Release Date: February 3, 2015
Rating: R
Running Time: 123 minutes
Once happily married, Connor (McAvoy) and Eleanor (Chastain) suddenly find themselves as strangers longing to understand each other in the wake of tragedy. The film explores the couple’s story as they try to reclaim the life and love they once knew and pick up the pieces of a past that may be too far gone. “THE DISAPPEARANCE OF ELEANOR RIGBY is refreshingly honest, and reaffirms one meaningful, often forgettable constant — no one single human holds the answers to life’s greatest questions.” (Matt Donato, We Got This Covered). Benson’s latest version of their story combines his previous two films — titled HIM and HER — uniting their perspectives and taking a further look into the subjectivity of relationships.
I was anticipating watching The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby for the cast alone and the cast did a fantastic job with the material that they were given but after watching Them, I feel like I didn’t see the characters with anymore depth than they had at the beginning so it was very important to also watch Her and Him. And there’s nothing wrong with that, it’s realistic in that way. I was simply hoping for more exploration in Them as well.
Them isn’t so much a movie that comes full circle as it never really takes off. I love that Eleanor tried to move on with her life after her suicide attempt. I love that her loved ones pick her up when she falls and she pushes herself to do something with her life. Still, there’s always going to be Connor. And the relationship that they have is truly heartbreaking. It’s good. It’s bad. It’s everything. Her and Him are everything.
While I think that this film is a very poignant look at the relationship between Connor and Eleanor and the realization that Eleanor comes to about her life (with him), Them doesn’t offer much for me to consider it a particularly memorable film – at least having watched that first. Because we’ve seen films like this before, much better ones so I can’t say that this one stands out. This is a good film by itself, it’s just not amazing. The tone is dark, the pacing is slow. This is definitely a slow burn. And if you’e up for that, you’ll enjoy this. I was up for that but again, not as much exploration as I would have liked overall.
There is the option to watch The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby from Her point of view and The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby from His point of view – the blu-ray comes with a second disc for these two viewing options. I will say that watching this may give you a greater love for the film. It did for me. Looking back, I wish I had watched these first and then the movie as is. That’s not necessarily a recommendation, it’s just what I wish I had done. No matter how you watch it though, there’s something to appreciate here. This is a quiet film but worth watching if you’re willing.
Q&A with Jessica Chastain & James McAvoy (Approx. 22 minutes) – This is footage from the September 12, 2014 NYC Q&A moderated by Thelma Adams. I do like Q&As because it often gives me a deeper appreciation for the film after seeing how the actors saw their characters but aside from that, Jessica Chastain had quite a lot to say and she is always so thoughtful and genuinely lovely so I enjoyed this Q&A very much.
Own The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby on Blu-ray and DVD today.