Jason Bateman and Jude Law, the Black Rabbit carrot (critic)

The two stars are the alpha and the omega of this licked thriller, which turns on the descent into euphoric and exhausting hell.

To follow the white rabbit is to leave with Alice in Wonderland is to discover with Neo the universe of Matrix, and it is now sink with the Friedken brothers in the Jungle of New York. Except that this time, the rabbit is black. This black rabbit is the name of the very popular restaurant that Jake Friedken has, the GQ of the hype of the Big Apple. It is also the name of the rock group he had formed with his brother in the 1990s. The time of a 30-second clip, we discover the fantastic tube composed for the occasion, in which Jude Law and Jason Bateman have fun in Stars Grunge of the 1990s. Any resemblance to the Gallagher brothers (Oasis) may not be fortuitous.

Like Liam and Noel, the Friedken brothers love each other as much as they are tearing themselves apart. They share a fusional complicity that feeds the whole series posted today on Netflix.

And it starts with reunion. After years of absence, Vince, the elder, returns to New York. With his improbable look of Koh-Lanta survivor, Jason Bateman embodies the brother badass and unscrupulous, who lost everything and returns to try to pick up the songs with his little brother. It must be said that everything rolls for Jake in his restaurant. At first glance, he was able to surf his years of pop star success and invest the New York night world. But his tidy life will quickly fly under the influence of his elder.

Following this ugly duckling dressed as a black rabbit, we rush into an infernal spiral where secrets, jealousy and old family trauma intertwine. The classic story at Cain and Abel (or Thor and Loki if you prefer) takes on the appearance of Thriller Rock’n’roll with stylized aesthetics.

Three years after the dark Ozark, Jason Bateman – who also realizes the first episodes – finds Netflix and signs an elegant and fascinating new thriller, which puts everything on his duo with Jude Law. Their association is absolutely cool, their endearing relationship and the writing of Zach Baylin (screenwriter of Creed III and the remake of The Crow) is full of good ideas – like this deaf and silent mafia chief interpreted by Troy Kotsur (Oscar -winning for Coda). Too bad Black Rabbit becomes a little repetitive in the long run. The inevitable descent into hell is spread over eight hours – really too long – and, paradoxically, does not always manage to verbalize the psychological nuances of this fraternal dynamic, a true engine of the whole series.

Black Rabbit, in 8 episodes, to see on Netflix from September 18, 2025.