Tom Holland’s ‘The Impossible’ Is Still Heartbreaking

The festive season is usually filled with warm cookies, quality time with your loved ones, and perhaps even a getaway to enjoy the sun and the beach in a different country. During the Christmas holidays in 2004, many tourists chose to do the latter, but none of them knew that this decision would change their lives, and those of the locals, forever. The Impossible, which was released in 2012, revisits the events of December 26, 2004, when a deadly tsunami rolled over the shores of numerous countries.

Starring well-known actors in the industry, such as the beloved Spider-Man actor, Tom Holland, Mulholland Drive star Naomi Watts, and Moulin Rouge’s Ewan McGregor, The Impossible has the perfect cast to capture the terror behind this tragedy in greater detail. Even though the natural disaster behind The Impossible occurred 20 years ago, this Tom Holland is still just as heart-breaking.

What Is ‘The Impossible’ About?

The drama follows a family of five, as they travel to Thailand in order to spend the Christmas holidays together. Thanks to an unexpected upgrade, the lucky family is housed in a luxury apartment right by the coastline, where they get to enjoy the view and beachside amenities. On Boxing Day, Maria (Naomi Watts) and Henry (Ewan McGregor) want to spend a relaxing day at the pool with their three young children, Lucas (Tom Holland), Simon (Oaklee Pendergast), and Thomas (Samuel Joslin), but peace turns into chaos when a natural disaster strikes.

A deadly tsunami is rolling in from the ocean, and time to flee to safety is scarce. Unable to escape, Maria and her eldest son, Lucas, are immediately swept away, while Henry grabs the two younger ones, but they are also swallowed by the water, just like all the other people who were just ripped out of their paradise getaway. What follows is a tragic fight for survival captured in one of the best movies about natural disasters, and with hundreds of thousands left deceased, the hope that the family will reunite is slimming by the minute.

The Unbelievable True Story Behind ‘The Impossible’

As devastating as it is, The Impossible is indeed based on real life, as it recounts the tragic events of December 26, 2004, when the deadliest tsunami ever recorded hit the shores of numerous countries and took the lives of around 230,000 people. While Indonesia was the most affected country, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and India followed shortly after, but even more countries were hit. The tsunami was caused by an unbelievably powerful earthquake that occurred in the Indian Ocean, with Sumatra being hit the worst.

The Impossible is set in Khao Lak in Thailand, where 4,000 out of the 5,000 deaths in Thailand occurred. María Belón and Enrique Álvarez, together with their three sons, Lucas, Simón, and Tomás, are the real-life family behind this shocking natural disaster movie. They left their home in Spain to spend a Christmas vacation at the Orchid Resort in Khao Lak, but were instead caught in this deadly tsunami. Just like in the movie, the entire family was left to follow their instincts as they fought for their survival.

What Makes ‘The Impossible’ Great

Movies that are based on real life simply hit your soul in a different way. Imagining that someone out there has been through such traumatic events is almost impossible, which really is a testament to how powerful their story and the stories of so many other people who were affected by the 2004 tsunami are. The way the entire family behaved during this catastrophe and remained focused on fighting to survive easily makes The Impossible one of the most inspiring movies based on a true story.

The story of the movie is extremely close to real-life events, as it was incredibly important to the family that their experiences are vivid to viewers. They were very hands-on during production, which allowed the viewers to immerse themselves in this devastating catastrophe and come a bit closer to getting an understanding of how daunting this tsunami truly was. There is no denying that the acting in The Impossible was more than outstanding, with Naomi Watts perfectly bringing across María’s heroic behavior and McGregor nailing Álvarez’s dedicated nature. Tom Holland’s breakout role as Lucas in The Impossible certainly added even more momentum to the weight of the situation, and Oaklee Pendergast and Samuel Joslin successfully brought across the bravery and sweetness of the two youngest boys.

Apart from the phenomenal acting, The Impossible is certainly not one of those movies whose special effects didn’t age well. On the contrary, even though this movie was made far over a decade ago, its brilliant special effects still hold up to this day. The entire movie feels extremely real, almost too real during certain scenes, as even real footage was used to deliver an outstanding masterpiece. The Impossible is available to stream on Paramount+.