Christian Volckman’s The Room breathes a tremendous amount of life into an old idea and delivers a smart, disturbing take on fulfillment and family.
“The only thing more dangerous than a person who can’t get what they want is a person who can get whatever they want.”
One of the most well known phrases out there is “be careful what you wish for.” It’s a moralistic parable that’s been around for forever and provided story inspiration for everything from Goosebumps, to The Simpsons, to Superman. There’s a tantalizing allure to the tainted resources that a “monkey’s paw” provides and it’s a story archetype that’s endured for so long because there’s a universal quality to this cautionary warning. It’s a lesson that seems so obvious and not necessary of concern, but the way in which people continually fall prey to it speaks to the human condition. Sometimes people can’t help but want more and that natural desire is perfect fuel for a horror film. Horror and science fiction resonate the most when they have some social commentary to fall back on and “be careful what you wish for” fits into that formula. It’s an ordinary idea that can go in so many directions, but director Christian Volckman’s The Room truly pushes the premise to exciting, challenging places.
Kate (Olga Kurylenko) and Matt (Kevin Janssens) are a couple that are still very much in love, but there’s baggage that still hangs over them. It doesn’t necessarily feel like their best days are past them, but they are desperate for some change to reinvigorate them. A move from New York City to New Hampshire brings a quaint new home, but with it a secret room that they stumble upon. Within this room, whatever someone wishes for will become a reality. The Room follows the standard trajectory where material riches and easy gains are endlessly wished upon, but then the film tackles considerably heavier territory.
To The Room’s credit, it knows that it’s dipping into well-worn territory and so it breezes through its premise and doesn’t waste the audience’s time. The film gives just enough information about Matt and Kate’s strained marriage before it introduces its magical room and pulls the trigger on it. This is in the film’s best interest and allows it to spend more time on the more psychologically intense material that it arrives upon.
This kind of story can often feel half-baked or easily fall apart since it’s pretty clear from the start where it’s headed, but The Room doesn’t submit to these typical pitfalls. This film is largely aided by its careful, intelligent script and the effective message that holds it all together. This is the best kind of twisted morality play and even though the story isn’t necessarily anything original, The Room finds new ways to make this fable-like narrative have power. It’s also admirable to see just how far they push this room’s abilities. They live each night like they’re in a totally different world and it’s very entertaining to see them exploit their good fortune before everything takes a turn for the worse.
The limitless powers of this room inevitably shift to Kate and Matt’s natural handicaps, such as Kate’s supposed inability to conceive. If this room can create massive riches, then why not a child? It’s a complication that’s both simple and deep. It’s this delicious gray area that the film has most of its fun. This premise of a child that’s “wrong” or shouldn’t exist is a disturbing topic that’s also not new to horror. Texts like Pet Sematary or the underrated Tales From the Darkside episode, “The Milkman Cometh,” have explored this to great effect. However, The Room connects to it especially well because of the creative turns that the story takes and the strong performances that Olga Kurylenko and Kevin Janssens deliver.
It’s not so much that there’s a problem with this offspring, but just that he’s forced into such a ticking time bomb of a scenario. It’s such a shortsighted situation that can only end in pain. Instantly this decision forms a barrier between Kate and Matt that only grows more intense over time. As the film goes on, it introduces some curious rules that begin to apply to the objects that the room creates. This goes to an extremely interesting place for the film’s final act, but still doesn’t demystify the room.
The Room also isn’t interested in the “why” of this secret room or how it’s able to grant wishes. This may frustrate some viewers, but it’s honestly not important to the story that’s being told. What’s significant here are the choices that Kate and Matt make, how those decisions change them, and how they’re able to handle the aftermath. A ten-minute deviation on some blood ritual or voodoo magic that happened in this room years ago would only slow down this story and interrupt the emotional development that’s on display. There is some attention paid to the previous people who owned the room and the disasters that fell on them, but it’s hardly expository.
After this new presence enters Kate and Matt’s lives, they wind up on different paths. Matt grows more suspicious of the room’s abilities, while Kate blissfully embraces their new child and ignores the warning signs. The different personalities that they fall into are fascinating to watch unfold. The way this manifests into how they treat their child is also startling and really nobody can win here.
Olga Kurylenko has gotten some high profile gigs like Quantum of Solace and Oblivion, but she really gets to sink her teeth into her role here and delivers what may be her strongest work to date. Opposite her is Kevin Janssens as Kate’s husband, Matt (in a role that couldn’t be more different than his toxic character in Revenge), who equally gives his all in his performance. There really isn’t much of a supporting cast to this film and it all comes down to Kurylenko and Janssens work. The Room is also essentially contained to one location and it doesn’t suffer at all from this limitation. The film uses its minimalism to its advantage.
Another one of The Room’s strengths is the foreboding atmosphere that it creates. Early on there are eerie omens that something is amiss. With every new luxury that this couple gains, there’s a dark energy that fills their home. It’s like they’re living in a fantasy dreamworld, but at any moment it could warp into a nightmare. Most of The Room plays out more like a psychological drama than a horror film, but it’s in the film’s conclusion where it really embraces the horror vibes. The final stretch of the movie is a disturbing, trippy assault that contains some really powerful images.
The Room is an unexpected ride that’s an absolute treat. It’s a film that begins from a very familiar place, but then truly exhibits innovation and depth with where it takes its ideas. It’s a film that’s light on the scares and may not necessarily be considered horror, but it’s a dark, effective story that will stick with you. The Room knows what it wants to be, does it very well, and doesn’t overstay its welcome. It’s glowing proof that there’s still plenty of life left in the old “monkey’s paw/be careful what you wish for” paradigm.
