Room (2015, dir. Lenny Abrahamson)

My expectations were constantly thwarted throughout Room.  I had not read the book upon which the film is based nor read or heard anything about the film other than the fact that it is about a mother and son who are trapped in a room against their will for a number of years.  What I liked about it is the shear exuberance of the experience of seeing the two characters getting to escape from confinement and the wonderment of seeing them readjust to the outside world.

The originality of the story and strength of the performances catapult this film into the realm of masterpiece.  It keeps the viewer constantly riveted and begs many questions:  philosophical, ethical, and humanistic.  How for example, will a young boy be able to cope with a world in which he is thoroughly unfamiliar and inexperienced?  Not only are you seeing the world through a child's eyes of wonderment and innocence, but you are given the increased poignancy of the child having spent the first half decade or more of his life in complete solitary confinement except for the companionship of the woman who gave birth to him, his mother.  Another problem the film addresses is how the mother deals with the fact that the father of her son is her captor.  When asked about her acknowledgement of her son's father, the mother's reaction is a revelation, highly-original for story-telling, and compelling.

It is interesting to see the reactions of not only the two main characters to their new freedom, but also that of their loved ones and family who's lives also changed since the mother's (Brie Larson) disappearance.

The performances in this film are complex and beautiful.  It is tricky to convey the weight of the past and torment of such characters, but the principle leads do an impeccable job.

This is one of the great films of the year and recent years.