The World

Rating: Null/10 (25 February 2017)

Abducted and held in a backyard shed with a young son fathered by her captor, a young woman attempts to escape in this grim drama starring Brie Larson and Jacob Tremblay. Some of the finer plot details do not quite add up (in seven years of captivity, she should have been able to work out a four digit security code) and the first half of the movie is a tad repetitive. Things gets more interesting in the second half though with the escape plan in action and superb point-of-view shots as we literally and metaphorically see the world for the first time through the young boy's eyes. Tremblay is excellent as the youngster in question; not all his temper tantrums ring true, but he is great in the quieter moments in which he simply sits back and observes. In fact, the film is more about Tremblay than Larson even though she was the one who garnered all the awards attention. With all the focus on Tremblay though, several plot points feel undernourished; an impending trial, having to eventually tell Trembley who his father is, and acceptance of Trembley into the family are all issues that are mentioned once or twice and then later forgotten. Some have complained that the film runs too long but the ending comes as abrupt if anything with so many avenues left open. The uncertainty is arguably fitting though, and with two very solid lead performances, this is a hard film to look away from, but its resonance will vary depending upon how one feels about all the issues and ideas here that are unexplored to make room for its depiction of a boy seeing the world for the first time.