A twenty-seven year old woman who was kidnapped, has been held hostage trapped in a lock-tight and sound-proofed 11′ x 11′ garden shed for the past seven years. However two years into her capture after being continually raped by her kidnapper, she gave birth to a son called Jack. The movie actually starts five years later on Jack’s birthday in the place they both call Room. It is his entire world as it is literally the only one he has ever known beyond that of the ‘make believe’ one he sees on the television which he thinks actually consists inside the set itself.
As the story unfolds, narrated by Jack, Ma starts to plot an escape plan and convinces her very overwhelmed five year old to go along with it. When making him appear in a feverish state doesn’t move Old Nick enough to take the boy to a hospital ER, then Ma resorts to pretending that Jack has died as a result of his untreated illness and demands that he take the body wrapped up in a carpet to dispose of it somewhere.
Its a daring plan that all hinges on a very frightened Jack who has to get away from Old Nick in the daylight of an outside and confusing world that he has never ventured forth into. He succeeds but only after more than a fair share of highly dramatic moments with the real possibility of him being caught and having to take the full consequences of Old Nick’s violent temper.
Adapting to freedom and life outside Room is however far from easy for either Jack or Ma sheltered in the house of her now divorced mother and her new stepdad. Jack’s moods alternates between bewilderment, fear and tantrums as he tries to come to terms with the fact that he is expected to live a life that he only thought existed inside of his television. Ma also has her own problems adjusting as she feels like she has simply swapped her imprisoned life for that of an emotional kind of prison of her parents.
Written by Emma Donoghue from her own bestselling novel of the same name, the story has been brought so compellingly to the screen by Irish filmmaker Lenny Abrahamson (‘Frank’). With half of it being played out in such a very small confined space and starring just two people, one of whom is a 5 year old boy, this was no mean feat to pull off. Yet he did it, and with such finesse that the result is one of the very best new movies of the season. Credit to his spot on casting choices of Brie Larson (‘The Spectacular Now’) giving a positively electrifying performance as a frightened and scared Ma determined to make the world a safe place for Jack. It’s a career defining moment for Ms Larson that will inevitable have her, and the film itself, showing up on numerous Award lists very shortly.
How Abrahamson coaxed such a phenomenal performance from 8 year old Jacob Tremblay, who as Jack was on screen for most of the entire two hours, is a sheer wonder. Young Tremblay portrays the bewildered Jack so naturalistically with a talent and a confidence that would be remarkable at any age, let alone one so very young. The kid has all the makings of becoming a major star.
The whole movie hinges on these two central performances and because they are so awe-inspiring they do in a way overshadow the excellent work of the crew such as the set designer and the soundtrack composer who were crucial elements of creating its success. So too were the fine supporting cast led by Joan Allen, William H Macy and Tom McCamus.
Room is one of those rare breed of movies whose reality far exceeds its expectations, and for once actually does real justice to the original story. It’s one that you will not want to miss it.
