The Impossible [Includes Digital Copy] [Blu-ray]

Director: Juan Antonio Bayona Juan Antonio Bayona

Overview

Director Juan Antonio Bayona follows up his critically acclaimed feature debut The Orphanage with this drama set during the 2004 Thailand tsunami, detailing one family's incredible fight for survival. Inspired by actual events, The Impossible finds Henry (Ewan McGregor), his wife Maria (Naomi Watts), and their three sons lounging poolside at a scenic Thailand resort following an eventful Christmas. But just as the family begins to forget their troubles and settle in for a relaxing tropical getaway, one of the worst natural disasters in modern history changes their lives in the blink of an eye. Meanwhile, as shock gives way to abject horror, the devoted parents fight to protect their children, encountering scenes of heart-wrenching tragedy and experiencing acts of incredible compassion as the entire country is engulfed in chaos. Tom Hollander and Geraldine Chaplin co-star.

Product Details

Release Date:	04/23/2013
UPC:	0025192181511
Original Release:	2012
Rating:	PG-13
Source:	LIONSGATE - 600000-AEC LGE
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Language:	English
Time:	1:54:00
Sales rank:	23,865

Special Features

Audio Commentary with Director J.A. Bayona, Writer Sergio G. Sánchez, Producer Belén Atienza, and María Belón; "Casting The Impossible" featurette; "Realizing The Impossible" featurette; Deleted Scenes

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Ewan McGregor	Henry
Naomi Watts	Maria
Tom Holland	Lucas,Kid in the Tent,Kid in the Tent
Geraldine Chaplin	Elderly Woman
Samuel Joslin	Thomas
Oaklee Pendergast	Simon
Marta Etura	Simone
Sönke Möhring	Karl
Ploy Jindachot	Actor
Jomjai Sae-limh "Maew"	Red Cross Nurse
Johan Sundberg	Daniel,Daniel's Father
La-Orng Thongruang	Old Thai Man
Tor Klathaley	Young Thai Man
Douglas Johansson	Mr. Benstrom
Emilio Riccardi	Morten Benstrom
Vorarat Jutakeo	Doctor in Stockroom
Karun Konsaman	Young Nurse in Stockroom
Nicola Harrison	Woman in Charge of Simon and Thomas
John Albasiny	Oliver Tudpole
Gitte Witt	Norwegian Patient
Bruce Blain	American Tourist
Cecilia Arnold	American Tourist's Wife,American Tourist's Wife
Peter Tuinstra	American Tourist on Orchid Roof
Esther Davis	Volunteer in Children's Tent
Dominic Power	Tourist Near the Orchid,Young Nurse in Airplane
Sarinrat Thomas	Operating Nurse
Keerati Sivakuae "Oak"	Orchid Male Employee
Vipavee Charoenpura	Woman in Childen's Minibus,Woman in Children's Minibus
Kovit Wattanakul	Henry's Pick-up Driver,Henry's Pick-up Driver
Zoe Popham	Tourist in Henry's Pick-up
Ronnie Eide	Tourist in Henry's Pick-up
Bonnie Jo Hutchinson	Tourist at Bus Station
Jean-Loup Pilblad	Tourist at Bus Station
Franky Gun	Tourist at Bus Station
Giovani Agresti	Tourist Looking for Francesca
Georgina Baert	Woman Looking for Relative
David Bruce	Actor
Natalia Lorence	Woman Looking for Relatives
Sverre Golten	Man Looking for Relatives
Clare Louise Plunkett	Woman Looking for Relatives
Raphael Dewaerseghers	Naked Man
Pisamai Pakdeevijit	Member of Thai Family in Stockroom
Aratchaporn Satead	Member of Thai Family in Stockroom
Jakapong Srichaem	Member of Thai Family in Stockroom
Simon Blyberg	Ferdinand
Christopher Byrd	Dieter
Namfon Pakdee	Orchid Female Employee
Georgina Winters	Patient in Takua Pa Hospital
Dina Kiseleva	Patient in Takua Pa Hospital
Krittanai Yongtrakull "Beer"	Emergency Nurse
Takashi Hasegawa	Japanese Tourist
Kristen Mandel	Redheaded Woman
Mara Garcia Garcia	Kid in the Car
Fernando Velázquez	Conductor,Composer
Ploy Jindachote	Actor
Oak Keerati	Orchid Male Employee
Danny Danny	Tourist in Henry's Pick-up
Tan Demir	Patient in Takua Pa Hospital
Tom Hollander	Actor

Technical Credits

Sergio G. Sánchez

Sergio G. Sanchez

Juan Antonio Bayona	Director
Sergio G. Sánchez	Screenwriter
Belén Atienza	Producer,Producer
Enrique López Lavigne	Producer
Álvaro Augustín	Producer
Ghislain Barrois	Producer
Sandra Hermida	Executive Producer,Producer
Javier Ugarte	Executive Producer,Producer
Oriol Tarrago	Sound/Sound Designer
Albert Carreras	Camera Operator
Simone Bar	Casting
Yolanda Serrano	Casting
Eva Leira	Casting
Shaheen Baig	Casting
Jeanette Klintberg	Casting
Peter Glossop	Sound Mixer
Montse Ribe	Makeup Special Effects
David Marti	Makeup Special Effects
Mark Bech	Sound Editor
Eduardo Moratilla	Stunts
Ignacio Carreno	Stunts
Guiomar Alonso	Stunts
Pau Costa	Special Effects Supervisor
Sandra Hermida Muñiz	Production Manager
Álvaro Augustin	Producer,Producer
Jorge Adrados	Sound Effects
Howard Meltzer	Casting
Sergio G. Sanchez	Screenwriter
Enrique Lopez Lavigne	Producer

Editorial Reviews

Almost every time we walk into a movie theater, we run the risk of having our emotions manipulated. Whether we're watching a drama, a romance, a comedy, or a horror flick, one of the primary indicators as to whether or not that story will resonate lies in the filmmaker's ability to pull our strings through a delicately balanced blend of effective writing, skillful acting, powerful imagery, and music that reflects (or, in certain instances, contradicts) the mood of the action taking place onscreen. The best directors do this with a subtlety that renders this blatant appeal to our emotions invisible -- leaving us, the audience, alone with the characters up on the screen as they strive to accomplish a certain goal or navigate through a difficult situation. In his second feature The Impossible, Spanish director Juan Antonio Bayona takes us directly into the path of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, revealing the true story of how one vacationing family not only managed to persevere through the devastating natural disaster, but, incredibly, reunited amidst the chaos and confusion that immediately followed. It's a truly visceral piece of filmmaking, but alas, it's hindered more than helped by a certain composer's shameless attempts to get our tears swelling right along with his overwrought strings. Henry (Ewan McGregor), his wife Maria (Naomi Watts), and their three sons Lucas (Tom Holland), Thomas (Samuel Joslin), and Simon (Oaklee Pendergast) are lounging poolside at a scenic Thailand resort following an eventful Christmas when one of the worst natural disasters in modern history changes their lives in the blink of an eye. As shock gives way to abject horror, the devoted parents fight to protect their children, along the way encountering scenes of heart-wrenching tragedy and experiencing acts of incredible compassion as the entire country is engulfed in chaos. In 2007, Bayona burst onto the international film scene with The Orphanage. Executive produced by Guillermo del Toro, The Orphanage succeeded not simply due to its ability to frighten, but because it managed to stir our emotions by painting its specters in a tragic light. It was an effective and richly textured psychological drama served up in horror trappings. Five years later, Bayona returns with The Impossible, a film that exchanges the gothic atmosphere of The Orphanage for a sunny beach in Thailand while focusing on the all-too-real horror of a family torn apart by forces far beyond their control. On the surface The Impossible is every parent's worst nightmare brought to life, yet once the surge hits, Bayona and screenwriter Sergio G. Sánchez focus as much on the family's efforts to find each other as they do the inherent selflessness we exhibit in times of great crisis. In The Impossible, Bayona's directorial strengths are immeasurably enhanced by a cast who do an exceptional job of emphasizing the humanity of Sánchez's compact yet emotionally complex screenplay, which alternates between the story of a critically wounded mother who strives to teach her son the healing power of altruism, and a father who refuses to give up hope even when all seems lost. In his very first onscreen film role, gifted young actor Tom Holland nearly steals the show from previous Oscar nominee Watts for a couple of reasons. Holland's remarkable ability to capture the mannerisms and nuances of his movie father serves to constantly remind us of McGregor's presence even when he's offscreen, but it's the talented young actor's ability to portray an effective mix of shock and perseverance that really drives his part of the story. When Lucas first recognizes the extent of his mother's injuries, his shaken reaction perfectly encapsulates that dreaded moment when we realize our parents aren't immortal. As a result, we understand how the tragedy has forced his character to mature in ways that he may not have been ready for. Even though she's muted by an oxygen mask for a good portion of the film, Watts shines as a mother who refuses to let her son's survival instincts overshadow his duties to the less fortunate early on. As the father who's faced with the agonizing decision to leave his two younger sons behind to search for Maria and Lucas, however, it's McGregor who personifies the unwavering sense of hope at the heart of The Impossible. A scene in which Henry uses a stranger's cell phone to place an emotionally charged call home captures that awful feeling when the horrible reality of a traumatic situation begins to set in as our consciousness struggles to catch up with our physical surroundings, and it highlights how the fleeting friendships that emerge in desperate times can have lasting and profound effects. For all of the talent in front of and behind the camera, however, there's one component of The Impossible that threatens to push the entire endeavor over the emotional cliff, and that's Fernando Velázquez's irredeemably unctuous score. With a story this emotional, one can see why Velázquez would be tempted to flex his orchestral muscles, but we hardly need to be told how to feel while watching a movie about a family being ripped apart by a violent force of nature, and in his efforts to enhance the drama, he instead ends up undercutting it. His score for The Impossible is so over-the-top melodramatic that at times it borders on parody, and given the highly effective use of sound design throughout the film, the picture would have been much better served without it. That pronounced shortcoming aside, The Impossible offers a refreshing air of hope in an era obsessed with fatalism, and serves as a stunning reminder that sometimes it's the worst situations that bring out the best in people.