The setup of Room, a disarmingly interior story from its claustrophobic first half to the surprising second half, is how a mother (Brie Larson) and her young son (Jacob Tremblay) have to survive in a confined space.<\/p>\n
An unusual opening sequence gradually establishes a narrative\u00a0framework of kidnap and incarceration, not dissimilar to those in films such as The Collector<\/a> (1965) and Michael<\/a> (2011).<\/p>\n But director\u00a0Lenny Abrahamson<\/a>\u00a0and screenwriter\u00a0Emma Donoghue<\/a>\u00a0(adapting from her own novel) opt for a different approach.<\/p>\n To fully reveal what that is would unleash all kinds of spoilers, but there is\u00a0an emphasis here on survival, complex emotions, trauma and readjusting to environments.<\/p>\n Whilst the story could have descended into daytime mush, Abrahamson and his team skilfully tread a fine line of raw honesty, then\u00a0lace it with knots of fear, anger, grief, hope and love.<\/p>\n