REVIEW: THE IMPOSSIBLE
You'd be surprised since I've only been around for 16 years and some change, but I've seen a lot of national tragedy. I can vividly recall being pulled out of my kindergarten class on that Tuesday in September 2001, and hearing that both towers had collapsed when I arrived at a family member's house. I can remember exactly where I was when word broke of the Connecticut massacre and the Aurora massacre. My Virginia brethren probably know exactly where they were as well when that earthquake hit us back in late August...I was completely engrossed in my new Kanye West album when I thought the ground was opening up and I ran outside and into my neighbor's house. The same applies to the Indian Ocean earthquake back in December, the day after Christmas (we Americans don't know this, but in other countries it's called Boxing Day). I wasn't informed immediately, but the morning on the day I went back to school, I remember being in a Minnieland parking lot, eating my McDonald's biscuit...and just having the energy sucked out of me.
230,000+ fatalities is a truly sickening, unthinkably devastating statistic. It makes you think there were no survivors...everything in its path that tsunami obliterated. I hate that word, "tsunami," because out of context it is a beautifully sounding collection of syllables. But this wasn't the case. The true story of the Belon family (in the movie the Bennetts, we'll get to that in a minute), is showcased in "The Impossible," a stunningly heart-wrenching drama that picked up an Oscar nomination Thursday for Naomi Watts' agonizing performance as Maria Bennett. Instead of the Spanish family in real life, "The Impossible" has been under fire for having a white, British family used as surrogates for the film. The fact is hard to dismiss, but the movie's strengths more than make you forget, and the real Maria's acceptance of Naomi Watts portraying her helps swallow the pill.
The film opens with nothing but a black screen and harrowing sound effects, building up with the sounds of waves crashing....and it gets louder...and louder....until finally you see a plane swooshing by the Indian Ocean to a Thai beach resort. The family consists of Maria, Henry (Ewan McGregor), Lucas (Tom Holland) and Thomas and Simon (Samuel Joslin and Oaklee Pendergrast, the latter having one of the greatest names I think ever) an adorably Caucasian nuclear family spending Christmas together. They all get along wonderfully, and the only problem they have currently is the question of Henry's employment. While retrieving a loose page from her book, Maria sees a glass pane shake violently in front of her. Then the sound of waves approach....
The tsunami in "The Impossible" has more impact and power than largely any scene in "2012." The flowing, disgusting murky water, once an open invitation for tourists to come relax, turns on them by sheer force of nature. We see Maria awake, battered and clinging to life itself in a palm tree, letting out some of the most hard-to-listen to screams in recent memory. It's nearly indescribable...something of despair, hopelessness, agony, defeat. It's an echo no human should ever have to utter, and Watts is so compelling, as she bleeds and bellows through the film with strength literally only a mother could possess. I know Jessica Chastain has best actress on lock for this year, but Watts' depiction of a woman whose life is hanging on by the thinnest of threads is tantalizing. Young Tom Holland is also a revelation, expect more greatness from him in the future.
Ultimately "The Impossible" is an inspiring, touching portrait of a family's willingness to be together at all costs, and an uplifting look at the human morale and spirit at its most charitable and determined. The whole film can be wrapped up with one scene: Lucas is staring at his mom's grotesque leg gash, and she turns around and realizes this. To prevent him from worrying, she insists he stay in front of him for the rest of their trek. Bring a couple dozen tissues with you to this one.
Rating: 4/4 stars
(P.S. I feel like I'm giving 3.5's and 4's out like candy lately, but only because I'm getting caught up on all my Oscar films! I'll be seeing "Zero Dark Thirty" next week!)
The film opens with nothing but a black screen and harrowing sound effects, building up with the sounds of waves crashing....and it gets louder...and louder....until finally you see a plane swooshing by the Indian Ocean to a Thai beach resort. The family consists of Maria, Henry (Ewan McGregor), Lucas (Tom Holland) and Thomas and Simon (Samuel Joslin and Oaklee Pendergrast, the latter having one of the greatest names I think ever) an adorably Caucasian nuclear family spending Christmas together. They all get along wonderfully, and the only problem they have currently is the question of Henry's employment. While retrieving a loose page from her book, Maria sees a glass pane shake violently in front of her. Then the sound of waves approach....
The tsunami in "The Impossible" has more impact and power than largely any scene in "2012." The flowing, disgusting murky water, once an open invitation for tourists to come relax, turns on them by sheer force of nature. We see Maria awake, battered and clinging to life itself in a palm tree, letting out some of the most hard-to-listen to screams in recent memory. It's nearly indescribable...something of despair, hopelessness, agony, defeat. It's an echo no human should ever have to utter, and Watts is so compelling, as she bleeds and bellows through the film with strength literally only a mother could possess. I know Jessica Chastain has best actress on lock for this year, but Watts' depiction of a woman whose life is hanging on by the thinnest of threads is tantalizing. Young Tom Holland is also a revelation, expect more greatness from him in the future.
Ultimately "The Impossible" is an inspiring, touching portrait of a family's willingness to be together at all costs, and an uplifting look at the human morale and spirit at its most charitable and determined. The whole film can be wrapped up with one scene: Lucas is staring at his mom's grotesque leg gash, and she turns around and realizes this. To prevent him from worrying, she insists he stay in front of him for the rest of their trek. Bring a couple dozen tissues with you to this one.
Rating: 4/4 stars
(P.S. I feel like I'm giving 3.5's and 4's out like candy lately, but only because I'm getting caught up on all my Oscar films! I'll be seeing "Zero Dark Thirty" next week!)
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