Make Space for Room!

Rating: 9/10 (26 January 2016)

A fantastic feat in directorial achievement from Lenny Abrahamson, Room gives the audience a front row seat to the power of love and unrelenting devotion. Revealing the commanding force of love between a mother and her son when they are the only two people in their world, Room is an incredible tribute to the essence of human existence. The first half of the movie is filmed in the garden shed prison shared by the captives, proving Lenny Abrahamson to be a phenomenal director more than capable of creating a powerful film with little space. If you see no other Best Picture Nominee from this year's Academy Awards, please see Room; for it is truly the most captivating piece of art up for this year's top prize.
The audience is immediately thrust into the gripping story of Ma, who used to be known as Joy (Brie Larson), and her son Jack (Jacob Trembley) prisoners in a reinforced garden shed attempting to "celebrate" Jack's fifth Birthday. We soon learn that Joy was kidnapped 7 years before by a man, only known as Old Nick (Sean Bridgers) who is holding them hostage. Repeatedly raped, Joy gave birth to a son since her kidnapping. Jack and Ma, as he calls Joy, are never allowed to leave the shed, called Room, and Jack has not seen the outside world in his entire life. With as active an imagination as any 5 year old boy, Ma tells Jack stories to keep him entertained and distracted from the grim reality in which they live; a reality where pants are treats only delivered one day a week. Reaching the end of her psychological rope, Ma devises a plan to save herself and Jack, allow her to return to life in the outside world, and give Jack a proper childhood among family and friends, trees, wind, and even bugs. Escaping Room proves to be more daunting than happy, as Joy has lived in constructed isolation for so long that her adjustment to the outside is difficult. Jack, having almost no immune system, must make an extremely careful entry into the world; a world that he has only been introduced to in his 5 years of life to an old television with a blurry picture. Seeing everything the world has to offer proves overwhelming for Jack and he seeks out Ma more than ever. Rediscovering and creating human identity, rejoining family and friends and a normal life, and creating a life for Jack illustrate the journey that one woman will traverse to give everything possible to her little boy.
Brie Larson is one of the year's standouts this year in the role of the embattled, psychologically exhausted Ma. She eloquently displays the desperate yearning for life outside the garden shed, yet shows her complacency of not seeing a way out in extraordinary fashion. The child actor, Jacob Tremblay was also a force as the boy whose entire life has been lived in four walls. He excels when he shows the wonder of a 5 year old out in the world that he has never had the opportunity to experience. The two work together so well, and develop a compassionate chemistry on screen, creating a truly powerful experience for the audience. Watching the two only have each other, desperate for things among everyday life that seem so inconsequential was an incredible experience.
Identity and love are the cornerstones explored in Room. Joy lost her identity once she was kidnapped; she is then tasked with creating a new one for herself and her son in order to simply be able to live through their shared experience as captives. Jack, on the other hand, is robbed of developing his own identity apart from his mother. Once out of room, he is exposed to parts of the world he thought didn't truly exist, and being in contact with all of life's wonders in such a short amount of time was magical, yet overwhelming for the young boy. The depths of love explored in this movie are unparalleled by any other film in 2015. Constantly having her body violated, Joy became pregnant by her captor, eventually delivering the baby inside the garden shed. This all happens off-screen, but is a difficult concept for the viewer. Able to look past the harrowing truth behind Jack's conception, Joy loves him and would stop at nothing to protect him. Likewise, Ma is the only person Jack has ever known, his autonomy is solely based within her, and he is so devoted to his mother that he keeps a tooth of hers that fell out in his mouth so he always has a piece of her. Compelling is the story of how deep love lives within human beings, despite the circumstances we encounter.
Without question, Room is the standout as far as art pieces recognized by the Academy for their top prize this year. (I am still upset that they missed out on recognizing Carol) I sincerely hope that Room pulls out a dark horse victory for the highest honor this year. If nothing else, I hope that Todd Haynes wins a statuette for Best Director, as the range he gained from the two actors inside four walls is unmatched in skill and product. A gripping tale of love and identity among on-going psychological hell, Room is uncontested in delivering its message. One can only cross their fingers that The Academy gets this one right.