Review: Room – “flawless, bold, and captivating”

Room is the story of a kidnapped woman stuck in a room with her five-year-old son Jack. And yet, it’s a story about so much more than their circumstance.

As Ma and Jack, Brie Larson and Jacob Tremblay are cinematic gold, both with the power to warm and break your heart in equal measure.

However, it is not just these two powerhouse performances that make Room such riveting cinema. Every single person involved seems to be another perfect piece of this puzzle, helping to tell the story with a delicate grace that makes it all the more powerful.

The script, penned by the novel’s own author Emma Donoghue, is a masterclass in writing. It intrigues, it unsettles and, more importantly, it keeps viewers gripped from start to finish by focusing on the characters and their relationships with each other.

Similarly, director Lenny Abrahamson truly understands the heart of the story being told. He never descends into horror for the sake of horror, or opts for overly sentimental moments that presume to tell the viewer what to feel. He wants to tell Ma’s story – in all it’s messy glory – and he does so beautifully, leaving viewers to take from it what they wish.

Amidst all the horror of Ma’s situation, there is hope, resilience and beauty in her connections to the world around her. She wants to make the world a good and safe place for her son and, more than anything, we want it too.

Room is a quiet film, powerful and haunting in its simplicity. This is flawless, bold, and captivating cinema. Tears will probably be shed but many of them will be tears of joy and relief.

The DVD also boasts numerous featurettes that take a closer look behind the scenes and audio commentary from the film’s director.