Interesting at times. But 'interesting at times' in a review is never a good thing. I've seen worse, so two stars. Besides, the logic of the story didn't work for me. I liked the rabbit...till...
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
It is an entrancing and quickly seductive picture with interesting themes/ideas and careful direction but the few flaws it has are glaring and greatly curtail the spell that director Egoyan casts onto the viewer.
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
RABBIT EARS
Used to be rabbit ears pulled in tv channels, now they are a coveted culinary delicacy. If nothing else, one always learns something from an Atom Egoyan film.
Consistently fine thespian David Thewlis as a complicated health inspector, carries "Guest of Honour" with the calm assurance, refined decorum, and meticulous deduction of Sherlock Holmes. Yet it is he who is the mystery. And as wonderful a performance it is (he really does carry the movie), the convoluted and twisty plot proves too benign and lacking, to do justice to foreshadowed expectations.
A forgettable and perplexing storyline involving his jailed daughter is awkwardly distracting at best, and out and out messy at worst. Slipping in a comedic Wilson brother (Luke) as a serious priest is admirable, but alas, serves to sabotage the dramatic flow.
Too bad, as the movie does indeed look great, and Thewlis is excellent, a commanding screen presence, delivering a perfectly nuanced role lacking a worthy supporting cast, and more importantly, a superior written vehicle.
- hipCRANK
