Movie · 2012 · Drama, Thriller, History · 1h 53m · PG-13 · English
Curator score: 6.2/10 (622.2K ratings)
Nothing is more powerful than the human spirit.
Overview
In December 2004, close-knit family Maria, Henry and their three sons begin their winter vacation in Thailand. But the day after Christmas, the idyllic holiday turns into an incomprehensible nightmare when a terrifying roar rises from the depths of the sea, followed by a wall of black water that devours everything in its path. Though Maria and her family face their darkest hour, unexpected displays of kindness and courage ameliorate their terror.
Ratings
Curator score: 6.2/10
IMDb: 7.5/10
Letterboxd: 3.65/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 81%
Metacritic: 73
TMDB: 7.4/10
Director
J. A. Bayona
Production
Apaches Films, Telecinco Cinema, La Trini, Canal+ España
Cast
Naomi Watts, Ewan McGregor, Tom Holland, Samuel Joslin, Oaklee Pendergast, Marta Etura, Sönke Möhring, Geraldine Chaplin, Ploy Jindachote, Jomjaoi Sae-Limh, Johan Sundberg, Jan Roland Sundberg, La-Orng Thongruang, Tor Klathaley, Douglas Johansson, Emilio Riccardi, Vorarat Jutakeo, Karun Konsaman, Nicola Harrison, John Albasiny
Curator Review
Verdict
A tense, emotionally direct disaster drama that works best as a survival story and a showcase for committed performances. It can feel manipulative at times, but the tsunami sequence and the film’s focus on endurance, separation, and small acts of compassion give it real impact.
Best for
disaster films with strong emotional stakes
survival stories based on true events
viewers who want high-intensity suspense with family drama
audiences who appreciate performance-driven melodrama
Skip if
you want a broad historical account of the 2004 tsunami
you’re sensitive to disaster imagery and bodily trauma
you dislike emotionally heightened, tear-jerking storytelling
you prefer films that center local perspectives over Western family narratives
Overview
The Impossible is built around one of modern cinema’s most harrowing disaster sequences, and it earns that reputation. J. A. Bayona stages the tsunami with brutal clarity, then keeps the film in the wreckage long enough for fear, confusion, and exhaustion to settle in. The result is less a spectacle than an ordeal, anchored by Naomi Watts and a remarkably naturalistic turn from a young Tom Holland.
Worth noting
What gives the film staying power is not just the catastrophe, but the human scale of what follows: separation, triage, searching, and the fragile relief of strangers helping strangers. Bayona is unapologetically emotional, sometimes to the point of manipulation, and the film’s perspective has drawn fair criticism for centering a white tourist family within a Thai tragedy.
Bottom line
Even with those caveats, it remains an effective and often devastating survival drama. If you respond to intense, hands-on filmmaking and stories about endurance under impossible pressure, this is a strong watch. If you want a more expansive or locally centered account of the disaster, it may leave you wanting more.
Top Letterboxd reviews
elena 🍋 (5★) · 3318 likes
what do you mean tom was 16 in this movie I THOUGHT HE WAS 9
tobias (: (3.5★) · 2798 likes
mother: *literally coughing up blood so much, might be genuinely dying*
Tom Holland: mum, what are you doing? STOP IT MUM, THATS ENOUGH! STOP IT!
Stacey B (2★) · 2302 likes
I understand that this is a true story but I also wish that they'd stop making films about things that happen in non-White countries and then have it star all white people... This family is extremely blessed because not only were they born into privilege and monetary stability, but they were lucky enough to have all survived AND they got to return back to their home in the end. In reality, thousands of Thai people did not get to hop… more I understand that this is a true story but I also wish that they'd stop making films about things that happen in non-White countries and then have it star all white people... This family is extremely blessed because not only were they born into privilege and monetary stability, but they were lucky enough to have all survived AND they got to return back to their home in the end. In reality, thousands of Thai people did not get to hop… more
✨PinkMcflurry (Danya)✨ (4.5★) · 1024 likes
One of my favourite scenes from this movie in the conversation between Thomas and this lady about dead stars. I love how they wrote it as a symbolism of human life. That although those stars may be dead or dying, they once were so bright that they lit up the entire solar system; just as a very important person in your life may have lit up your world when they were alive. Then he asked “how do you know which… more One of my favourite scenes from this movie in the conversation between Thomas and this lady about dead stars. I love how they wrote it as a symbolism of human life. That although those stars may be dead or dying, they once were so bright that they lit up the entire solar system; just as a very important person in your life may have lit up your world when they were alive. Then he asked “how do you know which… more
elliebean (3★) · 917 likes
tom holland we get it you are SO talented but you don't need to flex on us like this