The phrase 'emotional roller-coaster' is used too often....

Rating: 9/10 (6 January 2013)

****SPOILER ALERT *****
The phrase 'emotional roller-coaster' is used too often....
But in this case I can't sum up the diversity of emotions that I felt whilst watching this movie in any other way. I knew it would tug on my heart strings purely due to the subject matter and the pre-release material that I'd seen. What I didn't expect is that a film, a movie, a piece of celluloid would tap into the most base emotions of my 'lizard brain' as the scientists call it. As a father with a son of the same age as the main child in this I felt myself pulled into the family's plight, decisions and ultimate salvation like no other film I've ever seen.
If I was to criticise though, the ending was terribly cheesy - the mum fighting towards the light to survive her surgery and then all the family are greeted by a representative of the father's employers, a large bank and taken to a private plane past lines of grieving survivors only to have the plane to themselves with rows of empty seats when they could've helped others.
Overall a magnificent film though and one that the cinematographer must get nominated for an Oscar for the tsunami scenes which were breath-takingly realistic.