Meanwhile, on a far more serious note, Room has scooped a number of Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director for Lenny Abrahamson and Best Actress for Brie Larson. It’s definitely not to be confused with anything that has gone before and it’s hard to think of another film in recent memory that has been quite so emotionally affecting and effective. Although the story of Emma Donoghue’s Booker Prize nominated novel is something of a known quantity, (and she adapts her own story for the screen) the trailers give away a fair few of its surprises. We’ll aim to keep some of those back, but if you want to go in completely clean, all you really need to know is that this is one of the very best films of the last 12 months, tackling a grim subject with equal parts gravitas and child-like wonder. In achieving this, it’s impossible to overestimate the contributions of the two actors who carry the film between them. Nine-year-old Jacob Tremblay is a hell of a discovery, giving a performance that instantly ranks amongst the greatest child acting turns ever committed to cinema. So much of the film relies upon crediting Jack as a character, not least because he is the audience’s perspective, but between Tremblay’s performance and Abrahamson’s brilliant direction of him, the character soars. Equally important is the role of Brie Larson as Ma. While Jack has been raised in this gnostic fantasy, oblivious to the horrifying truth, it’s Ma’s tremulous resolve that tips the grown-up audience off, even as she play-acts in order to keep Jack happy. Larson plays an absolute blinder in the role, both vulnerable and steely in equal measure, and even such in a strong year for female leads, the Oscar is hers to lose. Other characters orbit around the contained action, the most invasive of all being Old Nick, played with a disgusting coat of self-righteous slime by Bridgers (who previously played a similar role in Lucky McKee’s The Woman and must be alarmed by the possibility of typecasting.) Pleasantville stars Joan Allen and William H. Macy also figure into the plot as Ma’s distraught parents, and Orphan Black‘s Tom McCamus also lends some much-needed warmth in the darker passages of the film. If all of that sounds horribly depressing, then rest assured, Room is also just about the most life-affirming film that you’ll see. Abrahamson’s versatility has already been in evidence in his previous films – going from the low-key drama What Richard Did to the hilarious Frank in the last two years is impressive for any director – but this is his crowning achievement to date. Levity is in short supply, as befits the subject matter, but there are certainly joyous and funny moments to be had here too. There aren’t any fantasy or science fiction elements here, but because we’re viewing the story as a child understands it, it often feels fantastical. To this end, Abrahamson finds innovative ways of shooting the titular Room from the perspective of someone who has never known anything different, shooting close-ups in wide angles. Through some combination of this and composer Stephen Rennick’s ethereal score, the setting becomes a microcosm that nevertheless contains multitudes. Room will definitely give you an emotional workout and it’s guaranteed to leave no viewer unmoved. It’s set squarely within four walls from the outset, but you will come out on the other side transported by the tremendous story and the world-beating performances and the marvellous direction. It’s disturbing and harrowing, yes, but it’s uplifting in the ultimate sense – a film that leaves you more optimistic about the world afterwards than you were beforehand. Follow our Twitter feed for faster news and bad jokes right here. And be our Facebook chum here.