‘Rabbit Hole’ was a nifty play. It won writer David Lindsay-Abaire a Pulitzer Prize and SATC‘s Cynthia Nixon a Tony Award in 2006 for her performance in it in New York. (If you want to know the play’s plot, go here.)

So maybe it wasn’t such a surprise that Nicole Kidman and her production company teamed up with a bunch of other producers to buy the rights and make a film that makes you forget all the other films you’ve seen. (Except maybe ‘Black Swan’.)

‘Rabbit Hole’ socks you in the stomach, whacks you in the eye, and then makes you want to cry – and then you just want Aaron Eckhart to remove all of his clothes – which is a surprise because you didn’t even like him that much in ‘The Dark Knight’. The Greeks knew about Eros and Thanatos: in ‘Rabbit Hole’ you’ll feel it. Kidman and Eckhart will knock you out of your seat.

In a year of strong films, ‘Rabbit Hole’ is nearly perfect as a film about death, grief, love, stupidity, honesty and, heartbreakingly, how we all try to do the best we can. It’s surprising – and it extremely funny and… geez, the performances are deft and strong, performances that I thought only Darren Aronofsky could get out of actors. But I AM WRONG. If people are fainting at screenings of ’127 Hours’, they’ll be grief-stricken AND laughing at ‘Rabbit Hole’.

Director John Cameron Mitchell, who previous did ‘Hedwig and the Angry Itch’ and ‘Shortbus’, has put himself into another league here; granted, he has a Grade 1 class of runners. Two-time Oscar winner Dianne Wiest utters a line about grief that will have you holding your breath – and she’s very nearly the power right at the heart of the film. Tammy Blanchard (who made her name playing Judy Garland) and Golden Globe winner Sandra Oh are all terrific. Just how Miles Teller, a newcomer, holds his own against a strong and experienced cast, I don’t know but he does.

(You’re going to see A LOT more of the actor on the far left… Miles Teller.)

‘Rabbit Hole’ makes my life of criticising creative projects and people very hard. Just when I thought I could make fun of Nicole Kidman’s perfect life, she has to go and do something excellent like this. I am disappointed, thwarted – and amazed.

‘Rabbit Hole’ will leave you stunned, entertained and, somehow, emotionally sorted. Also, it’s the rare film that actually needs to be 99 minutes long: there’s not an ounce of flab on it.

This film is Oscar Gold. It is scheduled to be released in the UK February 4, 2011.

See the trailer here.