Cinema Review: The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Them

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The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Them

Studio: The Weinstein Company
Directed by Ned Benson

Sep 11, 2014 By Austin Trunick James McAvoy

The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby portrays dual tales of grief perpetrated by a single tragedy. Eleanor (Jessica Chastain) and Connor (James McAvoy) mourn through a shared, world-shattering heartbreak, each in their own separate way. Connor buries his feelings, while Eleanor lets herself be overcome by them. Through an assemblage of performances suffused with depth, we watch their struggling wear down their friends and family, and these two compelling characters bend and break.

Filmmaker Ned Benson cut The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby into three separate films: Him, from Connor’s perspective; Her, from Eleanor’s; and Them, a version which whittles down and splices the two into a single movie, and is the version reviewed here. Rigby may succeed more as a pair; cut together, Eleanor’s dazed, dreamlike perspective sometimes feels burdened by the weight of Connor’s darker, worldlier one. Still, even the blended version is a winner—save for heavy-handed heart-to-hearts with side characters, the performances are across-the-board absorbing. Plus, a wonderful score from Son Lux fits the bitter tone to a tee.

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