Warning: Review may contain some spoilers.
The Impossible portrays the true story of a Spanish family, (made to be English for box office purposes) who are caught up in one of the biggest natural disasters of our time. Attempting to capture the total devastation caused by the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami in two hours is not an easy task. The incredible special effects and clever use of sound make the audience feel truly submersed when the wave hits. Where director Juan Antonio Bayona really succeeds is depicting the unforgiving nature of the disaster, he does not show any heroic escapes, but provides shots lingering on the dead bodies, gory wounds, and orphaned children.
The plot follows the family and their struggle to reunite in the chaotic aftermath of the disaster. Even though moving moments are accompanied by a rather unnecessarily overdramatic score, the story is very touching. Ewan McGregor’s performance is accomplished with his acting abilities peeking in a poignant scene where he breaks down when contacting his father at home.
Where the film fails is that although remarkable, the tale of a white privileged family doesn’t give a sufficient acknowledgement that the true victims were actually the Thai population, whose homes and way of life were completely destroyed. They are depicted as the help: the caring search party, and the cooperative doctors who are there to assist the tourist victims. This fault is epitomised by the rather anti-climatic ending with the family flying home in a private plane leaving the turmoil behind them.
However, despite these flaws “The Impossible” is one of the better disaster based films to date.
Verdict: ***