Five-Word Review: Beautiful, Harrowing, Suspenseful, Wonderfully Acted

Rating: 9/10 (9 February 2016)

Emma Donoghue adapts her own successful novel for the big screen in this Oscar-nominated drama that could be based on real events. Room begins in a tiny room, a converted shed in the back garden of an abductor. Brie Larson (this is surely a breakout role for the supporting actor from comedies such as 21 Jump Street and Scott Pilgrim vs The World) plays Joy, the woman who has been trapped there for 7 years, and this is all her five-year old son Jack (Jacob Tremblay) has ever known. His conception of the world is limited to "Skylight" and "Wardrobe", with the place outside the room merely outer space. I don't want to say much more - don't watch the trailer! - as you should really, definitely, see this film.
Room, at different times over the course of its runtime, sets different tones. The beginning is harsh, uncomfortable and harrowing. The claustrophobic direction, with Danny Cohen's expert cinematography, honestly makes you feel like there is nothing outside of this Room. The entire lives of our two central characters are on display, with literally nowhere to hide, and the nasty, desolate situation is equal parts hard to watch and finely crafted. From this desperate, harrowing scenario comes suspense, with a tense, breathless atmosphere concocted with almost no action. However, what I perceived as the prevailing tone of the film (chiefly due to my optimistic nature) was the beauty and wonderment of the piece. Somewhat like Inside Out, the only way to describe Room is simply beautiful. The relationship between mother and son is rarely so sublimely depicted. Even through all the pain and suffering that they go through, director Lenny Abrahmason conveys the love wonderfully, helped by skilled, natural performances. Whilst some scenes are sad enough to bring a tear to the eye, I found myself closer to crying in some of the less depressing scenes - embraces, reunions, etc., which is helped by a score that seems jarringly loud due to the still quiet of most of the rest of the film. When the music kicks in, you know it's a special moment. The convincing nature of the piece is supported by two giants of performances in the form of the astonishing Tremblay, who hopefully has a bright future ahead of him, and the rightly-award-tipped Larson. Tremblay helps steer Room from the pitfalls of a precocious, irritating child actor with a natural and believable role, conveying wonderment and joy at the situation that we, and his mother, know as horribly bleak. His tantrums are like watching a real child in motion, and he comes out as the lead actor - a tough feat, but successfully achieved. Meanwhile, as Joy, Larson bears all the sadness and anger that is the inverse of her innocent and wide- eyed son. The supporting performances, especially from Joan Allen as Joy's mother, and William H. Macy as her father, are equally brilliant.
I struggled to think of anything wrong with Room. And it's true; very little keeps it from being a perfect 10. And having waited a couple of days, I have still not come to any realisation of negativity. I suppose all I can say is that it is not incredibly memorable - I may not watch this film much in the future, and it's tough to watch. However, Room holds up as one of the very greatest films of 2015. 95/100.