The Door in the Floor is smart, subtle and engaging but it’s ultimately dark, depressing and disturbing. Similar to American Beauty, it’s a sad story about a family in conflict. Ted (Jeff Bridges) is a stereotypical author/artist whose played with some originality by Bridges and Marion (Kim Basinger) is still struggling with a tragedy in the families past.

In the midst of the growing tension, Ted hires an assistant named Eddie (Jon Foster), who does what he’s told when Ted is around and develops an affair with Marion when he isn’t. Eddie soon becomes a pawn in the marital struggle, but doesn’t seem to mind as long as he’s getting what he wants.

An accident occurred in the family years ago that the parents seem to blame on themselves. Strangely enough, their guilt does not lead them to become better parents to their daughter Ruth (Elle Fanning, younger sister and mirror look-a-like of Dakota), but actually leads to a degree of neglect on the part of both.

Door in the Floor feels like it’s founded on a worldview that’s pretty pessimistic in the first place. The end feels inevitable, and the whole world these characters live in is one of self-absorption and gloom. I was never the least bit concerned – or even interested – in any of these characters.

Nevertheless, the script itself is compelling. Floor does raise some interesting questions about fear – the “door in the floor” is a place in one of Ted’s stories wherein lies something dreadfully fearful. I’m not really sure what the filmmakers think the characters’ door in the floor consists of, but it seems as if the thing these characters are the most scared of is coming to terms with themselves.

The Door in the Floor is full of metaphors and layered ideas to the extent that it would be worth watching again for the sake of catching what was missed the first time were it not so awfully gloomy. As interesting as it is, I really have no interest in ever seeing this again. For all its depth, it fails to ever say anything of significance. The Door in the Floor seems to make claims towards “realism”, but it’s missing In America’s very real hope and optimism.

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