Run Rabbit Run

Grade: B

I love the moments in horror movies where before something shocking is shown to us, we see the character seeing it first. It builds up anticipation, and allows the actor to give a good reaction shot. That happens plenty of times in Run Rabbit Run – an absorbing, soft, slow-burning thriller. I enjoyed a lot of it. It’s perfect for Netflix, because it will draw you in and make you keep watching. Also, you can turn on subtitles if the Australian accents get to be too much for you.

35-year-old actress Sarah Snook, from Adelaide, caught my attention two years ago in Pieces of a Woman. She was also on HBO’s Succession, and Danny Boyle’s Steve Jobs. She stars as Sarah, a fertility doctor. We see her at work once, maybe twice, but otherwise apparently can take long leaves of absence. She is friendly enough with her ex-husband, Pete, and his new wife, Denise, to have them over for dinner on Sarah and Pete’s daughter Mia’s 7th birthday. Sarah’s father has recently died, and her estranged mother Joan is in an assisted living facility.

Sarah had a sister – Alice – who went missing at age 7. Right after turning 7, Mia begins calling herself Alice, and seems to remember details from the past that she couldn’t have known about. She bugs Sarah that she wants to see Joan. Not “Grandma.” She calls her Joan. When they first meet at the nursing home, Joan immediately thinks Mia is Alice, without any prompting.

We get the true explanation about Alice little by little over time. Other aspects never amount to anything in a tangible way. On Mia’s birthday, a stray rabbit (surprisingly well-behaved and housebroken) comes to the house, and Mia takes it in and becomes fixated with it. If there’s a metaphor here, it was lost on me. But there’s much of Run Rabbit Run that is successful. The Australian locations are beautiful. Snook is always a captivating presence. I don’t remember any cheap jump scares; it’s more about looming, bubbling, unsettling dread.

The ending isn’t the most satisfying one in the world. It’s up in the air, and seems to raise more questions than it answers. I wouldn’t have minded another 10 minutes of movie if it would have given us more of a resolution. Still, though, it’s a rare and welcome thing when a film like Run Rabbit Run comes along, leaving you wanting more instead of less. I certainly got more than I wanted from Spider-Man, The Flash, and the guardians.

Grade: B