Film Review: Room

A little late on the bandwagon, but I managed to finally watch Room last night. And for anyone that has not seen this film, I desperately urge you to go and watch it - It is one of those films that will completely change your perspective on life and the world around you.

The film centres around a woman called Joy “ma” Newsome (Brie Larson) and her 5 year old son Jack Newsome (Jacob Tremblay), who have been held captive for 7 years in an enclosed space, they call ‘Room’. During the film, the pair finally escape and gain their freedom, giving young Jack the chance to experience the outside world for the first time in his life.

Brie Larson, who won an Academy Award for her role as “ma” delivers a stunning performance as she appears to have created a whole world in ‘Room’ for her son Jack, in order for him to remain unaware of the outside world around him. And at such a young age, Jacob Tremblay gives such a raw, emotional performance as 5 year old Jack, with Brie Larson’s performance giving the same emotional impact as Tremblay’s.

As well as the acting being nothing short of perfect, considering the limited space in the first part of the film, the cinematography is done extremely well, with cinematographer Danny Cohen creating a whole world inside Room, with his use of wide, high angle and extreme close-up shots that make it feel just as big to the viewer as it does to Jack.

The film grips you from the very start and an instant emotional attachment between the viewer and Joy and Jack is made, as you see the unbreakable bond they have and the situation they are in. The start of the film is difficult to watch at times, as it come to light how disturbing and traumatic their situation is, and then about an hour into the film, the pair finally escape and the feel and perspective of the film changes.

This particular transition in a film is difficult to overcome. Going from a small, dark, dinghy room to the big wide world- but Jacob Tremblay (Jack Newsome) gives a beautifully innocent performance as he gets his first glimpse of the world, again the cinematography compliments Tremblay’s performance very well, with a variety of angled close-up shots focusing on beautiful blue skies, tall trees and towering skyscrapers, highlighting the beauty of the world that we often do not take any notice of.

Overall, I found Room a very interesting, insightful and enjoyable watch, although in parts it was difficult to watch, the bond between Joy and Jack leaves you with a fuzzy feeling in the pit of your stomach and also reminds you of the more important things in life.

Watch the trailer below: