"Hello Jack, Thanks For Saving Our Little Girl..."
Starting slightly off topic, Lenny Abrahamson's latest, Room, based on the novel of the same name by Emma Donoghue, is a strange case of reminding me of the success of Disney, particularly that of the works by Pixar, in regards to how films such as The Lion King, Wall-E, and most recently, the simply wonderful Inside Out, could take important and sometimes dark subject matters such as loss, human consumption and the development from child to adult, and present them in a fashion both uplifting and engaging for everyone no matter what their age. With Room, a film that similarly has a disturbing, twisted narrative at its' core, its' one of those rare cases in cinema in which a film brings with it an abundance of different meanings, whether it be psychological, mental, or particularly, social, and that alone succeeds in making Abrahamson's latest a riveting success, one that is both emotionally draining as well as being undeniably life affirming, a strange yet incredible combination if ever there was one.
Beginning by delving straight into the lives of Joy and Jack, the mother and son combination held captive by "Old Nick" within the less-than spacious titular "room", Abrahamson's latest begins by showing us the world in which the young Jack is all but used to, a world in which life begins and ends with that of the four walls of "room", a world in which mother Joy has had to endure ever since her kidnapping at age seventeen. From such a setup, a fundamental fear began to arise in fearing what Room could have potentially become if left in lesser hands, with it perhaps playing out in a Panic Room style thriller, one in which substance was left behind in favour of drama and thrills, yet the true winning formula of Room is in its' tendency to show the events of the film from that of young Jack, where the dark subject matter, although inherently present, is left in a somewhat ambiguous, confused state in line with our young character's state of mind, brought on by his sudden change of lifestyle and the existence of, Aladdin reference inbound, a whole new world. It is this point of view that allows the film to present a wide range of sociological and psychological problems that the all too real crime of kidnapping and captivity brings across the world. It's a film that encourages to think outside the box.
Although Brie Larson has understandably been taking all of the plaudits for her simply brilliant portrayal of the captive mother, caught between making a better life for her son in that of "room"whilst being entirely aware of the power of the outside world and its' effects it potentially could have on her young child, the film no doubt belongs to Jacob Tremblay, the nine year old actor who, in the face of an intelligent, thought-provoking script, portrays the character of Jack in sheer heartbreaking fashion, with his ability to convey the emotions of a socially-inept child, one who is simply baffled and completely frightened at the prospect of understanding the newly found world, truly outstanding. It's a performance worthy of examination from a wide range of angles, whether it be from that of one either sociological or psychological, and one that deserves all the attention it can possibly get. Tremblay's performance is one of the many talking points which results in making Room a truly exquisite experience and one that won't be quickly forgotten. Room is a film of sheer, unquestionable power and one of the strongest of the year so far in the race for Oscar supremacy.
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