emotional roller-coaster

Rating: 8/10 (10 January 2013)

I don't know anyone who was involved in the tsunami of 2004 and for that I am truly grateful. This film is a great example of how to take the terrible nature of such an event and create a really compelling story about the themes of love, hope, helplessness and, above all, panic.
The story focuses around one family as they struggle to find each other and stay alive in the aftermath of the vicious tsunami of 2004. However it still does a lot to show the mass horror the tsunami caused for everyone involved. Not a lot of films do this in my opinion, they manage to keep us connected to that family whilst also making us feel for every character we see. This is done as well as, if not better than, Titanic. The story manages to strike the right nerve at the right time, it gives us just the right amount of hope for our characters, which is cleverly juxtaposed by the feelings of helplessness and dread.
As said, the film takes you on an emotional journey, and this is in no small part due to our actors. The acting is fantastic all round. McGregor is reliably good as ever although he didn't have as much screen time as I would have hoped. Naomi Watts has really entered my radar recently, I've been seeing some of her films and she really is one of the best actresses of this generation. However Tom Holland as Lucas owns this film. He isn't even 18 yet and I wouldn't be surprised if he becomes a very big star in film. The other kids played their parts very well. The acting adds to the great character development so much so that I actually found myself hoping the tsunami wouldn't actually happen.
This film really surprised me and I didn't even plan on seeing it. No film is perfect, but this one left me feeling emotionally drained. Hollywood could certainly learn a lot of lessons from this about how to make a compelling film without the need for clichés and formulaic plots. The Impossible comes with my highest recommendation for those who want a subtle but emotionally moving film about the lengths ordinary people will go to protect those they love.