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The screenplay isn't quite as powerful as the direction or the acting, but with such an astonishing real-life story at its center, The Impossible is never less than compelling.
All Critics (194) | Top Critics (48) | Fresh (158) | Rotten (36) | DVD (2)
Alas, the movie tells a rather commonplace story. Jan 28, 2013
Alas, the movie tells a rather commonplace story.
David Denby
The tsunami sequence is amazing, right up there with the one Clint Eastwood staged in Hereafter. Jan 18, 2013 | Rating: B- | Full Review…
The tsunami sequence is amazing, right up there with the one Clint Eastwood staged in Hereafter.
Peter Rainer
This is an unforgettable tribute to the determination of a very special family. Jan 17, 2013 | Rating: 4/5 | Full Review…
This is an unforgettable tribute to the determination of a very special family.
Richard Roeper
Unlike some films that have become critics' darlings, 'The Impossible' has no pretensions. It isn't edgy and I don't think it has a hidden subtext. Jan 4, 2013 | Full Review…
Unlike some films that have become critics' darlings, 'The Impossible' has no pretensions. It isn't edgy and I don't think it has a hidden subtext.
Leonard Maltin
Naomi Watts gives one of her finest, most physically commanding turns. Jan 4, 2013 | Rating: 3.5/4
Naomi Watts gives one of her finest, most physically commanding turns.
Lisa Kennedy
Although it's ostensibly based on true events, The Impossible is not so much an inspiring tale of survival as it is an action flick. Jan 4, 2013 | Full Review…
Although it's ostensibly based on true events, The Impossible is not so much an inspiring tale of survival as it is an action flick.
Bilge Ebiri
[The Impossible] shows us devastation, yes, unbelievable havoc, yes, horrific human loss, yes. But also, exemplary courage and love and compassion, all done with freshness and feeling. Mar 21, 2019 | Rating: 4/5 | Full Review…
[The Impossible] shows us devastation, yes, unbelievable havoc, yes, horrific human loss, yes. But also, exemplary courage and love and compassion, all done with freshness and feeling.
Shubhra Gupta
The wrath of nature is re-created so masterfully by filmmaker Juan Antonio Bayona that it feels like a documentary. Jan 25, 2019 | Full Review…
The wrath of nature is re-created so masterfully by filmmaker Juan Antonio Bayona that it feels like a documentary.
Nathalia Aryani
It might seem a noble project, aiming to show the rest of the world what hell some endured. But even a dramatic film can only suggest part of the experience. And I fear The Impossible might serve only to trivialize that experience. Dec 18, 2018 | Rating: 2/4 | Full Review…
It might seem a noble project, aiming to show the rest of the world what hell some endured. But even a dramatic film can only suggest part of the experience. And I fear The Impossible might serve only to trivialize that experience.
Kelly Jane Torrance
Compelling and oozing with conflict and complexity, The Impossible is a heartfelt horror show worth its weight in reflective, ghoulish gold. Nov 18, 2018 | Rating: 3/4 | Full Review…
Compelling and oozing with conflict and complexity, The Impossible is a heartfelt horror show worth its weight in reflective, ghoulish gold.
Frank Ochieng
It's all superbly acted, with Watts especially delivering a powerful performance. Aug 13, 2018 | Rating: 4/5 | Full Review…
It's all superbly acted, with Watts especially delivering a powerful performance.
Jamie Neish
Bayona's staging of the tsunami without (seemingly without) digital effects is relentless, convincing, terrifying, non-stupid, and without Hollywood wonder. Apr 30, 2018 | Full Review…
Bayona's staging of the tsunami without (seemingly without) digital effects is relentless, convincing, terrifying, non-stupid, and without Hollywood wonder.
A.S. Hamrah
A tsunami in Asia at first tears a family apart and then brings them together. Good acting (particularly by Naomi Watts and Tom Holland), subtle direction, decent writing, and the added tension that being in a foreign land might bring during a huge crisis, and yet ... it was hard for me to involve myself in this tale.
Super Reviewer
With wonderful acting, "The Impossible" tells a captivating true story in which survival impulses, society, family ties and human kindness all shine and inspire. This is a very well done film.
I was perhaps not very emotionally attached to the characters in this one, but it is undeniable that the performances are brilliant all around.
"The Impossible" is a film that has a moment every watcher awaits from the moment the screen credits begin to roll - the tsunami. These "moment" films have a major obstacle to clear as the expectation for that moments gives the film the pressure to live up to that "moment". But thanks to those high expectations films that are able to live up to the promise transcend. Some examples are "Jaws" where everyone in the audience is on the edge of their seats waiting to see that shark and when it does appear, boy does it meet expectations. And then the film itself continues to build on that momentum and before you realize it you are experiencing a special kind of magic. When it's done poorly - say like 2004's "The Day After Tomorrow", it's a disaster. This film marketed world destruction and the special effects delivered but the film itself was tedious and idiotic. When the tsunami arrives in "The Impossible" - it is terrifying. Just like advertised the moment that is the nucleus to the film is visually stunning but also a horrifying thing to witness. Juan Antonio Bayona does an incredible job at not just stopping at the huge wave that overcomes the resort but the unknown dangers it continued to unleash on our protagonists. Thanks to strong performances by Naomi Watts and the incredible Tom Holland, "The Impossible" comes close to being a home run, but the moment that action shifts to Ewan McGregor's side of the story it deflates. The script in its attempts to depict moments that occurred over a long period of time into a compact 2 hours becomes hard to swallow. Coincidences abound - one moment in the hospital (will avoid divulging spoiler) is particularly Hollywood. For about 3/4 of its length, "The Impossible" is a hell of a film but it ultimately begins to falter. Luckily for us the promise the movie made of exposing you to the horrors of the tsunami and surviving it is fulfilled. Too bad the human element didn't equal that promise.
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