Most fatal automobile accidents happen in the blink of an eye but take a lifetime to get over for all involved. Reservation Road begins with a hit-and-run accident that’s just as quick. It takes the life of a Josh Lerner, a child, and now the family has to deal with the loss of their son, while the driver wrestles with the guilt. It’s a gripping enough subject matter that isn’t exactly given an engaging or focused enough screenplay to be as powerful as it so desperately strives for.
The driver, Dwight Arno (Mark Ruffalo), is late returning his son to his ex-wife. They are on their way back from a Boston Red Socks game that ran into extra innings. The anxiety of tardiness takes hold and his attention to the road is impaired. Then, while searching for his cellphone, he veers into the opposite traffic lane and a car almost hits him head-on. He frantically grabs the wheel in an attempt to get out of the lane as quickly as possible.
Dwight succeeds in avoiding the accident but in doing so, he strikes a child on the side of the road. Ethan (Joaquin Phoenix), the boy’s father, witnesses the event and begs the driver to stop. But he just drives off, as if that will erase the damage he caused. Why didn’t Dwight stop? It’s clear to him that he struck something that simply wasn’t just some road debris. It’s this 4-second incident that Reservation Road focuses on for the rest of its running time.
The film feels as if its headed into thriller territory but never quite takes the plunge. Ethan becomes obsessed with finding his boy’s killer. The cops investigating the case seem optimistic about finding the killer but as time passes, Ethan’s patience runs less and less thin. His wife Grace (Jennifer Connelly) has an even harder time working through the mourning process as her husband becomes more and more distant.
Co-screenwriter/director Terry George (Hotel Rwanda) provides a good balance in focus between Ethan’s frustration and Dwight’s guilt. It takes place in a small Connecticut town so it’s no surprise that Josh’s death impacts people who are close to Dwight, making the guilt even harder to stomach. The subject is definitely captivating enough, but the other elements drown it in mediocrity. Both characters feel incomplete; they suffer from a tragedy that should guarantee viewer sympathy/identification, yet there is no real connection.
Phoenix and Ruffalo give strong enough performances for what they have to work with but it’s the ladies of Reservation Road who deliver the strongest. Connelly can still provide a cathartic punch like no other and Mira Sorvino’s presence in the little screen time she has is definitely felt. Where has she been all these years?
