The Impossible is one of the best films of 2012. Never has a movie been so depressing and at the same time so uplifting. Naomi watts does an incredible job, but Lucas, her son, is the star of the film. A movie that should be seen, remembered, and not forgotten.

It's a much better, more emotional movie than I thought it would be. The actor who plays the oldest son is phenomenal, and he should be considered for a supporting actor nomination come awards season. Naomi Watts is excellent, as usual. The movie as a whole, however, is a touch conventional.

A vacationing family (headed by Naomi Watts & Ewan McGregor) is ripped apart and struggles to survive the 2004 tsunami in Thailand. From the jarring opening image it's obvious that this is going to be heavy-handed and manipulative. The disaster is impressively imagined and their plight is certainly daunting. Even with all the pain and emotion, the frequently ominous direction and menacing music telegraphed the situations. Performances, including the 3 sons, are strong and special effects are convincing. There was something about it that left me flat. I was absorbed throughout, but never caught up in the drama. To me the 2006 HBO film "Tsunami: The Aftermath" was better.… Expand

Director J A Bayona's vision for this film is simply spectacular. It manages to be extremely emotionally enticing, authentic, visually brilliant, and rooted in showcasing humanity at its finest. The entire acting assemble was flawless, but it was the scenes between Naomi Watts and Tom Holland that made this film so beautiful and real.

The best Spanish film of the history of cinema.

The film starts with a real bang, with a ten-minute reenactment of the tidal wave and its devastation, depicted by Boyona in the most graphic and brutal way. What follows is inevitably an anticlimax, however the amazing cinematography and the incredible stand-out performance comes from 16-year-old Holland make it worth while watching till the end.

One of the most harrowing natural disasters in recent history forms the basis for The Impossible, the most recent film from director Juan Antonio Bayona, the acclaimed director of the Orphanage. The film follows a family vacationing in Thailand for Christmas back in 2004 when the Boxing Day tsunami hits. the film tells the true story of a families struggle to survive in the most shocking of conditions following an unspeakable horror. Much like The Orphanage, The Impossible is a story more about reconnection than survival as this family of five struggle to find each other in a country that is completely alien to them, in a place where almost everyone is trying to find someone and has no time for others. Films like this have the tendency to over sentimentalize the material and its true that the film loses its identity in favor of a big dose of cheddar as the film draws to its conclusion but it almost doesn't matter after the ordeal that is the first hour. The Impossible is a grueling watch in its unbiased depiction of a people and a country ravaged by an unapologetic ocean of water. The cast is led by Ewan McGregor and Naomi Watts, who both give give stunning performances as Henry and Maria, parents to children Lucas, Thomas and Simon. Watts deserves her recent Oscar nomination for her all in performance as Maria, a woman with great courage and conviction tasked with the unbelievable task of keeping Lucas safe even though she doubts she will make it. Mcgregor's worried father Henry is equally as affecting as Watts is because he is exactly the opposite of Maria, he doesn't know how to hide the fear he has for his family, especially Lucas and Maria. Lucas is played with great skill by child actor Tom Hollander who shows the heart of the character even when the script forces him to film flop from a teenager to a child and back again. The characters are the best thing about the script by Sergio G Sanchez but Lucas seems to regress into a 5 year old boy half way through the film to service a side plot that is thoroughly irritating. The script itself is absolutely woeful, in fact the only reason the film isn't a 9 or a 10 is because the script is so bad it ruins both the opening and the end with the opening being unnatural and stiff and the end being over the top and borderline offensive. The actors struggle through lines about leaving the alarm on, something that in a better script would seem like a perfectly normal thing to talk about but this script is so dreadful it makes the lines seem like comedy, something you really don't expect from a film with graphic content and highly distressing themes, it just feels wrong. Overall though the film is saved by some fantastic direction through the initial wave right up to the uplifting finale, as well as by some devastating performances, none more so than Ms Watts, an actress I had not rated until this film. It's fearless and powerful and for that reason alone it will make most people bawl their eyes out in the most cathartic way possible. An emotional roller coaster of a film.… Expand

The 5 members of this family seem real. I teared up several times. Kudos to the director who gets realistic performances from all the actors. It is particularly difficult to get good performances from children but he managed it. It is Naomi Watts, however, that is the centerpiece. The main crux of the film follows her and the oldest son on the path to safety. The Tsunami seemed real, and there is a cast of thousands around the hospital. Not sure how they filmed it but it is quite an achievement. I'm not sure I would ever want to see the film again - much of it is hard to watch, but overall a very affective film that I thought about long after the final credits. Lastly, I would like to mention that the entire movie was given away in the trailer I saw for this movie which is a shame. There is an art to making a trailer that makes you want to see the movie without giving too much away and more and more movies are giving away too much of the plot.… Expand

Naomi Watts just seized her second Oscar nomination (ended with an inevitable lose though) in this tsunami catastrophe survival drama which happened in South Asia 2004. Directed by Spanish young director Juan Antonio Bayona (yes, it is a Spanish production in spite of its mainly English-speaking cast), which marks his comeback after the internationally-accoladed debut THE ORPHANAGE (2007, 8/10), an ingeniously orchestrated horror-fest. The film’s first half is a lip-smacking triumph not only for the special visual effects simulating the walls of water and its overwhelming impact, it’s like HEREAFTER (2010, 6/10) meets 127 HOURS (2010, 8/10), vividly renders a kindness of faithful vicariousness on viewers through the white-knuckle self-salvage from the mother-son dyad. And if HEREAFTER could nab an Oscar nomination for BEST VISUAL EFFECTS, THE IMPOSSIBLE easily trumps it. But for the second half, the storytelling adopts a middle-of-the-road sentimentality, it is all about the reunion, still, there is a remarkable achievement for the editing team (and the cinematography group as well) to interlace Watts’ flashbacks under the water with the operation she is undergoing, which is done with an eye-opening flourish. Adapted from a true event, from one hand, it affirmatively obviates the barbs like what’s the odds the entire family (one couple with 3 son, age 12, 7 and 5 respectively) could pull through the calamity, it is a genuine miracle literally had happened (as far as the denouement concerned), so just deal with it! But from the other hand, the film shamefully sacrifices the accuracy for the sake of the emotional climax, which is a prerequisite for selling the tickets I suppose, and it worked (my eyes swelled with tears for many occasions), even simultaneously there is a tint of bathos ascending when the five of them finally find each other altogether at one place one time, it is so lame! Anyway, the film is also a victory for the cast, although Watts is bedridden for half of her time on screen, her hard-earned Oscar nomination is well-deserved, an impeccable endeavor out of the mundanity of her character (a woman try to survive under a dire circumstance). Tom Holland, the true leading man and great discovery from the film as the eldest son, has a stunning resemblance of a young Jamie Bell (what a coincidence, Tom was actually had a stint in BILLY ELLIOTS the musical to play the titular role in 2008, and call it sexism, academy never nominates teenage actors for their leading roles), most of the time he is the audience’s proxy, we see through his eyes, his precocity and gallantry dominates the most chunk of the film’s narrative and it has been executed unimpeachably. Ewan McGregor, absent for a disturbingly long time in the film, can only descend himself in a supporting part, he is a consistent great player in the race who is unfortunately always falling under the Oscar radar by only a notch, his cellphone-calling scene should be inscribed in every Oscar voter’s mind, so next time, his glory will be duly justified. Also, the great Geraldine Chaplin, delivers the punchline “the impossibility of death stars” in her unforgettable cameo.

Juan Antonio Bayona has warranted his craftsmanship in dealing with spectacular sensations, so Hollywood might beckon him to their wonderland, even if not, I daresay the next big thing is on the rising. ps, I guess Seth MacFarlane did see this film since apart from MULHOLLAND DR. (2001, 9/10) we also saw your boobs here, Naomi, but this time we are in a rueful mood.… Expand

Frankly, I had been experiencing some obvious pains while watching thiz movie. The movie gives you an actual situation of one of the deadliest natural disasters of the 21st century. It was the mega tsunami that hit most of Southeast Asia in 2004. To be more specific, it’s based on the incredible true story of the Belon family consists of a father, a mother and three sons, which at that timime were on vacation in Phuket, Thailand. The father Henry is played by Ewan McGregor. McGregor’s character went through a lot of struggles to find his wife and son. It’s a very complex character. However, he can translate thiz character pretty well. But personally, for me, it’s the mother Maria who is played by Naomi Watts that delivers some powerful and heart-shattering performances. Watts can bring her character to life, with great emotional depth and effective improvisation. The other strong performance comes from the role of the eldest son Lucas which is played by Tom Holland. Holland creates a brilliant chemistry with Naomi Watts. The other two younger brother Thomas and Simon are played by Samuel Joslin and Oaklee Pendergast. Thiz movie is directed by young Spanish Director Juan Antonio Bayona who previously known for “The Orphanage” (2007). I can guarantee you will be in awe for the first 45 minutes of the movie, but after that, the storyline seems kind of lost. In addition to the impressive performances from the Cast members, thiz movie also provides breathtaking Visual Effects. It directly drags you into the middle of the situation. The giant tidal wave is frightening and believable. The sound of how tsunami debris hit and tear up the body is even more terrifying. There is always a meaning behind every tragedy. I appreciate the moral values in thiz movie. There is a scene, when the mother Maria tells her eldest son Lucas to help other victims though they themselves are in distress. It is praiseworthy deed and so amazing to see humanity is still alive. It’s true, nothing is more powerful than the human spirit. That’s the time when the impossible become possible.

Visit My Blog on JONNY'S MOVEE http://jonnyfendi.blogspot.com… Expand

Beginning with a terrifying dramatization of 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami which is considered to be one of the worst disasters of the history, The Impossible is an uplifting and exceptional story of a family that survives the disasters but they lose each other for some time, they don't know where to find each other, obviously, because of large casualties and also because one cannot think properly after encountering the most shocking thing they would haven't even imagined. The story of Belon family is based on a true story of the survivors and I must say that this is an exceptional piece of story penned into the film. The cast members especially Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor give phenomenal performances, so powerful that it makes you cry at times. Their characters seem believable, you can get inspired by them, it doesn't feel like there is no development in their characters. Hats off to Juan Antonio Bayona for such an outstanding direction. From beginning to the end; everything from the occurrence of the disaster to the reunion of the family; everything from the screenplay and camera work to the editing; everything is flawless, perfect, emotional and motivating. The Impossible is clearly one of the finest and the best films of 2012. IT IS AN ABSOLUTE TEARJERKER. A MUST WATCH!… Expand

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. There is no way this movie can have a 73 rating on here. The movie is just so agonizing to watch. To start out with, there is no way the entire family could have survived this, as they show the guy and his two sons taking the full impact of the huge wave at the beginning of the movie. The boys don't even have a scratch. Just ridiculous. The endless sequence of the mother and the other son is just that...never ending moaning and screaming. They show a wound in the mother's right leg that is so huge that there is just no way she could walk, let alone...live. The blood loss would kill her in less than two minutes. The young boys say things young boys would never say in real life, it is way too obvious that they are just saying memorized lines. There is no character development whatsoever. The father leaves his two young boys, possibly all he got left, in the middle of the night to search for his wife and other son who are likely dead He doesn't even know where the boys are going. No father would do that.
Even the only possibly redeeming scene, the wave hitting land is, cheap and bad. This could easily be Ewan McGregor's worst role. Almost two hours of agony.… Expand

Naomi Watts' moving performance is only surprising because she spends much of the film very weak and comatose. The story is life-affirming, but it is hurt by the pounding orchestra that accompanies most if not all of the more emotional scenes. The direction is incredible. A visceral experience, never more so than during the impressive tsunami which is more impressive than anything out of a disaster film.… Expand

I am not to mourn, and this movie tears me out. With a message of love and family, this film proves to be a jewel of the tragedy and drama; giving us harrowing scenes with Naomi Watts, proving it is an Oscar nominee.

"The Impossible" is a solid, well-made disaster film fueled by the human spirit fighting for survival with fine performances, especially by Naomi Watts. "The Impossible" faces and never quite overcomes, Ocean tsunami sets up an excellent premises in terms of showing the audience the aftermath of such an extravagant human atrocity. However, "The Impossible" feels every bit average, never rising above its own genre conventions--but it compensates with fine performances and outstanding realistic effects. The tsunami sets up the plot and the rest of the film-the catastrophic situation allows the audience to sense the aftermath of such an overwhelming human atrocity. However, "The Impossible" feels every bit average, never rising above its own genre conventions. "The Impossible" soon becomes a painful experience to endure; not for the reasons one might expect, either.
When the tsunami slams into the resort (in the first 15 minutes), Maria (Naomi Watts) and Henry (Ewan McGregor) are taking their family to Thailand for the Christmas period, hoping to enjoy a festive season complete with unflinching sunshine and exotic beaches. Arriving on Christmas Eve, the family rejoice through the 25th, savoring their time together in the island paradise. However, on Boxing Day a massive Tsunami crashes into their resort, leaving them separated and facing one of the nastiest natural disasters of modern times. The first half of the movie unfolds as a survivalist picture, pitting the characters against horrific conditions and devastating conditions--creating gripping tension in the process. There are inspirational moments of perseverance, families reuniting, people pulling together and overcoming. The film's most dramatic sequences focus on Lucas (Todd Holland), assigning himself the role of his mother's lifeguard and protector. However, as the film continues it becomes more disjointed with seamless wandering as it stumbles toward its denouement. In relation to seamless wandering--Ewan McGregor's performance just doesn't nearly stack up next to Naomi's Oscar worthy performance. As the husband, separated from his wife and searching for her, McGregor finds himself walking aimlessly and hopeless-- he does a lot of tripping or falling through floors and screaming. Even worse, it's through McGregor's role that we meet other people searching for family members, and this hint of the broader story makes the movie's little story seem trivial. What Juan Antonio Bayona is trying to do with "The Impossible" is honorable, but it's hampered by a weak script that does absolutely nothing with an endless number of possibilities. There are so many unique and truly tragic stories that spawned from the 2004 tsunami, but it feels like none of these possibilities were explored here. By the end of the film, I was bitterly scoffing to myself as the family was flown away on a private airplane to the safety of another country while many other families were left behind with missing mothers and fathers and sons and daughters. The story of this family just isn't as whole-heartedly inspiring as it could have been. I'm aware of the purpose of each character. They exist only to serve as a component of the guiding narrative that takes us on a "tour" of the aftermath caused by the tsunami. But because of this, the characters are nothing but cardboard cutouts of people. They're not interesting or worth sympathizing for in the most basic cinematic way because there's nothing distinguishing them from the hundreds of thousands of other people. But when watching the actual footage posted on You Tube, and listening to the real victims-- their gut-wrenching stories of their experiences, the movie fails to capture the same reaction of astonishment.… Expand

Bring your Kleenex this film will have you an emotional mess. To imagine in the blink of an eye your swept up by water and you have no idea where your family is or if their even alive would be scary. This is a great movie that is really hard to watch.

The Impossible is a movie about a family that goes on vacation to Thailand and had to survive to the tsunami. As the title of the film suggest this story is impossible to believe, although is based on true events. The plot is constructed by the separation of this five member family, in two: the mother with the older son and the father with the two following children, so they are supposed to find each other, yet they must not only endure physical pain, but also break psychological barriers, like fears, solitude, forced independence, hopelessness and post traumatic shock. Because of that this is a story of big magnitudes, treats topics like courage, hope, never giving up, facing fears and overcoming problems. The most outstanding thing of the picture, apart from the devastation images, are the performances: Naomi Watts is fine, but Tom Holland, as Lucas, is absolutely brilliant. The only problem is that The Impossible does not have nothing new to present, the stage is different, but the message is not original at all.… Expand

A harrowing account of one family's desperate attempts to survive a devastating Tsunami. Based on true events that happened on Boxing Day in Thailand 2004, The Impossible offers an almost unbearably realistic depiction of the catastrophe. Director J A Bayona utilises a variety of camera set ups to immerse us into the heart of the story, whilst at other times allowing us to just observe the resultant chaos. The cinematography and special effects are amazingly good and the music score and sound stirringly compliment the visuals. Heartfelt performances by Naomi Watts, Ewan McGregor and Tom Holland add pathos to the proceedings. On the evidence I'm now totally convinced that this wonderfully intense movie experience is as close as I ever want to get to a real Tsunami.… Expand

If the only objective of

The Impossible. As close as you will ever want to get to a natural disaster let alone one of the worst in recorded history. The movie is not all about when the waves hits, with the emotional performances of Ewan McGregor and Naomi Watts hitting just as hard. Some amazing visuals and sound design from an up and coming Spanish director Juan Antonio Bayona. Interesting how I was left feeling at the end which I believe is the point. I would say a must see movie.… Expand

Por mucho que sepas lo que pasará sigue impactando. Parece realmente imposible lo que sucedió. Es difícil no llorar o al menos que se te ponga la piel de gallina. Espectacular, dramática, grandes interpretaciones. Arriba el cine español.

Focusing heavily on the human aspect, The Impossible is on the other end of disaster movie spectrum, and one born of true struggle. While the first half has plenty of carnage, the latter shows its terrible repercussion. Acting from everyone is incredibly solid, it appeals dearly to audience by showing the family's struggle in such vivid fashion and without overselling the already grandiose effect of the tragedy.

It's emotionally moving as each member of the family tries to overcome the peril and find strength to do so in midst of the wounded. Naomi Watts (Maria Bennett) gives a fantastic performance, she really portrays the pain and helplessness, but still a mother who has to comfort her child. She displays such rivetingly agonizing grace beyond what make-up, while it helps, could possible show visually.

Tom Holland (Lucas Bennett) is equally impressive, he's so young but already performs such mature role as a child who needs to not only cope with the catastrophe but stay firmly strong for her mother. It's one of the best performances from young actors to date. Ewan McGregor (Henry Bennett) plays the kind father convincingly, who is torn in the overwhelming circumstance. He looks weary, tired and knows he most likely will not succeed, yet marches on staggeringly for his family in daunting shattered scenery.

This family of five endear to audience, especially the children, it's really easy to invest in their story. However, the dialogues are very plain. It's somewhat emphasized on the real life as it… Expand

"The Impossible'' is a true story very intense story of family's survival against the odds.worth checking out for the acting and effects ,and is not a remake movie.

This is about a family who amazingly survived the 2004 tsunami while on holiday but I'm pretty sure you already knew that. Firstly the acting, it's very, very good by basically everyone with Naomi Watts doing the better out of the two leads. This is a movie, ultimately about emotion but for some reason it was lacking in certain scenes when it should have been far more powerful but this wasn't the fault of the actors. It was probably down to the editing rather than direction although I have seen Elena Ruiz' work before, The Orphanage for example was great so who knows what the problem was. The CG is undeniably one of the finest examples I have seen. It sets the movie up nicely and hits home just how powerful tsunami's are. The production is also brilliant and the recreation of the damage and the hospitals etc. was good.

I enjoyed it but felt it could have been way better in the part that mattered most about a true story where there is so much loss of life, feeling. There should have been lots and lots of raw emotion leaving everyone with blurred vision at the very least but strangely, not a tear to be found. Too much fact, not enough fiction? (I never thought I'd say something like that, lol) Who knows.

Recommended.

7.5/10… Expand

Great film. It´s not a masterpiece by any means, but the acting from all the cast and the way they recreated the tsunami alone deserve the 8 I´m giving it. Naomi Watts is really into the character and gives one of her best if not her best performance to date. The kid is also great for his age and the few scenes in which Ewan McGregor takes the lead are also really well made, very realistic. After the big tsunami happens I thought I was going to be a little bit bored but it managed to keep my attention. Its flaws: it´s not original, it´s a little bit cheesy at moments and bases it´s strength in playing with the audience. It´s predictable but you don´t mind. The tsunami scenes are so realistic. 8/10… Expand

Best movie i have ever seen. It's has a lot of heart touching moment that can make you cry . it's was so real that can make you believe in that movie

As a drama film far better than Avatar & Co., mostly due to three reasons: The whole film is based on a true story and, of course, an actual event, which makes it so threedimensional. Secondly, there are amazing actors, especially an astonishing Tom Holland, who will surely get a row of offers after his critcally performance. And thirdly the amazing story and enactment of the fatal 26. December 2004, which is geniusly directedand well written. If you watch it, bring enough tissue with you!!!… Expand