successful career on stage, television, and film, and has won two Academy Awards, two Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award. Wiest has also been nominated for a BAFTA Award.-Early life:...

) compares herself with Becca as she lost a 30-year-old son due to drug overdose. Becca does not believe the two deaths are comparable but eventually realizes their grief is the same. Becca's sister, Izzy (Tammy Blanchard
Tammy Blanchard
Tammy Blanchard is an American actress. She has worked primarily in films and television, making her professional start in the soap opera Guiding Light...

), is pregnant, and Becca keeps giving Izzy advice about becoming a mother, which Izzy resents.

Becca and Howie attend a self-help group, but Becca is irritated by some members of the group, particularly by one couple who attribute their child's death to God's will. Howie continues to attend the meetings without Becca, and he and long-time member Gabby (Sandra Oh
Sandra Oh
Sandra Oh is a Canadian actress. She is best known for the role of Dr. Cristina Yang on ABC's Grey's Anatomy, for which she has won a Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild award. She also played notable roles in the feature films Under the Tuscan Sun and Sideways, and had a supporting role on the...

) almost begin an affair. However, Howie backs out.

Meanwhile, Becca starts meeting with Jason (Miles Teller), the teenage driver of the car that hit Danny. She discovers he feels guilty but tells him she does not blame him for the accident. Jason tells her about a comic book he is writing called "Rabbit Hole", which is about parallel universes, and gives it to Becca to read who thinks it is wonderful. Howie does not like Becca meeting Jason.

Howie and Becca decide to have a garden lunch. The scene begins with Howie telling Becca how the lunch would take place, while simultaneously the screen fades into the lunch as Howie continues to speak in the background. The movie ends with Becca and Howie sitting in their garden alone holding hands after all their guests have left.

Cast

  • Nicole Kidman
    Nicole Kidman
    Nicole Mary Kidman, AC is an American-born Australian actress, singer, film producer, spokesmodel, and humanitarian. After starring in a number of small Australian films and TV shows, Kidman's breakthrough was in the 1989 thriller Dead Calm...

     as Becca Corbett
  • Aaron Eckhart
    Aaron Eckhart
    Aaron Edward Eckhart is an American film and stage actor. Born in California, he moved to England at the age of 13, when his father relocated the family. Several years later, he began his acting career by performing in school plays, before moving to Sydney, Australia, for his high school senior year...

     as Howie Corbett
  • Dianne Wiest
    Dianne Wiest
    Dianne Wiest is an American actress. She has had a successful career on stage, television, and film, and has won two Academy Awards, two Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award. Wiest has also been nominated for a BAFTA Award.-Early life:...

     as Nat, Becca's mother
  • Tammy Blanchard
    Tammy Blanchard
    Tammy Blanchard is an American actress. She has worked primarily in films and television, making her professional start in the soap opera Guiding Light...

     as Izzy, Becca's sister
  • Miles Teller
    Miles Teller
    Miles Teller is an American actor. Teller was nominated for the Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actor at the Chlotrudis Awards 2011 and the Discovery Award at the Savannah Film Festival for his role as Jason in the 2010 film Rabbit Hole.-Life and career:Teller was born in Downingtown,...

     as Jason, the driver
  • Sandra Oh
    Sandra Oh
    Sandra Oh is a Canadian actress. She is best known for the role of Dr. Cristina Yang on ABC's Grey's Anatomy, for which she has won a Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild award. She also played notable roles in the feature films Under the Tuscan Sun and Sideways, and had a supporting role on the...

     as Gabby
  • Patricia Kalember
    Patricia Kalember
    Patricia Kathryn Kalember is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Georgiana "Georgie" Reed Whitsig on the NBC drama Sisters , Susannah Hart Shepherd on the popular 1980s television show Thirtysomething and as Judge Karen Taten on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit .- Life and...

     as Peg
  • Mike Doyle
    Mike Doyle (actor)
    Mike Doyle is an American actor, screenwriter, director and producer. He is best known for his recurring roles in the television series Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, playing Forensics Tech Ryan O'Halloran, and Oz, playing Adam Guenzel....

     as Craig
  • Jon Tenney as Rick
  • Stephen Mailer
    Stephen Mailer
    Stephen McLeod Mailer is an American stage and screen actor. His credits include appearances in films like A League of Their Own, Cry Baby, and Baby Mama, and the television shows Gilmore Girls and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. Mailer was born in New York City, New York, the son of novelist...

     as Kevin
  • Giancarlo Esposito
    Giancarlo Esposito
    Giancarlo Giuseppe Alessandro Esposito is a Danish-born American film and television actor and director.-Early life:Esposito was born in Copenhagen, Denmark to an Italian father and African-American mother. His mother was an opera and nightclub singer from Alabama, who once appeared on the same...

     as Auggie
  • Rob Campbell
    Rob Campbell
    Rob Campbell is an actor with experience in the stage, television and films.A graduate of Wesleyan University and the Yale School of Drama, Campbell performed in numerous Yale Repertory Theatre productions. On Broadway, he appeared as Lvov in Ivanov and as Manus in Translations...

     as Bob

Production

The project was filmed primarily in the Douglaston
Douglaston, Queens
Douglaston, population 14,168 , is a community in the New York City borough of Queens. Douglaston comprises six distinct neighborhoods: Doug Bay, Douglas Manor, and Douglaston Hill, all located north of Northern Boulevard on the peninsula abutting Little Neck Bay; Douglaston Park, located between...

 neighborhood of the borough of Queens, New York City. The $4.2 million production had a 28-day shoot.

Due to a scheduling conflict, Kidman declined a role in Woody Allen
Woody Allen
Woody Allen is an American screenwriter, director, actor, comedian, jazz musician, author, and playwright. Allen's films draw heavily on literature, sexuality, philosophy, psychology, Jewish identity, and the history of cinema...

's You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger
You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger
You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger is a 2010 English-language Spanish-American co-production comedy-drama film written and directed by Woody Allen. It features Antonio Banderas, Josh Brolin, Anthony Hopkins, Gemma Jones, Freida Pinto, Lucy Punch, Naomi Watts, Roger Ashton-Griffiths and Pauline...

, in favor of this project.

Owen Pallett
Owen Pallett
Michael James Owen Pallett is a Canadian composer, violinist, keyboardist, and vocalist from Toronto, Ontario. He won the 2006 Polaris Music Prize for the album He Poos Clouds....

 was initially scheduled to compose the score
Film score
A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film, forming part of the film's soundtrack, which also usually includes dialogue and sound effects...

, but then Abel Korzeniowski
Abel Korzeniowski
Abel Korzeniowski is a Polish film and theatre scores composer.He had contact with music from early childhood: his mother Barbara plays cello and both his brothers Antoni and Andrzej are musicians. He graduated from the Academy of Music in Kraków majoring in cello and composer studies under the...

 was announced. Ultimately, the position went to Anton Sanko.

Release

The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival
Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...

 in September 2010, then played at three other film festivals (Mill Valley Film Festival
Mill Valley Film Festival
The Mill Valley Film Festival is an annual, non-competitive film festival presented by the California Film Institute. Known as a filmmakers’ festival, the annual Mill Valley Film Festival offers a non-competitive environment for exhibiting independent and world cinema.Founded in 1978 by MVFF...

 in October, and both Denver Film Festival
Denver Film Festival
The Denver Film Festival is held in November, primarily in the Tivoli Union on the Auraria Campus and the new Denver Film Center/Colfax, in Denver Colorado...

 and Rome Film Festival in November), and then opened in Canada and the United States in December 2010.

Reception

Festival and other advance showings of the film have garnered good reviews, particularly for Kidman and Wiest. Kirk Honeycutt of The Hollywood Reporter
The Hollywood Reporter
Formerly a daily trade magazine, The Hollywood Reporter re-launched in late 2010 as a unique hybrid publication serving the entertainment industry and a consumer audience...

said, "Kidman grabs the central focus of the story as the more distraught of the two. The performance is riveting because she essentially plays the entire film at two levels, the surface everyday life and then what is turning over and over again in her mind." Peter Debruge of Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...

found it "a refreshingly positive-minded take on cinema's ultimate downer: overcoming the death of a child," and called it "[a]adroitly expanded" from the stage play, "with Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart delivering expert, understated performances." Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...

 gave it 3.5 stars out of 4, calling it "... entertaining and surprisingly amusing, under the circumstances. The film is in a better state of mind than its characters. Its humor comes, as the best humor does, from an acute observation of human nature. We have known people something like this. We smile in recognition."

The film received a standing ovation
Standing ovation
A standing ovation is a form of applause where members of a seated audience stand up while applauding after extraordinary performances of particularly high acclaim...

 at the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival
2010 Toronto International Film Festival
The 35th annual Toronto International Film Festival, was held in Toronto, Ontario, Canada between September 9 and September 19, 2010. The opening night gala presented Score: A Hockey Musical, a Canadian comedy-drama musical film. Last Night closed the festival on September 19.2010 TIFF included...

.

On Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...

, the film has an 86% "Fresh" rating.

Nominations

  • Academy Award for Best Actress
    Academy Award for Best Actress
    Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...

     - Nicole Kidman
    Nicole Kidman
    Nicole Mary Kidman, AC is an American-born Australian actress, singer, film producer, spokesmodel, and humanitarian. After starring in a number of small Australian films and TV shows, Kidman's breakthrough was in the 1989 thriller Dead Calm...

  • Alliance of Women Film Journalists
    Alliance of Women Film Journalists
    The Alliance of Women Film Journalists is a group of female journalists based out of New York, United States that was founded in 2006. The AWFJ is composed of 45 professional female movie critics, reporters and feature writers working in print, broadcast and online media, dedicated to supporting...

     Award for Best Actress - Nicole Kidman
  • Alliance of Women Film Journalists
    Alliance of Women Film Journalists
    The Alliance of Women Film Journalists is a group of female journalists based out of New York, United States that was founded in 2006. The AWFJ is composed of 45 professional female movie critics, reporters and feature writers working in print, broadcast and online media, dedicated to supporting...

     Award for Best Adapted Screenplay - David Lindsay-Abaire
    David Lindsay-Abaire
    David Lindsay-Abaire is an American playwright and lyricist. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 2007 for his play Rabbit Hole, which also earned several Tony Award nominations.-Early life and education:...

  • Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress - Nicole Kidman
  • Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Screenplay - David Lindsay-Abaire
  • Chlotrudis Award for Best Adapted Screenplay
    Chlotrudis Award for Best Adapted Screenplay
    The Chlotrudis Award for Best Adapted Screenplay is an award given by the Chlotrudis Society for Independent Film to the writer or writers of the screenplay adapted from other sources that is voted by participating members...

     - David Lindsay-Abaire
  • Chlotrudis Award for Best Director
    Chlotrudis Award for Best Director
    The Chlotrudis Award for Best Director is an award given by the Chlotrudis Society for Independent Film to the director or directors whose winning work is voted by participating members. The Chlotrudis Awards is an annual ceremony where the best of the previous year's independent and international...

     - John Cameron Mitchell
    John Cameron Mitchell
    John Cameron Mitchell is an American writer, actor, and director. He is best known for his motion pictures Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Shortbus and Rabbit Hole.- Early life:...

  • Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actor
    Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actor
    The Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actor is an award given by the Chlotrudis Society for Independent Film to the actor or actors whose winning performance is voted by participating members. The Chlotrudis Awards is an annual ceremony where the best of the previous year's independent and...

     - Miles Teller
  • Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actress
    Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actress
    The Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actress is an award given by the Chlotrudis Society for Independent Film to the actress or actresses whose winning performance is voted by participating members...

     - Dianne Wiest
    Dianne Wiest
    Dianne Wiest is an American actress. She has had a successful career on stage, television, and film, and has won two Academy Awards, two Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award. Wiest has also been nominated for a BAFTA Award.-Early life:...

  • Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress
    Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress
    The Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress is an award given by the Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association to honor the best achievements in filmmaking.-Winners and nominees:*1993: Holly Hunter - The Piano*1994:...

     - Nicole Kidman
  • Detroit Film Critics Society
    Detroit Film Critics Society
    The Detroit Film Critics Society is a film critic organization in Detroit, Michigan, United States.-2007 Awards:The nominees for the Detroit Film Critics Society Awards 2007 were announced on 15 December and the winners were announced on 21 December 2007.-Best Actor:**George Clooney - Michael...

     Award for Best Actress - Nicole Kidman
  • Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama
    Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama
    The Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture - Drama was first awarded by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association as a separate category in 1951...

     - Nicole Kidman
  • Houston Film Critics Society
    Houston Film Critics Society
    The Houston Film Critics Society is a film critic organization in Houston, Texas, United States. The group presents an annual set of film awards for "extraordinary accomplishment in film" in a ceremony held at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston...

     Award for Best Actress - Nicole Kidman
  • Independent Spirit Award for Best Director
    Independent Spirit Award for Best Director
    The Film Independent's Spirit Award for Best Director is one of the annual Independent Spirit Awards.- 1980s :* 1985: Joel Coen – Blood Simple** Martin Scorsese – After Hours** Joyce Chopra – Smooth Talk...

     - John Cameron Mitchell
  • Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead
    Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead
    The Film Independent's Spirit Award for Best Female Lead is one of the annual Independent Spirit Awards.-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:...

     - Nicole Kidman
  • Independent Spirit Award for Best Male Lead - Aaron Eckhart
    Aaron Eckhart
    Aaron Edward Eckhart is an American film and stage actor. Born in California, he moved to England at the age of 13, when his father relocated the family. Several years later, he began his acting career by performing in school plays, before moving to Sydney, Australia, for his high school senior year...

  • Independent Spirit Award for Best Screenplay
    Independent Spirit Award for Best Screenplay
    The Film Independent's Spirit Award for Best Screenplay is one of the annual Independent Spirit Awards.-1980s:* 1985: The Trip to Bountiful - Horton Foote** After Hours - Joseph Minion** Blood Simple - Joel and Ethan Coen...

     - David Lindsay-Abaire
  • Italian Online Movie Award for Best Actress
    Italian Online Movie Award for Best Actress
    The Italian Online Movie Award for Best Actress is an annual award to honor the best actress of the year.-Winners:*2002: Nicole Kidman*2003: Naomi Watts*2004: Kate Winslet*2005: Felicity Huffman*2006: Helen Mirren*2007:...

     - Nicole Kidman
  • Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Actress
    Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Actress
    The Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Actress is an award given by the Las Vegas Film Critics Society to honor the best actress of the year.-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:...

     - Nicole Kidman
  • Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Actress
    Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Actress
    The Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Actress is an annual film award given by the Online Film Critics Society to honor the best lead actress of the year.Reese Witherspoon and Naomi Watts have each won this award twice.-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:...

     - Nicole Kidman
  • San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor
    San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor
    The San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor is an award given by the San Diego Film Critics Society to honor the finest male acting achievementes in filmmaking.-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:...

     - Aaron Eckhart
  • Satellite Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama
    Satellite Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama
    The Satellite Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Drama is one of the annual awards given by the International Press Academy.- Winners and nominees :The following listing is based on the web postings of the International Press Academy.- 1990s :...

     - Nicole Kidman
  • Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress - Motion Picture
    Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress - Motion Picture
    The Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture is one of the Satellite Awards presented annually by the International Press Academy.- 1990s :Best Supporting Actress – Drama*1996: Courtney Love - The People vs...

     - Dianne Wiest
  • Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role - Motion Picture - Nicole Kidman
  • St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress
    St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress
    The St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress is one of the annual awards given by the St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association.-2000s:-2010s:...

     - Nicole Kidman
  • Utah Film Critics Association
    Utah Film Critics Association
    The Utah Film Critics Association is an organization of cinema journalists affiliated with publications, broadcasting stations and online media based in Utah...

     Award for Best Actress - Nicole Kidman
  • Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress
    Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress
    The Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress is one of the annual awards given by the Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association.-2000s:-2010s:...

    - Nicole Kidman
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