Wonderful effects, acting and directorial input...not an outstanding script.

Rating: 7/10 (9 January 2013)

The film is based upon the true story of a Spanish family who holiday in Thailand for Christmas 2004. The choice to use a white family here is clearly so that the film can appeal to the masses and be watched by and appreciated by a main-stream white audience. With outstanding rolls from Watts and Holland which display a true bond and raw emotions throughout, it was very easy to get caught up in the emotion of the film; making it a successful representation of ONE FAMILY'S struggle in the tsunami. The fact that they are (in the film): white, privileged and British only highlights the tsunami's ability to effect all rungs of the social ladder. However, I could not help but feel a little dishonest when the film did not show nearly enough Thai people being effecting - considering that they were impacted the worst. All in all a must see film which I hope will do very well. However, a little more character development would have been welcome.