Trigger Warning: There are emotional and horrific crimes written in this post – based on a movie, but still require a warning all the same.
Last Tuesday night, I headed to the movies with Nicole from The Builder’s Wife to see Room.
I had little idea of what the storyline was about. I won tickets by entering a competition, expecting the showing to be on a Saturday night for Jacob and I to have a rare date night out. But I stuffed up the dates and realised it was to be last Tuesday night instead. I stood Jacob up and asked if Nicole would like to join me.
We had a bite to eat for dinner before the movie preview and we touched on the busyness of being working mothers. I reflected on the busyness of being a mum to toddlers that weren’t independent, and Nicole reflected on the busyness of running her teenagers around to this that and the other. It wasn’t a competition on who was the busiest, but simply a reflection on the different stages of life we were at.
Nicole warned me to bring some tissues before the movie because she read reviews that it would be a tear jerker. I warned Nicole not to judge me for being a guts and eating my staple movie meal of popcorn and Maltesers, matched with a diet coke.
Anyway, the movie started and I had tears and uttered a few ‘OMG’s’ and gripped the seat as the storyline unfolded.
The movie is based on the bestselling novel written by Emma Donoghue. The story is a gripping tale of how a young woman (Joy) was kidnapped as a teenager and locked in a shed (the Room) where she is kept captive and raped by her kidnapper for 7 years. Joy gives birth to a son Jack and the story is narrated from Jack’s point of view. We only understand the full horrific events of the story by placing the pieces together through Jack’s eyes.
Despite the despicable crime unfolding before our eyes, the movie is a story of freedom and Jack’s understanding of what is real beyond the room that he has always known as his home. Joy purposefully made the best out of the four walls they were prisoned in for the first 5 years of Jack’s life. Their plan of escape was nail biting.
There were so many take home messages from the movie. I loved Nicole’s post about Making your House a Home. I definitely got the same message after viewing the movie.
Another message that I took away from the movie was this: We can all make the best out of a difficult situation.
Joy had tried to escape, but she got hurt and her wrist became injured when she tried to break away. A key coded door was the only escape to the outside world – the only way out to freedom.
Who knows how many tears she cried and how many times she wished she could have escaped but realized she was unable to do so. So she made the best of the four walls she was prisoned in.
What went through her mind when she became pregnant with her kidnapper’s child, to then make a decision to bring her son up, in that room – I couldn’t comprehend it. She did what she could to protect her son from fully understanding what would happen to her at night by placing him in the closet to sleep.
Us mums (and dads) will do what needs to be done to protect our babies and we are good at hiding our worries and terrible events they are too little to understand.
The movie was also a good reminder to be vigilant with my girls about safety around strangers. We live in a world where missing persons and missing children are becoming more of a common occurrence. I couldn’t shake off the dreaded feeling of how many children or teenagers are living this story for real in their own lives and we have no idea of their whereabouts.
As school starts for a new year, I’m determined to be vigilant about safety for our children. We need to make note of anything unusual and to listen to our gut if something doesn’t look or seem right. I much prefer to be proven wrong, than to be proven right when it’s too late.
The movie definitely moved me and made me thankful for the simple life we often take for granted.
If you’re keen to see Room, it will be released in theatres on 28th January.
Have you seen a movie recently that moved you? How do you tackle stranger awareness and safety with your children?
I’m linking up with Essentially Jess for IBOT.
