'Blu-ray or Bust' - ROOM

'Blu-ray or Bust'

ROOM (2015, R, 118 minutes, A24/ELEMENT PICTURES)

Some actors in Hollywood actually get It. While many understand the craft, it takes a special few that can actually create art with their role. Those few take roles not because they are looking for a big payday, but because they believe in the story being told.

And then there’s Brie Larson. As shown by the Academy Award she so rightfully deserved for her role as “Ma” in ROOM, Larson goes one step further. She was “Grace” in SHORT TERM 12 (available on Netflix), a wonderful little movie with an amazing story. She was the troubled “Kate” in Showtime’s “The United States of Terra”, a show that lost its way after season two—but you kept tuning in to see if Kate would sit on any more balloons for her webcam show.

Her rather varied career can be defined in moments, and in ROOM, she shines like she never has before. Although she isn’t really the sole focus of the tale; the story, about a mother and son held captive in a shed for five years, until they plan a rather risky and daring escape, is all about human connection. And not just with each other.

The genius in this film is all in perspective; we get much of the story from the eyes of Jack, and it is his basic understanding of his tiny world which gives this movie its giant beating heart. Veteran child actor Jacob Tremblay plays Jack with a determination and drive that forces you to see life and the world—no matter how big or small—the way he does. It is his childhood witnessing of events that makes the film so heart-wrenching. If the final moments, if not the preceding two hours, don’t get you, than you need to have your mental settings checked.

This is entirely necessary on Blu-ray. The first half of the film is focused on their captivity, but to fully appreciate their confined living quarters, and all of the detail that went into the set itself, you need the sharper image. Also, the soaring score by Stephen Rennicks (FRANK) can be incredibly moving at times. The special features (of which there are three) give an excellent back-story to the film—and to the novel by Emma Donoghue (who also wrote the screenplay).

So go see this damn movie. If not just to see the reasons Brie Larson won best actress, but to also see the amazing talent commanded by little Jacob Tremblay. You are not only made witness to a dramatic piece of storytelling, but also to the craft as an art form. Appreciate it, heathens!

Grade: A

Special Features: A

Blu-ray Necessary: Most Definitely