Jeri Jacquin
Coming to Digital such as Apple TV, Fandango, Prime Video and more from writer/director Bryn Chainey, Magnet and Magnolia Pictures is the journey with the RABBIT TRAP.
Darcy (Dev Patel) and wife Daphne (Rosy McEwen) have left the London life finding a cottage in the isolated forest of Wales. Spending time together, the couple who look for acoustic inspiration, they record the sound of the world that they find interesting for art. One afternoon Darcy finds a faerie circle that has drawn him in with the unusual sound frequencies. When he comes to after not understanding what has happened, he sees a young child (Jade Croot) who claims he lives nearby and was drawn to Daphne’s music. The boy enjoys being around Darcy and Daphne and makes it a point to visit their cottage often.
In the meantime, Darcy is having strange dreams and Daphne is aware that something is bothering him. She also embraces the young child taking who takes into the forest and shows what he knows about the natural world. Darcy wonders what the child is doing to the couple with shadows, whispers and changes that are dangerous with his pushing of boundaries. There is a psychological event happening to the couple and Daphne is starting to understand her husband’s worries.
When it comes time to face every moment that has happened, Darcy and Daphne try to find a way to embrace their lives and the spiritualness of the forest around them.
Patel as Darcy is a man who is plagued by a sadness that haunts his nights. He loves his wife and all the things they do together, especially going into the forest and recording the sounds. When the boy comes into his life, it is almost as if Patel’s Darcy can not hide his past at all without the whisperings being as strong as his nightmares. I have long been a Patel-fan and adore that he takes risks in all the roles he plays. In this film he dares to allow this bit of a thriller to expose, at it were, his emotional range in the turmoiled world that is created unexpectedly.
McEwen as Daphne is a woman who is just as creative as husband Darcy as they share the wonder of sound. She gets a bit emotional not totally understanding what causes his pain but the love is absolutely there. When the child comes into their life, Daphne is enjoying their experiences together but the relationship has moments where she wonders what is controlling everything. McEwen gives the same intensity as the script asks of her and pairing with Patel is really beautiful.
Croot as the young child is charming and innocent looking but there is something under the surface. There are moments of jaw drops as Croot gives a performance that is truly stunning, ethereal, dark and made me jump once or twice. As the story goes deeper down the rabbit hole, Croot ramps up the intensity until the very last scene.
Magnolia Pictures is responsible for such releases as SLAY THE DRAGON, JOHN LEWIS: Good Trouble, the crime thriller THE WHISTLERS, documentaries such as THE PIECES I AM and films such as the directorial debut of Italian filmmaker Filippo Meneghetti. For more of what they have to offer please visit www.magpictures.com.
Magnet Releasing specializes in films from the vanguard of horror, action, comedy, and Asian cinema. It is also the home of classics like Tomas Alfredson’s LET THE RIGHT ON IN, Ti West’s THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL, Andre Ovredal’s TROLLHUNTER, Neil Marshall’s sword and sandals bloodbath CENTURION and Tony Jaa’s ONG BAK trilogy. To find out more of what is to come please visit www.magnetreleasingfilms.com.
The film debuted at Sunday and RABBIT TRAP was nominated for Best International Feature Film and Best European Fantastic Feature Film by the Festival Europeen du Film Fantastique de Strasbourg (FEFFS). The score for the film done by Lucrecia Dalt was inspired by electronic musicians Delia Derbyshire and Daphne Oram. It is a stand out in the film absolutely offering another layer to the story that Chainey was telling.
Using the Welsh folklore or the tylwyth teg that is drawn to children is a reason to want to dig deeper into it all. Chainey uses the fairy ring of mushrooms and milk to bring myth to the forefront of the story. I loved every moment of the mythology being show in such a dark way and the effects of humans. Producing the film is a list of names that are recognizable with Elijah Wood, Daniel Noah, Lawrence Inglee, Elisa Lleras, Alex Ashworth and Sean Marley.
This is the type of mystery/fright/mythology films that I have to have popcorn with. The story moves at its own pace, like the pace of the forest and surrounding nature giving moments to stop and take it all in. It is beautiful, ethereal and also filled with secrets and shadows that will reveal themselves when least expected. I enjoyed the pace of the film, loved the setting and keeping the cast to Patel, McEwen and Croot was nothing short of astounding.
In the end – folklore follows them home!
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